Friday, February 27, 2015

Principals Blog for the Week of February 23rd-27th

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The February Newsletter is posted on the 
High School Webpage. It will provide 
additional details on events, activities, 
photos and calendar reminders.
http://www.douglasps.net/files/filesystem/February%20Newsletter1.pdf

March Newsletter will be released next week.  
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We have returned from Winter Break and actually experienced a full week of school without a cancellation. 

We have completed the course selection process here at the High School. Mrs. Stack and Mrs. Carpenter did a wonderful job of working with every student on this process.  They covered course sequences, credit requirements and academic pathways for the students.  At this point, parents should have reviewed teacher recommendations for their students in IPASS as well as have reviewed the initial course selections made by their students.  Parents are reminded to use the IPASS Parent Portal to sign off on the verification of the courses that they want their student to enroll in.  This is an important part of the course selection process.

An additional reminder is that First Semester Report Cards have been posted in IPASS and parents should have reviewed the grades for their students.  Also, during the first semester teachers have posted their assessments for student performance on meeting our Learning Expectations.  To access this information; parents should select My Document in the left hand links in IParent and that will take them to the Rubric which details the skills being assessed and the criteria for each of these codes.  The codes that the student received related to these Learning Expectations can be found in My Documents, as well as by simply clicking the Grades link in IParent and simply clicking the comments link for each class.  This link will take you to each of the codes that apply to each Learning Expectation.  If you have questions please contact the Guidance Department.

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Makenzie Cyr named Student-Athlete of the Month by the MIAA
During the vacation week, Makenzie Cyr placed 9th in the All-State Indoor Track Meet in the 2 mile.  She had finished 2 in the Division II meet the week earlier. These two races were her final two indoor races at DHS and she has certainly left her mark as the top female runner in Central and Western Massachusetts over the past two seasons and as one of the top distance runners in this region since seventh grade.  We are very proud of how Makenzie has represented the team, her coaches, the school the community and her family.  She leaves a lasting mark on the sport and the school.  

Please click the link below that includes the MIAA's press release detailing her recognition for this honor.  congratulations Makenzie. 

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Senior Night 
Boys Varsity Basketball

The DHS Boys Basketball team celebrated Senior Night in an important must win game versus BVT.  The team came away with a big win that put them into the MIAA tournament for the second consecutive year.  This years Seniors are:
Tyler Barsamian, Matt Fausch, Teddy George, Johnny Gonzalez, Jesse Mosczynski and Cam Saster. They were recognized along with their parents and DHS extends its appreciation to this players for their dedication and commitment to the program. 








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The team then went on to compete in the Clark Tournament during the school vacation week. This was the second consecutive year that the team competed in this prestigious tournament. They faced Maynard HS and lost a tough battle by five points, 47-42. The team was lead by Teddy George who scored  11 points.  


On Tuesday night the team then moved on to the MIAA tournament and again faced Maynard HS.  This game is the same as the battle at the Clark Tournament but this time DHS prevailed with a solid victory over the 17-3 Tigers of Maynard, winning by a score of 57-50.  They now advance to the second round of the MIAA tournament tonight versus Worcester Tech at Worcester Tech at 7:00.   



Our Cheerleaders brought great spirit and support to both of these games. They did a great job of rallying the fans in support of the team. Proving once again that they are a great team and a positive reflection on the school and their coaches.


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We send along our thanks to Mr. Gordon for all of these great photos.  


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Girls Basketball
Our girls hoop team had their season draw to a close after a very tough 60-58 loss versus Greater Lowell Technical High School last night at Greater Lowell.  The girls had fallen to a 17 point deficit with only 6 minutes left to play when they mounted their comeback.  The battle intensely to chip away at this deficit and did so getting the score down to 2 with only 6 seconds left to play.  They unfortunately were not able to go the length of court and score to tie or win the game and their season came to a close.  During the game the team was lead by strong defensive play from Megan Hayes, Ashley Gresian, Shanna King, Hannah Favaloro and Kayla Finnegan.  Offensively the team received strong performances from Senior Shannon Powell and sophomore Meghan Carroll who both scored 14 points and by sophomore Peyton Young who tallied 22 points on the night.

The team ends the season with their fourth consecutive post-season berth with a 12-9 final record.  Congratulations go out to all the players on the team for their efforts and the quality of their play.  Congratulations to Coach Quinn for his leadership and commitment to the players and the program.
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The Douglas Cheerleaders are now 
DVC Champions!!
Last week, DHS hosted an invitational tournament which also served as the DVC tournament.  They continue their strong tournament season having placed first in the Prouty, Chicopee and in their home tournament.  As a result of this DVC tournament, the Cheerleaders were able to again claim the DVC Championship.  We congratulate Coach Ursch and Coach Socha and all the girls for what has been and exceptional tournament season.  They move on to compete in the Massachusetts Regional Tournament on Sunday in Springfield.  
Great job everyone. 

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Music Department News – Tiger Jam 

On Saturday, March 28th the music department, music technology class, TV production class will collaborate on this year’s scholarship fundraising concert the Tiger Jam.  The concert will feature performances by some of DHS music students and alumni accompanied by our pop music performances by DHS students and alumni backed by our very own house band The Hortons, featuring DHS faculty members Ed Lachapelle, Kevin Riordan, Gery Elliott and Al DeNoncour along with student drummer Andreus Christy . 


Tickets for the event are $10 each and are available through the music department office (508-476-4127) or through any music department student


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The MIAA Educational Athletics Department is pleased to announce the latest recipients of the
“MIAA Student-Athlete of the Month Award”


miaa logo2  color.jpg      EducationAthleticsIcon.jpg
January 2015

Makenzie Cyr
Douglas High School

Click here for Press Release

Owen Hunter
Monument Mountain Regional High School


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DPAC Announcement:


Social thinking speaker Nancy Clements, MA, CCC-SLP will be coming to our district on March 23rd 7 – 8PM.  Presentation will be held at the Elementary school library – 19 Davis Street, Douglas MA.
Nancy will be giving an overview on social thinking and how it can positively support students in the classroom.

What is Social Thinking?
Social thinking is what we do when we interact with people: we think about them. And how we think about people affects how we behave, which in turn affects how others respond to us, which in turn affects our own emotions.
Nancy Clements is a speech language pathologist and Executive Director of Social Thinking Boston®, the East Coast sister clinic to Social Thinking Stevens Creek and Social Thinking Santana Row. She brings her highly creative approach to her clinical practice, where she maintains a very active and varied caseload ranging from early social learners through adults. She is especially interested in bringing Social Thinking concepts to all learners and continuing to analyze the impact of social thinking methodologies across all tiers using a Response to Intervention (RTI) model. Nancy enjoys formulating programs from the ground up through creative strategies, systems of implementation, and models of efficacy that are data driven. Having been raised by parents who were both educators, she brings an empathic and collaborative approach to coaching teachers, administrators and specialists.


For any questions please contact:  Lori McDermott at 508 446 4517 lori.mcdermott@yahoo.com    

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Friday, February 13, 2015

Principals Blog for the Week of February 9th - 13th



The February Newsletter is posted on the 
High School Webpage. It will provide 
additional details on events, activities, 
photos and calendar reminders.
http://www.douglasps.net/files/filesystem/February%20Newsletter1.pdf
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                                      DOUGLAS TIGERS ATHLETIC SCHEDULE                                                                                   Weeks of February 16th, 2015                                                                             
                                                                                                                                         
Monday,                   Varsity Boys @ Clark Tourney vs Maynard @ 1:00 bus leaves at 11:30
Feb 16th                   Cheerleaders traveling with boys team to Clark
                                Varsity Girls Basketball @ Quaboag @ 7:30 bus leaves at 5:00
                                Ice Hockey @ Assabet @ 12:00
Wednesday,              Varsity Girls Basketball @ Quaboag Tourney vs TBD @ bus time TBD
Feb 18th

Saturday,                 Ice Hockey @ Northbridge @ 12:00
Feb 20th

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Boys Hoop update:
The Boys Basketball Team has qualified for the Clark Tournament with a game versus Maynard HS to take place on Tuesday the 17th at 6:30 at Clark University in Worcester.  Congratulation to the team and Coach Ryan. Their qualification for the tournament is the second consecutive year and we wish them good luck in the game versus Maynard. 
Tonight they will host BVT in the final home game.  Senior Night for our seniors: 
Tyler Barsamain, Matt Fausch, Teddy George, Johnny Gonzalez, Jesse Mosczynski and Cam Saster.  They are great group of players and their final home game will be an important as they are presently 9-9 and must win tonight to also qualify for the MIAA Tournament.  Play well men! 


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Girls Varsity Basketball Senior Night 
the last home game for our Senior Girls Basketball Players took place on Friday Night the 6th of February.  This years senior members are: Shannon Powell, Ashley Gresian, Megan Hayes and Elissa Piwowarski.  Some photos of this celebration are included here for you. At this moment the team has qualified for the MIAA Tournament and has a 12-6 record with two games this week as part of the Quaboag Tournament.  Good luck ladies. 








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David Prouty Cheering Tournament
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Lead by our three seniors; Olivia Ursch, Briona Brito and Brianna Gustafson; the cheerleading squad placed first in the david Prouty Tournament on Sunday the 8th.  Congratulations to all of the members of this impressive cheerleading squad on this achievement and to Coach Ursch and Coach Socha for their leadership of the program. 
Tonights home Basketball game will also be Senior Night for our cheerleaders.  Olivia, Briona and Brianna will be celebrating their final home game and presenting their final half-time performance.  They are three terrific young ladies and we wish them a great night and final performance.





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Indoor Track 
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Over the past two weekends the members of the Indoor Track teams have competed at the Central Mass divisional tournament and at the League Championships.  There have been quite a number of very strong performances by a number of the athletes in a variety of events.  Below are a number of photos of taken at these two events. we extend our gratitude to Mr. Goldenberg for providing the Principal' Blog with these great action shots of the students competing. A number of these athletes now move on to the State Meet held at the Reggie lewis Center in Boston next week. We extend best wishes for great performances for all of them.













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Winter Carnival
Today was our annual Winter Carnival event.  It was an exceptional day with a lot of smiles, laughs and effort on display throughout the day.  The event ended in a tie with the Juniors and Seniors coming in 1st Place.  There were many highlights throughout the event including Tug of War, relay races, Quiz Bowl, Gator Ball and of course the class Lip Sync's.  All four classes put in a great show with their lip sync's however the stars of Lip Sync may have in fact been the teachers.  Their performance was a complete surprise and it had everyone on their feet, cheering and shouting out their approval of the performance.  Thanks go out to all the faculty who participated in this spirited performance.  Lastly, a great deal of appreciation goes out the members of the Student Council and their advisors Ms. Smith and Mr. Nauss who did a great job organizing and conducting the event. I'd also like to extend great appreciation to all of our class advisors for all their efforts, time and commitment to the student body in each grade level.  It is a big task and it is much appreciated. Below are some of decorations that brightened up the building and reflect the creative talents of our students. The

Freshman


Sophomores


Juniors



Seniors







The DHS Staff had a little Winter Carnival 
fun of their own this year!!


A huge thank you goes out to Ms. Tibbetts for these photos and arrangement.  As always she did a great job and we appreciate her efforts. 
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Lastly, The start of Spirit week is of course the Snowball Semi-Formal.  The event was very well attended and it was a wonderful night of music, dance, photo's, I mean selfies and time spent with friends.  We will try to include some photo's from Snowball in our next Blog which will be released on the 27th of February.  

Hoping that everyone has a great Winter recess and is ready to come back to school on the 23rd. Weather permitting of course.

*********Enjoy Your Winter Break!********

When we return on February 23rd 
it will be a Day 5