Principal's Blog
Week of February 19, 2016
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School Resumes
Monday, February 22, 2016
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Important Notice on Water Damage at DHS
During the recent cold snap; DHS experienced two instances where pipes burst causing extensive water damage. We will be able to open school on Monday the 22nd but we will need to make some adjustments to the way in which we move about the building.
The first area of concern is in the boys locker room. A pipe in the office bathroom burst and flooded the office and parts of the locker room. It has been responded to by Service Master. There will be a need for on-going repairs, specifically to the office bathroom and the office itself. Access to the locker room itself should not an issue but we will know better by Monday morning after Service Masters returns to the building. If we are unable to use the locker room students will need to use the bathrooms located adjacent to the gym to change for gym class. We will make accommodations for securing their belongings while in class.
Of real concern is the extensive damage done to the main entrance of the building. A pipe burst in the entry vestibule and ran into the main foyer and into the main office as well. As a result of this damages; the main entrance to the school will not be available for students and parents to enter and exit by starting on Monday. We have shifted the entrance to the school to the doors near the nurse's office as the point of entry to the building until the main entrance is once again able to be used. During the day there will someone stationed at these doors to assist with entering the building as well as signing in and out of the building. Students when they arrive at school will need to enter the building at this location as well. Students at the close of school will either exit from these doors or from the exit doors in the cafeteria. The buses will still drop off at the front of the building as is usually the plan. Parent drop-off and pick-up will remain in the same location but we would ask parents and all drivers to be extra cautious now as students will exiting the building in significant numbers from this new location which is adjacent to the line of vehicles for parent pick-up.
We are working to ensure that in the case of an emergency, we will be able to have students, faculty and staff exit through the main doors of the school to ensure the most expedient evacuation of the building as possible. I will address this matter with students on Monday when they have returned to school.
The Main Office of the school was impacted significantly by this flooding and as such we have had to completely evacuated the office. There is nothing left in the main office at all. All the offices have been completely vacated and they are now down to cement floors. There are numbers of drying machines in the office and it looks like it will be weeks before we can return to the main office. As such, we have moved the secretaries from the main office to a classroom down the hall from the entrance doors by the nurses station. The person who will be positioned at these doors will greet parents and guest at this entrance way and will escort them to the new location of our main office. The phone will ring in this new location so parents can call the main office number and it will automatically be transferred to this new location. Tardies and dismissal will now take place through this new location and through a cooperative effort between the person at the doors and the ladies in the office. Please be understanding with these new arrangements. We believe that it will result in just minimal inconvenience.
Mr. Vega and I have had to move our offices down to the History wing for the time being. We will work with the ladies in the office to be sure we are available to any needs or concerns that guests or our students may have during the day. We know that this not a great scenario but we are confident it will be workable for the foreseeable future.
Lastly, I will make an announcement on all these matters to the students, faculty and staff when school resumes on Monday.
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Budget Workshop
We hope that you will consider attending the upcoming budget workshop that will be held at DHS on February 24th at 7:00 pm in the auditorium. This workshop will provide a public forum to review and ask questions on the proposed 2017 school budget. Please mark your calendar and plan to attend this important meeting.
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Winter Carnival
Our Winter Carnival was outstanding. A huge shout out goes out to the members of the Student Council and their advisors, Emily Shaner and Erica Lauretano. They did an outstanding job of pulling the entire event together and it went off without problems. Much appreciation goes out to our class advisors for all their time and energy given to the members of their graduating classes. Thank you Mrs. Fitzpatrick, Mr. Riordan, Mr. Stand, Mr. Ginisi, Mr. Leonard, Mr. LaChapelle and Ms. Braeny. Also much appreciation to all the faculty and staff for their participation and support for the program. Lastly, I want to recognize the members of our student body. They were just outstanding during the day. I saw many things that made me laugh, made me cheer as well as actions that made me marvel at just how caring and kind our students are. There were at least five occasions where I was moved by their actions. I just couldn't be more proud of our kids. They are terrific.
There were a few highlights to mention. First, the Seniors won the day. congratulations Class of 2016. There was a great deal of excitement surrounding the events in the gym including Gator Ball, Volleyball and Tug of War. However, I especially liked the Hula Hoop circle where a group of twenty or so students form a circle, locking hands and they have to pass a Hula Hoop around the circle twice without using their hands. Very funny.
For the most part the Lip Synch's were both funny and entertaining; highlighted by a surprise faculty/staff performance that had everyone jumping and screaming. Thanks go out to M. Turner for planning and choreographing this performance. This final performance was highlighted by the male members of the History department and their de facto member Mr. Ginisi, dancing in costume to the Village People's YMCA. Huge response to this finale.
But to me by far and away that best part of the day was the performance of line dancing by the members of Mrs. Pemberton;'s class. They had asked Mrs. Sokol if during PE class they could rehearse a few line dances to present during Winter Carnival. Mrs. Sokol agreed and they were able to keep the secret right up until the performance. At first a few students came out on to the gym floor to join the members of the class and before long there were 90% of our student population who were out on the floor participating in the line dancing. Quite simply it was an awesome experience. So proud of our school culture. Huge shout out to Mrs. Sokol for her planning on this great surprise.
Thank you everyone for a great Winter Carnival!
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Wednesday February 24th
Worcester County Sheriff's Association will be presenting their "Face To FAce" program for the members of the Freshmen and Sophomore classes. They were here two years ago and the present juniors and seniors would have attended this presentation previously so they will not be attending this year's presentation. The program is a computerized drug prevention program and it will demonstrate to the students the impacts of drug use over time. This is a link to the program:
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Course Selection and Parent Verification
Our Guidance Counselors will be meeting with students from February 23 through March 18. During these meetings, our students will be making their initial course selections, while reviewing graduation requirements and academic department pathways. Our faculty have entered course recommendations for their students in IPASS at this time. The majority of our students should have entered their course selections by February 25th. The counselors will be meeting individually with students to review their selections during the weeks to follow. Parents will have the opportunity to enter their verification between the 25th of February and the 18th of March. Nothing that is entered at this point is a permanent decision, as there will be time to review and make adjustments to a student's schedule prior to the beginning of the 2016-2017 school year.
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School Resumes
Monday, February 22, 2016
*****************************
Important Notice on Water Damage at DHS
During the recent cold snap; DHS experienced two instances where pipes burst causing extensive water damage. We will be able to open school on Monday the 22nd but we will need to make some adjustments to the way in which we move about the building.
The first area of concern is in the boys locker room. A pipe in the office bathroom burst and flooded the office and parts of the locker room. It has been responded to by Service Master. There will be a need for on-going repairs, specifically to the office bathroom and the office itself. Access to the locker room itself should not an issue but we will know better by Monday morning after Service Masters returns to the building. If we are unable to use the locker room students will need to use the bathrooms located adjacent to the gym to change for gym class. We will make accommodations for securing their belongings while in class.
Of real concern is the extensive damage done to the main entrance of the building. A pipe burst in the entry vestibule and ran into the main foyer and into the main office as well. As a result of this damages; the main entrance to the school will not be available for students and parents to enter and exit by starting on Monday. We have shifted the entrance to the school to the doors near the nurse's office as the point of entry to the building until the main entrance is once again able to be used. During the day there will someone stationed at these doors to assist with entering the building as well as signing in and out of the building. Students when they arrive at school will need to enter the building at this location as well. Students at the close of school will either exit from these doors or from the exit doors in the cafeteria. The buses will still drop off at the front of the building as is usually the plan. Parent drop-off and pick-up will remain in the same location but we would ask parents and all drivers to be extra cautious now as students will exiting the building in significant numbers from this new location which is adjacent to the line of vehicles for parent pick-up.
We are working to ensure that in the case of an emergency, we will be able to have students, faculty and staff exit through the main doors of the school to ensure the most expedient evacuation of the building as possible. I will address this matter with students on Monday when they have returned to school.
The Main Office of the school was impacted significantly by this flooding and as such we have had to completely evacuated the office. There is nothing left in the main office at all. All the offices have been completely vacated and they are now down to cement floors. There are numbers of drying machines in the office and it looks like it will be weeks before we can return to the main office. As such, we have moved the secretaries from the main office to a classroom down the hall from the entrance doors by the nurses station. The person who will be positioned at these doors will greet parents and guest at this entrance way and will escort them to the new location of our main office. The phone will ring in this new location so parents can call the main office number and it will automatically be transferred to this new location. Tardies and dismissal will now take place through this new location and through a cooperative effort between the person at the doors and the ladies in the office. Please be understanding with these new arrangements. We believe that it will result in just minimal inconvenience.
Mr. Vega and I have had to move our offices down to the History wing for the time being. We will work with the ladies in the office to be sure we are available to any needs or concerns that guests or our students may have during the day. We know that this not a great scenario but we are confident it will be workable for the foreseeable future.
Lastly, I will make an announcement on all these matters to the students, faculty and staff when school resumes on Monday.
*****************************
We hope that you will consider attending the upcoming budget workshop that will be held at DHS on February 24th at 7:00 pm in the auditorium. This workshop will provide a public forum to review and ask questions on the proposed 2017 school budget. Please mark your calendar and plan to attend this important meeting.
***********************
Winter Carnival
Our Winter Carnival was outstanding. A huge shout out goes out to the members of the Student Council and their advisors, Emily Shaner and Erica Lauretano. They did an outstanding job of pulling the entire event together and it went off without problems. Much appreciation goes out to our class advisors for all their time and energy given to the members of their graduating classes. Thank you Mrs. Fitzpatrick, Mr. Riordan, Mr. Stand, Mr. Ginisi, Mr. Leonard, Mr. LaChapelle and Ms. Braeny. Also much appreciation to all the faculty and staff for their participation and support for the program. Lastly, I want to recognize the members of our student body. They were just outstanding during the day. I saw many things that made me laugh, made me cheer as well as actions that made me marvel at just how caring and kind our students are. There were at least five occasions where I was moved by their actions. I just couldn't be more proud of our kids. They are terrific.
There were a few highlights to mention. First, the Seniors won the day. congratulations Class of 2016. There was a great deal of excitement surrounding the events in the gym including Gator Ball, Volleyball and Tug of War. However, I especially liked the Hula Hoop circle where a group of twenty or so students form a circle, locking hands and they have to pass a Hula Hoop around the circle twice without using their hands. Very funny.
For the most part the Lip Synch's were both funny and entertaining; highlighted by a surprise faculty/staff performance that had everyone jumping and screaming. Thanks go out to M. Turner for planning and choreographing this performance. This final performance was highlighted by the male members of the History department and their de facto member Mr. Ginisi, dancing in costume to the Village People's YMCA. Huge response to this finale.
But to me by far and away that best part of the day was the performance of line dancing by the members of Mrs. Pemberton;'s class. They had asked Mrs. Sokol if during PE class they could rehearse a few line dances to present during Winter Carnival. Mrs. Sokol agreed and they were able to keep the secret right up until the performance. At first a few students came out on to the gym floor to join the members of the class and before long there were 90% of our student population who were out on the floor participating in the line dancing. Quite simply it was an awesome experience. So proud of our school culture. Huge shout out to Mrs. Sokol for her planning on this great surprise.
Thank you everyone for a great Winter Carnival!
***********************
Wednesday February 24th
Worcester County Sheriff's Association will be presenting their "Face To FAce" program for the members of the Freshmen and Sophomore classes. They were here two years ago and the present juniors and seniors would have attended this presentation previously so they will not be attending this year's presentation. The program is a computerized drug prevention program and it will demonstrate to the students the impacts of drug use over time. This is a link to the program:
***********************
Course Selection and Parent Verification
Our Guidance Counselors will be meeting with students from February 23 through March 18. During these meetings, our students will be making their initial course selections, while reviewing graduation requirements and academic department pathways. Our faculty have entered course recommendations for their students in IPASS at this time. The majority of our students should have entered their course selections by February 25th. The counselors will be meeting individually with students to review their selections during the weeks to follow. Parents will have the opportunity to enter their verification between the 25th of February and the 18th of March. Nothing that is entered at this point is a permanent decision, as there will be time to review and make adjustments to a student's schedule prior to the beginning of the 2016-2017 school year.
The Program of Studies is being worked on and should be complete and posted into IPASS by the end of next week. This will allow parents and students to review the courses that are offered and to also review the recommended department pathways for sequencing of courses. We hope to have the portal for parents and students open before our guidance department begins meeting with students to formally enter their courses for next year. A reminder to parents and students that is very helpful if they list in order of preference; at least four electives that they would like to be considered for enrollment in. This helps us when completing the schedule for each student to ensure we have all students fully enrolled in courses for next year.
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Upcoming Events
February 24, 2016 Student Advisory Meeting 7:20
February 25, 2016 School Council Meeting 3:15
February 26, 2016 Advisor/Advisee Session
Thursday, March 3
DHS - MCAS Math Retest
Wednesday, March 9
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When entering the high school gymnasium you will notice a plaque of appreciation for the generous gift from the class of 2011, 2014 and 2015.
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Sports
Cheerleading
On Wednesday night February 24th we will be holding senior night for our cheerleading squad. This year Maggie Landry is our lone senior on the squad. We want to extend congratulations to Maggie and express our appreciation to her for her commitment to the program and her teammates. She has been a wonderful role model as well as being a terrific example of a true student-athlete.
***************************************************** Indoor track:
The following members of our Indoor Track team competed in the State Meet on Saturday February 13th at the Reggie lewis Center in Boston:
Alec Goldenberg- 600m, 4x400 relay
Micalea Goldenberg- 300m, 4x200 relay
Zach Eldridge- 300m, 4x400 relay
Maureen Grady- 55 dash, 4x200 relay
Jeena Keeman- High jump, 300 m, 4x200 relay
Davis Parella-4x400 relay
Conner Grady-4x400 relay
Meghan Foley- 55 High Hurdles, 4x200 relay
Many of the athletes achieved their personal bests while gaining the experience of competing with the best student-athletes in the state. Much to proud of for these athletes.
The event was also the final indoor track meet for our senior's. We extend our congratulations and appreciation to:
Zachary Eldridge, Micalea Goldenberg, Alex Meszaro, Bradley Novack and Davis Parella.
Not only did they have strong season's, they also represented the school, their families and themselves in such a wonderful manner. We are very proud of them and they are all outstanding representations of what a student-athlete should be.
Many of the athletes achieved their personal bests while gaining the experience of competing with the best student-athletes in the state. Much to proud of for these athletes.
The event was also the final indoor track meet for our senior's. We extend our congratulations and appreciation to:
Zachary Eldridge, Micalea Goldenberg, Alex Meszaro, Bradley Novack and Davis Parella.
Not only did they have strong season's, they also represented the school, their families and themselves in such a wonderful manner. We are very proud of them and they are all outstanding representations of what a student-athlete should be.
I'd also like to extend my appreciation to Mr. Dan Goldenberg for all these terrific photos of the members of the team. Thank you so much Dan. *****************************************************
Girls Hoop
The varsity team has qualified for the District Tournament and presently have a 13-5 record. They will close out the regular season this week with an away game against neighboring Uxbridge HS on Monday the 22nd. at 5:30 and 7. The y play at home on Wednesday the 24th against Hopedale HS. This will be senior night for the team. This year's seniors are Shannon Harney and Rachel Sutton. When we have more information on the girls tournament schedule we will share it with you in the blog. Good luck ladies on these final two games. A couple of wins might get us a home tournament game so play well. Good luck also to our two wonderful seniors; Shannon and Rachel. They have been valuable contributors to the program and they also are outstanding examples of real quality student athletes.
JV Girls Hoop
The Douglas High School Girls’ JV Basketball team has
experienced numerous successes throughout the 2015-2016 winter season. Currently posting a record of 8-6, the team
has won their last three consecutive games against Whitinsville Christian, Worcester
Main South and Blackstone Millville Regional.
While the team has lost six games, four of these games were within four
(or fewer) points. The true measure of the
team’s success is not within the “win” and “loss” columns, but instead through
the development and growth of individual and team skills and abilities. Coach Jessica Hurley is most proud that this
team operates as a “cohesive unit”- understanding the importance of being a
“team” and supporting one another both on and off the court. Coach Hurley is
quick to point out that the team captains, Sara Finnegan and Allie Benedict,
have consistently modeled the importance of team unity and hard work during the
past three months.
The girls’ JV basketball team is comprised of three freshman
and six eighth grade players. An
additional five freshman swing players, who play at both the varsity and JV
levels, have also made valuable contributions throughout the season. The team rounds out its season with two final
games as they play Uxbridge on Monday February 22nd and they host
Hopedale on Wednesday February 24th at 5:00 pm.
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Boys Hoop
Presently the boys hoop team stands at 8-9 with one game remaining in the season. The will host Uxbridge HS on Monday February 22nd at 5 and 6:30. With a victory the team will qualify for the District Tournament. We anticipate that the team will give their best effort against a strong Uxbridge team and hopefully come away with a hard fought victory, advancing them on to District play. It will also be senior night and we will recognize our senior members of the team. This year's seniors are Matt Blanc, Dean Cordani, Michael Hayes, Johnny Maguire, Josiah Smith, Michael Tourony. This is a strong group of senior players who are also outstanding young men. They have represented the school and their team well. It sounds repetitive but it is not. They are outstanding student-athletes who have much to be proud of.
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Sports Schedule
Week of February 22, 2016
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Boys Hoop
Presently the boys hoop team stands at 8-9 with one game remaining in the season. The will host Uxbridge HS on Monday February 22nd at 5 and 6:30. With a victory the team will qualify for the District Tournament. We anticipate that the team will give their best effort against a strong Uxbridge team and hopefully come away with a hard fought victory, advancing them on to District play. It will also be senior night and we will recognize our senior members of the team. This year's seniors are Matt Blanc, Dean Cordani, Michael Hayes, Johnny Maguire, Josiah Smith, Michael Tourony. This is a strong group of senior players who are also outstanding young men. They have represented the school and their team well. It sounds repetitive but it is not. They are outstanding student-athletes who have much to be proud of.
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Sports Schedule
Week of February 22, 2016
Monday, Feb 22nd
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JV Girls Basketball @ Uxbridge @ 5:30
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4:30
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Varsity Girls Basketball @ Uxbridge @ 7:00
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Tuesday, Feb 23rd
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JV Boys Basketball Home vs Uxbridge @ 5:00
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Varsity Boys Basketball Home vs Uxbridge @ 6:30
Senior Night |
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Wednesday, Feb 24th
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JV Girls Basketball Home vs Hopedale @ 5:00
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Varsity Girls Basketball Home vs Hopedale @ 6:30
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Senior Night
