Important Upcoming Dates:
- Veggie VanGo April 14 from 9-10am at the WSD
- No School April 19 through 23
- View the updated WSD School Calendar
Dear Staff and Families,
Last night over 125 community members joined the WSD School Board’s special meeting about the School Resource Officer. School safety is complex, often deeply personal, and challenging to discuss. It was inspiring to have so many people from our diverse Winooski community come together to respectfully share their thoughts and feelings about how to make our district safer for our students. You can read more about the outcome of the meeting and watch the video recording for more information.
Outstanding Teachers’ Recognition Day
Yesterday, two WSD Teachers, Matt Gile and Amanda Babcock, were honored as Outstanding Teachers of the Year. If you missed the virtual event, the video will be available here: http://go.uvm.edu/vtotd.
Free Tutoring for WSD Students
WSD is contracting with the Education Annex to provide free tutoring services for students. Most tutoring will be in small groups of 2-3 students and it will all be online. If you would like your child to receive free tutoring services after school or on Wednesdays please contact Michael Eppolito ([email protected] or call at 289-9168) or contact your Liaison. We are also working on continuing these free services over the summer.
Special Olympics Vermont Penguin Plunge
Click this link to watch Superintendent McMannon’s plunge
Mask Up, Winooski!
Dr. Heather Link, from the WSD School-Based Health Center, shared this important message about continuing to wear masks. “While the vaccine is being administered, and hope is on the horizon, we are seeing increasing cases in Vermont at this time, likely due to some of the COVID-19 variants with increased transmissibility. Masks should be worn at all times during school hours, including arrival and dismissal, except for moments when you are eating or drinking. Otherwise, they should be worn so that they cover your mouth and nose at the same time.”
Antiracism Steering Committee Updates
The first meeting of the WSD Antiracism Steering Committee (ASC) was energizing and full of optimism about the journey forward. The ASC is an innovative multi-stakeholder committee that creatively guides the dynamic work of the Winooski Students for Antiracism (WSA) Demands, serves as a communication hub for the demand-based working groups, and ensures that the WSA Demands are centered in every aspect of the work.
The committee discussed why the youth-adult partnership is so critical to the district’s success in becoming an antiracist school district. The word cloud above were the sentiments expressed by committee members when asked, “What feelings were provoked when you DID have a role in decision making?”. The ASC will meet again on April 19 for a training session facilitated by (WSA) members.
This is Our Shot, Vermont – $500 prize!
VDH is asking Vermonters to be a part of our next vaccine promotion efforts! We have launched the This Is Our Shot, VT! Photo & Video Contest, to gather original videos, photos or written thoughts on what being vaccinated means to us. Select submissions will be featured in our next vaccine campaign. One lucky person will be chosen at random to receive a $500 cash card*. The contest closes on April 16th.
Thanks,
Sean McMannon, Superintendent