Pittsfield Families,
Our Pittsfield school community is enjoying a great week of Zoom and on-site celebrations as we bring a close to a very unusual school year. We thank all our students, family and friends, staff, and community members for celebrating our students’ many achievements and milestones. The celebrating will conclude with our annual commencement ceremonies at 5:00 p.m. Sunday, June 21.
Reminder that headings in BOLD indicate that new or updated information is contained in that section.
End-of-Year Transition Celebrations. Celebrations for today and tomorrow are scheduled as follows:
- Eighth Grade – 6:00n p.m., Thursday, June 11
- PES Whole School Morning Meeting – 8:30 a.m., Friday, June 12
- PMHS End-of-Year Assembly – 11:00 a.m., Friday, June 12
- End-of-Year Staff Parade – 2:00 p.m., Friday, June 12
Links for participation in these remote activities will be provided by email to families with students who will be participating in remote end of year celebrations the day before activities are scheduled to be held; links will also be posted on school websites.
Last Day of School. The Pittsfield School Board has established tomorrow, Friday, June 12, as the last day of school for our 2019-2020 school year. We wish all our Pittsfield students and families all the best for a wonderful summer!
Last Day Parade. School staff, supported by town emergency personnel, will be parading through town beginning at 2:00 p.m. tomorrow, Friday, June 12, to celebrate the conclusion of our 2019-2020 school (phew!) and wish beloved students and families the best for a wonderful summer school vacation. In designing the parade route, we’ve extended beyond other in-town routes to get to as many areas of town as possible. Our route is described below; we hope to see everyone tomorrow!
START: Pittsfield Elementary School (34 Bow Street)
ROUTE: Bow Street to Tilton Hill Road, right onto Tilton Hill Road, right onto Wildwood Drive (around the loop), left back onto Tilton Hill Road, right at the fork on to Catamount Road (at Family Dollar), left onto Carroll Street, left onto South Main Street (at Citizens Bank) to Dowboro Road, right on Quail Ridge Road (around the loop), left back onto Dowboro Road to South Main Street, continue down Main Street (past Dustin’s Park), right on Chestnut Street (in front of yellow Historical Society Building), right on to Bridge Street, left onto Depot Street, left on Barnstead Road (towards Drake Field), left onto High Street (after Floral Park Cemetery), left onto River Road, slight right onto Page Street (after Mary’s Bridge) to Watson Street, right on to Lyford Hill Road (towards Route 28), straight through intersection on Leavitt Road, left at the fork to Loudon Road, continue on Loudon Road through the intersection to Crescent Street, left at the fork onto Concord Hill Road to Main Street, left onto Elm Street to Depot Street, straight through intersection at Bell Brothers to Catamount Road (past the Fire Department), left onto Oneida Street.
END: Pittsfield Middle High School (23 Oneida Street)
Learning Materials. Collection of learning materials for all students is scheduled for 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on Monday, June 15, and Tuesday, June 16. Textbooks, science and art materials, and other district equipment will be collected at this time.
In addition, students who have been awarded recognition certificates or other awards will be able to pick up your awards at the time of learning materials drop-off next Monday and Tuesday as well.
Except for graduating seniors, student-issued computers will not be collected at that time; students will be holding on to computers through the summer in anticipation of a potential need to utilize remote technology when school gets going again in August.
Meals. The district is providing meals to all students upon request. Meals are delivered between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. daily or between 11:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon for families who opt to pick up meals at PES. In addition to lunch, meals include breakfast for the following day. Be assured that the district and our food service contractor are utilizing meal delivery best practices to minimize the danger of potential danger of exposure to the virus.
Weekend meals are also being provided upon request. At present, the district is providing about 200 meals to students on a daily basis, with our Friday meal count at around 600 meals, which include weekends.
Meal service will continue throughout the summer. If you have been receiving meals, but do not wish to do so any longer or will be away from your home during the summer, please contact Derek Hamilton via email (dhamilton@sau51.org) to modify your service schedule.
Families who receive meal deliveries are requested to leave a cooler or box at your door to minimize personal contact. Derek Hamilton is coordinating food deliveries; questions and requests should go to Derek vis email (dhamilton@sau51.org). Thanks to our outstanding food service staff for supporting our students in the pandemic!
We appreciate that the Concord Area Dentists have donated oral health kids to our students; these will be delivered with meals on Monday, June 15.
Moving Out of Pittsfield. Families who may be moving out of Pittsfield are reminded that families are required to return any district materials and complete a check-out process. If you are planning to move out of Pittsfield, you are respectfully requested to initiate the check-out process by contacting one the district officials identified below:
- PES Students Moving: Pam Miller at 435-5526 or pmiller@sau51.org
- PMHS Students Moving: Melissa Brown at 435-6701 or mbrown@sau51.org
Next School Year, 2020-2021. Our next school is scheduled to get underway with our students on in late August. What will it look like? Well, we just don’t know yet. Our New Hampshire Commissioner of Education has convened a task force to develop recommendations for local school districts regarding the fall and the eventual re-opening of our schools.
Several activities are scheduled for July and early August to plan for the fall. These include evaluation of the Commissioner of Education’s Task Force recommendations, the Governor’s guidance, CDC guidance, teacher and staff input, parent input via surveys, and guidance from a broad range of other sources.
We will be continuing our regular messages to you through the4 summer months.
We will continue our weekly messages through the end of June. We will then schedule semi-monthly messages in July and August as plans become established and to keep you informed of district events.
Parent Surveys. We will respectfully request parents complete a brief survey about your child/youth’s experiences with remote learning. Your perspective will help us to evaluate our work of the past few months and to plan for the fall. Parents can expect to see these surveys by the end of next week (by June 19); your help will be appreciated.
Playgrounds. In the interest of minimizing potential coronavirus spread, the Pittsfield School Board has closed the district’s playgrounds (Drake Field and PES), as well as the basketball court and tennis courts at Drake Field. We are sorry for this inconvenience and look forward to the reopening of the district’s playgrounds. Drake Field itself is remaining open with the caution that citizens practice safe social distancing while at the field.
Preschool and Kindergarten Registrations. Families who would like to have your preschool children entered into the annual lottery for preschool slots are requested to complete a pre-registration form at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf63irLZKfIRr6DWQ65g9PFmVs2Klcc-ChVo5Co90AsweJ_gA/viewform
Families who are anticipating that a child in your household will begin kindergarten next year – reaching the age of 5 years old by September 30, 2020 – are also asked to complete the pre-registration form linked above. If you know of other families who may be interested in kindergarten registration, and who may not be receiving this message, please pass along this information.
Seniors. Our seniors have enjoyed a series of graduation events; among our highlights have been the photo opportunities at PMHS, senior awards, and the senior parade. Thanks to all for your wonderful support of our graduating seniors Key details regarding remaining senior events:
- Drake Field Posters: drive past Drake Field to see photos of our graduation seniors being celebrated on their individual posters on display
- Graduation Ceremony (in-person): this year’s ceremony is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, June 21, at Delta Dental Field in Manchester. Detailed plans for entering, attending, and leaving this event is being provided to seniors and their families.
- Senior Spotlight: see our district Facebook page for senior spotlights which include senior photos and brief biographical information on each of our graduating seniors
School and SAU Offices. Reminder that we ask that our school and SAU offices not be visited; please email individuals with whom you would like contact. We will do our best to respond to email messages within twenty-four hours during the week.
Summer Programs. Unfortunately, the district’s plans for summer programs is disrupted by the pandemic; here’s the latest:
- Drake Field Summer Program – cancelled this summer
- Extended School Year Programs for Special Needs Students – individual plans are being developed; some on-site programs will be provided; dates for our on-site programs: July 13 to August 6
- K-Camp – annual program for incoming kindergartners cancelled this summer; an alternative, shorter program for August is being considered; families will be contacted later in the summer
- PES Summer School – our teachers have made recommendations for students to attend a pre-school-opening summer session; this session is scheduled for August 10 to August 20; our hope is that all our students will be prepared to get a good start to our new school year; information will be provided to families
- PMHS Competency Recovery Programs – plans being developed for on-site competency recovery programs for students in need; more info will be forthcoming
- PMHS Summer Academies – cancelled this summer
The district will follow CDC guidelines for on-site programs; more info will follow as planning progresses.
As we come to the end of our school year, we thank our Pittsfield community for your wonderful support during a very challenging time; we wish you the best for a great summer.
Sincerely,
John Freeman, Superintendent of Schools
Derek Hamilton, Dean of Operations