The Reading Public Schools is pleased to announce the following finalists for the position of Principal of the Joshua Eaton Elementary School:

1. Ryan Eckert, Principal, Abraham Lincoln Elementary School, Hammond, Indiana
2. Jeri Hammond, Teacher Leader, Michael Driscoll Elementary School, Brookline, Massachusetts

These finalists were chosen from a pool of 34 applicants, in which 13 were interviewed by the Joshua Eaton Screening Committee.  The Screening Committee consisted of parents, teachers, staff, and administrators.

The resume for each candidate is at the link below. The candidates will be participating in an open microphone session with the Community next Wednesday, May 6^th in the Joshua Eaton Cafeteria during the following times:

7:00 p.m.             Ryan Eckert

7:45 p.m.             Jeri Hammond

All are welcome to attend.  If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the Reading Public Schools Administration.Office at 781-944-5800.

Joshua Eaton Finalists Applications

Good Morning,

We hope that you and your family had a great April Vacation.  The Reading Public Schools would like to get your input as a parent or community member on the quality of our current educational programs and the types of programs and offerings that you would like to see in the future.  To gather that feedback, we will be using community forums during the month of May and we will be administering an online survey to all parents in the near future.  The Community Forums will be level specific and will be offered on the following dates at 6:30 p.m.:

May 5                   Reading Memorial High School (The focus of this Forum will be on Reading Memorial High School)

May 21                 Barrows Elementary School (The focus of this Forum will be on our elementary schools)

May 28                 Birch Meadow Cafeteria (The focus of this Forum will be on our elementary schools)

May 26                 Coolidge Middle School Cafeteria (The focus of this Forum will be on our middle schools)

All forums will focus on the following questions:

1. What areas are strengths of the Reading Public Schools and you would like to see continued?

2. What areas in our school district need to be strengthened?

3. What new programs or initiatives would you like to see started?

4. What current program or initiatives would you like to see changed or stopped?

We know that this is a challenging time of year to attend events, but your feedback is critical as we continue to improve our schools.  Additional opportunities will be available during the summer and early fall to give feedback.

If you have any questions, please contact the Reading Public Schools Administrative Offices at 781-944-5800.

Good Morning,

We hope that you have had a great spring break!  Below is the link to our weekly Pathways Newsletter.  This week, there are some amazing photos from our Arts Fest, Blue Ribbon Conference, A World of Difference Conference, the Massachusetts State Banking Competition and Visiting students from Ecuador.  In addition, there are stories celebrating the many positive activities that are going on in our school district.

Have a great week!

Pathways Newsletter V1N31

This past week, the Reading Public Schools celebrated the Arts and celebrated learning with two major events; the annual Arts Fest on April 14/15, and the Blueprint for Excellence Educational Institute on April 16/17.  Both events emulate what our school district is all about; supporting student learning and fostering an environment that allows innovation and creation.  It was truly a week of celebration!

Arts Fest began seven years ago by Elementary Music Teacher Al Mosier and RMHS Director of Fine and Performing Arts William Endslow as a way to celebrate the visual and performing arts in our school district.  Today, Arts Fest is alive and well with 1-12 student art work beautifully portrayed up and down “Main Street” of Reading Memorial High School and student performances of elementary, middle school, and high school band and chorus groups.  Below are several photos from Arts Fest.

None of this would have been possible without the incredible talents and efforts of our art and music teachers.  A special thanks goes out to all of them for putting together such a fantastic celebration of the Arts.

Grade 6 Combined Middle School Band under the Direction of Andrew Norton

Assistant Superintendent for Learning and Teaching Craig Martin kicks off Arts Fest with some opening remarks

Grade 6 Chorus under the Direction of Parker Music Teacher Jenny DiMuzio

Grade 3 Chorus

Grade 3 Chorus

Grade 4 and 5 Chorus under the Direction of Elementary Music Teacher Britney Bowman

Combined High School and Middle School Chorus under Director of Fine Arts Kristin Killian

Grade 7 and 8 Combined Middle School Band under the direction of Cheryl Webster

Grade 7 and 8 Band

Parker Music Teacher Andrew Norton

Good Morning,

We hope that you are enjoying this beautiful weekend.  Below is the Pathways Newsletter for the week of April 12th.  In this week’s edition, we have stories about Arts Fest, the upcoming Blue Ribbon Conference, an article from Dr. David Walsh on “Teen Tantrums”, and pictures from the Barrows Spell A Thon, the Parker Cribbage Tournament, and the check presentation by the Reading Education Foundation to the Reading School Committee.

Have a great weekend, a super week, and a fabulous spring break!

Pathways Newsletter V1N30

The Human Relations Advisory Committee thanks everyone who made this year’s Martin Luther King Day Celebration a powerful catalyst for discussion and reflection.  This annual event is meant to celebrate the contributions of a great leader, but is also a charge for action.  It reminds each us of our responsibility to make this world a better place: to “stand together for justice” wherever and whenever necessary.

This celebration continues this Tuesday, April 14th from 6:20-6:30 with the presentation of the Hero Art Posters painted by Rob Surette and funded by Eastern Bank, The Reading and Massachusetts Cultural Councils, The Burlington Kohl’s Associates-In-Action Program, Moynihan Lumber, and Capozzi Construction.

Please see a recent Reading Chronicle article that talks about the Martin Luther King celebration event and this Tuesday’s unveiling of the portraits.

Enjoy the District-wide Arts Festival and witness the unveiling of role models intended to keep the conversations going about ways we can “Stand Together for Justice.”

On April 10th, students from Reading Memorial High School attended the NE 1:1 Summit in Burlington.  At the event, students ran two tables (see photos below).

Rockets Help Desk participants Julia Donohue and Megan Catalano talked about the growth of our Rockets Help Desk program.  In addition, RMHS students Evan DiMambro, Moriah Greeno, Lizzie Schwartz, and Katie Squires showed their paperless projects and blog portfolios from RMHS History Teacher Kerry Gallagher’s class. Congratulations to these students on a job well done!

Julia Donohue and Megan Catalano present about Rockets Help Desk, a program to support teachers and students in the integration of technology at Reading Memorial High School.

RMHS students Evan DiMambro, Moriah Greeno, Lizzie Schwartz, and Katie Squires showed their paperless projects and blog portfolios.

OLYMPIAN MOLLY SULLIVAN SLINEY TO SPEAK IN READING – location change

Understanding Disabilities is proud to present two-time Olympian MOLLY SULLIVAN SLINEY to speak with the Reading community.  Miss Sliney will talk with us about her challenges with dyslexia, and just as importantly about the universal issue of SELF ESTEEM.  All are invited to hear Ms. Sliney’s powerful story including that of her first Olympic Games Opening Ceremony.  THURSDAY APRIL 9 at 7:00 pm, at the Endslow Performing Arts Center.  A Cookies & Punch Reception to celebrate UD’s 30 year Anniversary will follow.

Please note the location of this important presentation has been changed to the Endslow Performing Arts Center.

For more information, visit www.understandingdisabilities.org.

Next Tuesday and Wednesday, April 14 and 15, the Reading Public Schools proudly presents ArtsFest, a celebration of the Visual and Performing Arts at the William Endslow Performing Arts Center at Reading Memorial High School.  This two day event features student performances and hundreds of pieces of art work proudly displayed along Main Street at Reading Memorial High School.  All are welcome to attend!