This is Week A for students in Gr 9-12. Q4 Critical Updates for Gr 9-11 students will be posted on Tues 5/31. Only students with grades lower than C or attendance issues will be included in these updates. Please be sure to check this information to help support students who need to finish the school year with a push AND to congratulate students who are consistently doing good work.
Given the continuing rise in COVID-19 cases in our schools, and our increased number of clusters (three or more cases in a class over a seven-day period) at our schools, PSB has made the decision to REQUIRE masks for all staff and all students. We will continue to monitor our case counts and the community metrics and remain open to altering these guidelines moving forward.
Given the continuing rise in COVID-19 cases in our schools, and our increased number of clusters (three or more cases in a class over a seven-day period) at our schools, PSB has made the decision to REQUIRE masks for all staff and all students. We will continue to monitor our case counts and the community metrics and remain open to altering these guidelines moving forward.
Just a brief reminder, we have two upcoming Flex Blocks for grades 10th, 11th, and 12th.
Flex 2: June 2, 2022 (Grades 10-11)
PLEASE NOTE, THERE IS NO FLEX BLOCK FOR 9TH GRADE.
PLEASE CHECK THE REVISED SCHOOL CALENDAR INFO BELOW…Including final exam dates and end of school days …. And note that there will NOT be early final exams so plan accordingly and students should talk with their teacher/ dean if they will not be able to attend these exams. REVISED PSB School Calendar is attached to this email.
Thurs 6/16: Gr 9-11 Finals
Fri. 6/17: Gr 9-11 Finals
Mon. 6/20: Juneteenth (Observed)
Tue. 6/21: Makeup/Grading Day (with three make-up periods proctored by administration)
Wed. 6/22: Final Course Meeting for some blocks
Thu. 6/23, 1/2 day with noon dismissal: Final Course Meeting for some blocks and Advisory
Fri. 6/24, 1/2 day with noon dismissal: Last Day of School
May is Mental Health Awareness Month. The focus on everyone’s mental health has been highlighted on most of the BHS Guidance/Counseling Weekly Updates over this past year and previously. More reminders and resources will be shared over this month as well.
This Mental Health America website link - https://www.mhanational.org/recognizing-warning-signs-and-how-cope - talks about overall mental health and focuses on recognizing the warning signs of mental health concerns and how to cope. Please take a look…. For yourself or someone you care about!
And a last reminder that BHS counselors and clinicians are available to support students with concerns. Seek out a trusting adult in school or out of school and let them know how you’re doing. There are many caring and trained adults in the BHS community who can help!
These BHS Counseling Dept Weekly Update emails are sent to all students and the 1st contact parent/guardian listed on the students’ X2 accounts.
All NEW UPDATES will be highlighted in BLUE each week for easy scanning of newest info.
FAMILIES
BHS counselors try to keep their offices stocked with snacks for all students! Please help us keep our snack bins replenished by purchasing some snacks from our Amazon Wish List - https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/DNJR0WY0PSNT/ref=hz_ls_biz_ex
This wishlist has been updated. Your student will be SO excited!
Grateful to those who have already donated snacks since last week. Snack deliveries have already started to counselor and social worker offices.
Thank you!
And the Brookline Youth of the Year is….
Not so fast:)
Brookline High students are welcome to attend this annual event to celebrate the young leaders of our community this Tues May 24th from 7-9pm at the Coolidge Corner Theater. This event will honor 81 students this year, including 17 youth award recipients who were interviewed in the studio and 2 discussions with 6 other students who were part of team awards.
ALL STUDENTS
Have you completed your the last Panorama survey of this school year? If not, we need you! Here’s the info- As you know, students have the opportunity to complete the Panorama Student Survey three times a year. This survey provides staff with important information about student mental health, which we then use to better support you and your peers. Please know that a variety of adults at BHS review the results of the survey. Although the survey is optional, we are encouraging all students to complete it if they feel comfortable doing so. To access the survey, please go to: https://surveys.panoramaed.com/brookline Your access code is your year of graduation, last name, and first initial. For example, 28doej. You will need to use all lowercase letters. Thank you for your help in completing the survey!
ACE is still accepting new students for the 2022-23 school year! ACE is a small program within BHS for rising 10-12th grade students who are seeking a highly engaging, experiential high school classes and offers opportunities to learn outside of the building through internships or college classes. ACE has had students attend highly competitive colleges and offers honors credit courses.
ACE still has space for interested students for next Sept. If a student wants to explore ACE, they need to attend an info. session and set up a classroom visit, as soon as possible. They should email Christine_Carruthers@psbma.org who will set this up.
Visit the ACE website for more info: www.ACEHighSchoolYourWay.com
In the wake of ongoing violence/racism against the AAPI Community, APAC (BHS' Asian Pacific American Club) wants to get more information from AAPI students and faculty about their experiences at BHS as an AAPI student or faculty member. This is the first step in making long-term, systemic change in our school community. We would appreciate any and all AAPI identifying BHS community members filling out this form. https://forms.gle/JJKWF3QmRnVCaVni7
Thank you for using your voice and being brave. Together we can make change
Do you identify as a South Asian teen/young adult? See the attached flyer for info about a free weekly zoom support group you may want to check out!
Check out the UPDATED Summer 2022 Opportunities document! Copy and paste this link for the most updated programs - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LZJQoWB4C-JLr13sXkUqEcBvCBraUo3eWYtMG_DUDac/edit
This document is being updated regularly with more opportunities including jobs, internships, and summer programs.
Lunch Lounge is offered for all of the students who may or may not have some social connections in classes, including new to BHS students. It is a welcoming, inclusive drop-in lunch community that engages kids with friendly conversation, other kids interested in making friends, and a warm and familiar staff member. At this time, Lunch Lounge is offered for these lunch blocks in Room 277:
Week A - Monday E - Lunch B only
Wednesday C - Lunch A and B
Friday D - Lunch A and B
Week B - Monday E - Lunch B only
Wed C - Lunch A and B
Friday D - Lunch A and B
Lunch at 22 Tappan –
Does the cafeteria sometimes feel too loud or too crowded? Does it sometimes feel difficult to make friends with new people during the lunch block?
Come join Lunch Lounge on Fridays in room 206, a dedicated space to form positive relationships with peers! Games will be provided. Fun is optional and encouraged!
Club Opportunities at BHS:
This week Invest in Girls: Women in Finance and Entrepreneurship Club will host speaker Arianne Kidder, CFO of Seae Ventures during X block on May 24th. Arianne will speak about her career journey and the work Seae does to help startups with female and BIPOC founders. Please come to UA31 for this event.
Summer Job Opportunities:
Brookline Recreation is looking for summer staff! They are still looking for a couple junior counselor positions (16 – 17 YO) but also really need some 18+ staff too. See the attached flyer for more info.
Lifeguard Training and certification - get ready for a summer job AND possibly get the training for free! See the attached flyer.
The JCC of Greater Boston is excited to announce a new program of paid internships for summer camp staff. In addition to working with children, interns may attend a series of professional development workshops designed to give them a better understanding of career choices and paths in the non-profit world and beyond.
Make a difference in a child’s life! Camp Kaleidoscope, the JCC’s arts and science day camp in Newton, is now offering paid internships for counselors who know how to make a camper’s day extraordinary.
· Interns are rising 11th graders or older. Junior counselor interns ages 16 & 17 earn $2800-$3500. Counselor interns who are high school graduates or older earn a minimum of $4100 for the full summer. They supervise campers and may teach or co-teach theater, arts, sports, boating or other activities. All learn leadership skills and conflict mediation, make lasting friendships, and may take advantage of professional development workshops facilitated by industry leaders.
· Camp dates are June 27-August 19, with orientation the week of June 20. While we prefer staff who can commit to the whole summer, shorter commitments will also be considered. Send us a note and/or resume at kaleidoscope@jccgb.org. More camp information is at www.bostonjcc.org/kaleidoscope. Job descriptions and application are at JCC Summer Jobs.
Other summer camp counselor jobs - There are a number of camp organizations looking for counselors NOW! See the BHS Guidance website / Career Counseling link summer jobs 2022 for more info - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LZJQoWB4C-JLr13sXkUqEcBvCBraUo3eWYtMG_DUDac/edit#heading=h.i9miodlpjya
Community Service Opportunities for BHS Students:
GreenZine Brookline (https://greenzinebrookline.wordpress.com/) invites you to submit writing and artwork for it’s Spring 2022 issue. GreenZine Brookline is a Brookline K-12 online magazine that features work about the environment, climate justice, and the outdoors. We strongly encourage writers and illustrators with, or without, experience, to submit news, opinion, fiction, poetry, photography, illustrations or other creative media. This is your voice to address a world increasingly impacted by climate change. Not sure what to write? We have plenty of ideas and would love to have you join us.
GreenZine Brookline is collectively run by Brookline educators and offers students, staff and the Brookline Schools community a forum for news, opinion and creative expression about climate change, outdoor education and the environment. We highlight the excellent work being done by students, staff and parents in our school community, as well as the need for more.
GreenZine Brookline aims to amplify student voice and passion in order to catalyze conversation about climate change and outdoor education in our schools so that our students will be more resilient and prepared to lead in a climate-disrupted world. We are looking for a rising junior and senior co-editor for the 2022-2023 school year. Submit a letter of interest or any questions here: greenzinebrookline@gmail.com to learn more.
Are you interested in food equity and hope to combat food security? Join Mutual Aid Brookline! We are an organization started during the pandemic to address the urgent needs of the community right here in Brookline, including grocery delivery, language access, and financial support. We are short on volunteers, donations, and need help as much as we can! Sign up here to join: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1YunqZkNG7cKLvp9FSb2UAJPUESM_bxTLNMixzfsD0u0/viewform
Brookline Community Fridge - Ongoing - Brothers & Sisters Cafe
15 Station St
The way the system works is that a business will host a space for the fridge and pay for electricity. The fridge is run by volunteers who perform tasks like removing expired food, keeping the fridge clean, donating food, and keeping a running list of what the fridge could use. Anyone interested can find more information on the Brookline Community Fridge Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/brooklinecommunityfridge/) or sign up to volunteer via this form: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0c44a9af28abfdcf8-volunteer1.
BHS COMMUNITY SERVICE INFO - Even though Brookline High does not have a community service requirement for graduation, many BHS students become involved in their school or greater Brookline community through service. These opportunities provide a chance for students to better understand and give back to those in need, plus offer a direct strategy to deal with emotions and stress by making connections with others and becoming engaged with something larger than one’s self. Adding community service activities can be beneficial to your college applications down the road too!
You do NOT have to have community service officially listed on your BHS transcript for credit to have its impact be noted for your own sense of self or to colleges. If you do want to have community service hours count for BHS credit, please be aware of these important criteria:
- must be a service within BHS or Brookline or greater Brookline community
- any service hours beyond 50 MUST be approved by the BHS Community Service Coordinator (Lisa_gaffney@psbma.org) – see attached form
- 50 hours = .25 credit; 100 hours = .5 credit; 150 hours = .75 credit; 200 hours = 1.0 credit
- hours must be logged and verified by the service organization supervisor and Ms Gaffney at BHS
– Check out Teen Life by copying and pasting this link- https://www.teenlife.com/category/volunteer/?keyword=&location=boston&program-type=volunteer
- The BHS Community Service info on the school’s website has been updated with BHS specific community service opportunities plus opportunities in the Brookline/Boston area - http://bhs.brookline.k12.ma.us/community-service.html
SENIORS
LAST WEEK OF HIGH SCHOOL! Woohoo!
Keep yourself on track. Please remember for college-going seniors- we will automatically be sending your FINAL TRANSCRIPT to the college you have indicated you plan to attend. Be sure your final senior grades are in good shape for colleges to review!
Finals this week in many senior classes on Wed 5/25 and Thurs 5/26.
If you are still sorting out your plan, the BHS Counseling Dept may be in touch with you to offer support and resources. If you would like to reach out, please contact your counselor, dean, special education liaison, or other trusted BHS adult so we can work with you to have a plan that you are proud of and excited about as you leave the BHS community.
Every year, BHS Guidance relies on our seniors to enter their college admissions results in Naviance. This helps our juniors and sophomores to then have updated scattergrams for each university. So we need you help now.
Please log in to your Naviance account and update your results for every college you have heard from (admit, deny, waitlist, etc). Here is how: Go to Naviance account and click "Colleges I Am Applying to," then click on the little pencil (Edit), and update your results.
PLEASE HELP US NOW! Juniors will be grateful!
SENIORS AND JUNIORS
Did you miss the BHS Counseling and Special Education Departments’ virtual "College Supports for Students with Learning Differences" panel? We discussed topics such as support available at colleges and then answered questions from the audience. The panel included Ms Neff-Verre and Mr. Libenzon (BHS Counseling Dept), Ms. April Zyirek (BHS Special Education Coordinator), Mr. Brendan McCarthy (BHS Transitions Program) and Admission Counselors from several MA colleges.
To see the recording and powerpoint, plus check out other resources, go to this link - https://bhs.brookline.k12.ma.us/guidance- and look for the blog listing “Zoom Panel: College Supports for Students with Learning Differences”.
JUNIORS
StriveScan "Launch Pad" offers FREE opportunities for students to explore mini info sessions about various colleges clustered into certain majors/ future careers or other high interest categories - https://www.strivescan.com/launch/
Check out pre-recorded sessions for:
Business, STEM, Social Sciences, The Arts
Register for upcoming LIVE sessions for:
Colleges by Size, En Espanol, Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs), Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)
Brimmer & May School is happy to announce our second annual College Essay Writing Bootcamp this summer. This camp is open to all rising seniors who are interested in getting a jump start on their college essay, including editing and feedback by our college counselors (and former college admissions professionals). At the conclusion of this one week experience, students will leave with an edited draft of their college essay and a number of tips and tricks to guide them through their additional supplemental essays.
A flyer is attached with more information, including pricing, dates, and the registration link. This is not a BHS sanctioned opportunity. If you have any questions, you can reach out to our Director of Summer Programs, Cassie Abodeely, at cabodeely@brimmer.org
There is a terrific opportunity coming up for families to learn about colleges through a Jewish lens in a condensed time-frame. CAJUE (Counselor Advocacy for a Jewish University Experience) is hosting a Strive Scan 6x6 Fair;
60 colleges from across the US and Israel are presenting, and you can hear from 18 of them in under three hours. Students, parents, and counselors should all register separately.
Please see the attached flyer for the list of colleges and more details. Each school has been asked to spend a good percentage of their six minutes on Jewish life.
Virtual Fair for Jewish Students
Monday, May 23rd
6:30-9:15PM
Thinking of Taking a Gap Year in Israel? Session at 6:00
Registration and much more information at strivescan.com/JewishStudentFair
Want to be considered for BHS National Honor Society as a senior?
Here’s what you should be doing:
- maintain an overall 3.3 or better BHS GPA
- complete minimum of 15 hours of community service (Sept 2021 – August 2022) - If you'd like a tool for keeping track of your community service, you can use this google doc organizer - https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1OStrm_4nJw0_rheAZVLYJpWGwsTO1IHSXMfBbtWFJQI/edit#gid=0. Make and save a copy of it to maintain your own record. You'll be able to submit this as part of your application in your senior year.
- NHS info blast shared to all eligible seniors in May and applications completed in early Sept 2022
JUNIORS AND SOPHOMORES
PreACT takers… Did you miss the PreACT score report zoom presentation last Thurs X block? Lenny Libenzon, BHS College Counselor, offered this overview of the PreACT score report - https://bhs.brookline.k12.ma.us/guidance/pre-act-score-explanation-session
If you haven’t picked up your PreACT score report and test booklet, please go to your counselor’s office to collect it before the school year ends! If you have Dean Fig as a counselor, please come to the 285 Guidance suite to pick up your report.
SOPHOMORES
Congratulations on finishing both the ELA and Math MCAS tests over the past weeks! Only those 10th graders who need to do Math MCAS makeup testing this coming week will need to test.
9TH GRADERS
Reminder that 9th grade Science MCAS testing is coming up Tues June 7 and Wed June 8. All 9th graders are being prepared in their Physics classes and will test on the morning of these dates.