Westford Academy Holiday Bazaar 2022 - UnlimitedTranscription

Notice to Vendors Selling Food: If you are selling food of any kind (samples, baked goods, boxed food, etc…) you will need to apply for a Food Permit through the Westford Board of Health. Any questions please call 978-692-5509 or email Rae Dick, Health Director, at [email protected] . The food permit is filed electronically at the following website and is separate from this application.

Notice to Repeat Vendors: Our best efforts are made to place you in your previous year’s spot (if requested). However, due to circumstances that may arise beyond the Committee’s control we cannot always accommodate this request. We appreciate your understanding! If you would like to be placed near a friend we strongly encourage you to complete a joint application.

“This is my first year helping out STUCO as the Holiday Bazaar advisor and I’m really happy to be back,” Mendonca said. “Unfortunately, we [STUCO] didn’t absolutely know that we were going to be holding the bazaar, so things were a bit rushed when it was confirmed. It was like a whole year worth of work planned in a couple of months but all the members are doing a great job.”

Visitors will be allowed to park in the front of the school, the teacher lot, and the student parking lot, and will enter through the bell lobby and exit the school through the senior lobby. There will also be a $2 general admission fee for all visitors (students, families, and any guests) after entering the building.

Despite regulations due to the pandemic, vendors and community members are excited about the event. Vendors this year will primarily stay the same as prior years, consisting of local small businesses and WA clubs and organizations such as student governments representing their class.

Due to social distancing restrictions, the holiday bazaar will be held differently than in years past. This year, vendors will be spread through the entirety of the first floor of the school ranging from the bell lobby all the way to the foreign language wing. Co-Chairs of STUCO’s Holiday Bazaar Committee Alex Ryan and Hannah Macey anticipate that there will be around 1,000 shoppers and approximately 175 vendors at the bazaar this year.

Last year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, STUCO was unable to hold its annual Holiday Bazaar. However, this year, WA’s halls will be filled with cheer during the Bazaar on Saturday, Dec. 4 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.. “Besides the layout of the event, mostly everything will be the same about the event. There will be around the same amount of vendors, hopefully, the same amount of visitors and the atmosphere of it all will be the same. We have around 170 vendors and expect to have around 1,000 shoppers.” Ryan said. “I’m so grateful that we are able to hold the Holiday Bazaar this year just because it’s one of my favorite parts of the holiday season at school and showcases a variety of town-wide talents and residents are able to support local businesses and student clubs. I hope everyone is able to come and find something they can enjoy because there really is something for everyone,” Ryan said.Additionally, the holiday bazaar is a place where smaller vendors thrive. With the opportunity for the Westford community to come all together in one place, local businesses are excited to be back in WA to show off and sell homemade goods like socks, sweaters, jewelry, and desserts.

“We’re [STUCO] really excited for the bazaar because it’s probably our main event and we do it every year […]. We usually stay really late at night the night before and it’s a great team bonding experience too,” STUCO President Lizzy Durgin said.In addition to the new layout, the Holiday Bazaar Committee is also being overseen by new adviser Danielle Mendonca, a 2017 WA alum and current WA Athletic Administrative Assistant. During her junior year at WA, Mendonca was also Co-Chair of STUCO’s Holiday Bazaar committee.

“I’m stoked that we’re going to be able to have a big event […] and we really haven’t had too many town-wide events this year due to COVID,” Macey said.

“The bazaar is such a huge event with so many different vendors and I’m really excited that the Class of ‘24 will finally get the chance to go to one of the major high school events WA has to offer […]. This event not only brings the classes together but is a great town-wide event,” Class of 2024 President Josh Lawrence said.Parents and other individuals may call Alaena Podmore, Public School Monitoring Chairperson, at (781) 338- 6706 to request a telephone interview. If an individual requires an accommodation, such as translation, to participate in an interview, the Department will make the necessary arrangements.

Featuring music and lyrics by the Tony-nominated songwriters Justin Paul and Benj Pasek and book by Timothy Allen McDonald, James and the Giant Peach JR. is based on the beloved book by Roald Dahl and tells the story of a young orphaned child who finds a loving family in a most peculiar way. Sent by his mean, conniving aunts to chop down their old fruit tree, James discovers a magic potion which results in a tremendous peach occupied by some not-so-normal characters. From the center of the gigantic fruit, James and the unlikely crew launch a journey of enormous proportions. Together they discover that while we are all born into a family, we then go on to create a family of our own.

Boys & Girls Basketball Tryouts begin on Monday, Nov. 29th (7th & 8th grade ONLY) Boys: 2:30-4, Girls: 4-5:30 ALL Students MUST have a Current Physical on File with the Nurse or THEY CANNOT TRYOUT!

If you DO NOT wish to have your child to participate in the S.O.S Middle School Program, please fill out THIS GOOGLE FORM. You only need to open and fill out the form if you DO NOT want your child to participate.Many people are now using at home tests when they or their children have COVID symptoms. If your child is symptomatic and the at home test is negative, please make sure you do get a PCR test before sending your child to school. If your child or any family member tests positive with an at home, please make sure you get that test confirmed either with a PCR or an antigen test performed outside the home. The isolation period will be based on the date of the first test even if it is an at home test. Numbers of COVID in town are under reported when the positive test is not confirmed outside the home.

Westford Health Department has doses of FLUMIST available for seasonal flu, this flu vaccine is for ages 2-18 year old. If interested please contact the Public Health Nurse at 978-399-2548 to schedule an appointment.

The adolescent years are marked by a roller-coaster of emotions which may be difficult for youth, parents, and educators. It is easy to misread severe anxiety and depression as normal adolescent turmoil; however, depression (among the most common of mental illnesses) appears to be occurring at a much earlier age. Depression, which is treatable, is a leading risk factor for suicide. In addition, self-injury is a growing problem among youth. To proactively address these issues, The Stony Brook School offers depression awareness and suicide prevention training for students through the S.O.S. (Signs of Suicide) Middle School Program. This program, along with its high school version, has been used by thousands of schools nationwide since 2000. This is the fourteenth year we will be delivering this program in Westford.

The S.O.S. program consists of video clips and class discussions with one of the Stony Brook Counselors or our School Nurse, and then each individual student will be screened by a short survey for Adolescent Depression. If any student is found to be at high risk, he or she will meet with a Stony Brook counselor, his or her parents or guardians will be contacted, and follow up recommendations will be made. Stony Brook staff members will deliver the S.O.S. program to 7th grade students on team during their STEM classes on the following dates: December 6th & 7th (Team Plato), December 8th (Team Socrates) and December 9th &10th (Team Aristotle). If you know of any child attending public or private school, or who is homeless or has left school, and could benefit from a special education evaluation under Chapter 766 or educational services under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, please contact the Special Education Department in Westford. (978-692-5560 ext. 2111)Research indicates that adolescents are more likely to turn to peers than adults when facing a crisis. Adolescents communicate with their friends via cell phones, various apps and the internet. As a result, parents are often unaware of difficulties their child may be experiencing either personally or in helping a friend. We are hoping that with this program your children will learn some tools to help themself or a friend.Blanchard Theatre Arts will present its “master-peach,” a production of Roald Dahl’s James and the Giant Peach JR. beginning Friday, December 3, 2021. A delightfully offbeat adaptation of the classic Roald Dahl adventure, James and the Giant Peach JR. is a fantastical tale of a boy, his insect friends, and their amazing journey across the ocean on a giant piece of fruit.

During the week of January 9, 2022, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s Office of Public School Monitoring (PSM) will conduct a Tiered Focused Monitoring Review of Westford Public Schools. The Office of Public School Monitoring visits each district and charter school every three years to monitor compliance with federal and state special education and civil rights regulations. Areas of review related to special education include student assessments, determination of eligibility, the Individualized Education Program (IEP) Team process, and IEP development and implementation. Areas of review related to civil rights include bullying, student discipline, physical restraint, and equal access to school programs for all students.Please send in copies of your children’s vaccination cards as they complete their COVID series. And parents of 6th graders, please send in copies of your children’s physicals and immunization records. The doctor’s visits you are taking your children to this Fall, Winter and upcoming Spring, are the ones needed for the 7th grade requirement.

Big week ahead for the Stony Brook Theater Arts Program. After weeks of rehearsals and set builds, MATILDA is set to take the stage next week beginning on the 10th of December, with 3 shows that weekend, followed by 3 additional times the following weekend. These shows are always a great display of the multi-talented students we have at SB. Come out and support this wonderful program.If your child has submitted an application to NVTHS or is planning to do so, please encourage them to email me or see me in guidance so that I can help to support them along the way in their application process.In addition to the onsite visit, parent outreach is an important part of the review process. The review chairperson from the Office of Public School Monitoring will send all parents of students with disabilities an online survey that focuses on key areas of their child’s special education program. Survey results will contribute to the development of a report. During the onsite review, the Office of Public School Monitoring will interview the chairperson(s) of the district’s Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC). Other onsite activities may include interviews of district staff and administrators, reviews of student records, and onsite observations.