It is time for Back to School Shopping!
Hi Everyone,
August 12, 2020
Dear BFA Students and Families:
We could not be more excited to say, welcome back to BFA! While we are still a month away from the opening of school, we felt it essential to share some information relevant to school opening. Please take the time to read through this letter carefully as it contains many details.
The BFA Administration would like to thank our educators, Department Chairs, Student and Athletic Councils for meeting throughout the summer to see that our reopening plan has us fully ready to meet the needs of our students, staff, and community. Our plan is based on four guiding principles:
1.
Our
highest priority in any decision we make about the school’s operation is the
safety and social-emotional well-being of our students, families, staff, and
community.
2.
We
will build upon BFA’s programmatic excellence through engaging and rigorous
learning experiences, regardless of the learning mode (in-person, hybrid, or
virtual).
3.
Our
approach will advance our efforts to focus on what matters most and how
traditional content serves the development of our Transferable Skills.
4. We will have the flexibility to continually improve and adjust as necessary to meet our students’ needs.
In response to the ever-changing nature of today’s learning needs, we have created a hybrid learning model starting with 50% capacity on campus. This approach will allow us to be fully prepared for 100% capacity on campus, or to move to full virtual learning depending on state and local requirements. It is essential that all members of the BFA community maintain a flexible and adaptable mindset for the 2020-2021 academic year.
With Freshman Orientation on Tuesday, September 8th, we welcome all students in the Green cohort to in-person learning on Thursday, September 10th and Friday, September 11th; and the Blue cohort to virtual learning on these days. Those in the Blue cohort will start in-person learning Monday, September 14th and Tuesday the 15th.
Safety and
Learning Procedures
Details regarding our safety procedures, and learning expectations while in hybrid learning may be found in the BFA Covid-19 Handbook. This handbook is a fluid document that we will adjust as necessary to meet the latest guidelines or needs.
Learning
Model
By leveraging
what we know about brain-based learning and student engagement, we have
designed a re-entry plan that connects students to peers, teachers, and
learning while keeping safety front and center. School will open for students
in a hybrid teaching and learning structure. This will allow for our safe
return to campus and the flexibility to transition to full in-person learning
and/or virtual learning as state and local guidelines dictate.
In BFA’s
hybrid learning model, students will attend school in the Blue Group on Mondays
and Tuesdays or the Green Group on Thursdays and Fridays. Students are divided
into Blue and Green cohorts so approximately 50% of students will be on campus
each day. On virtual learning days, students will attend classes online,
joining classes via Google Classroom, and engaging with classmates and
teachers. Given our guiding principles and the importance of continuous
learning throughout the week, it will be mandatory for students to attend their
classes, whether in-person or virtual. Attendance will be tracked daily.
As mentioned, our schedule gives us the flexibility to move to full in-person
classes or shift to entirely virtual, as necessary. Wednesdays allow us to
continue to thoroughly clean the building and connect students with their
teachers via virtual office hours. Advisory will meet every day to ensure daily
student contact.
Students who
cannot attend school in person due to health concerns or other reasons can
select a fully virtual model and access their classes from home, providing a
simultaneous connection to courses. Further information on the process of
enrolling in this completely virtual option (including the documentation
needed) will follow. In addition, some programs and student learning
needs may necessitate a full on-campus option.
BFA
Schedule
The BFA Semester 1 Schedule. Semester 2 will have classes 1, 3, 7, 5. We have been examining creative ways to utilize our space and schedule to better meet the needs of our students in the Performing Arts, Physical Education, Advanced Placement and other classes. The all-student morning Enrichment/Credit Recovery in semester 1 allows us to meet some of these needs.
Northwest
Career & Technical Center (NCTC) Schedule
Your schedule will follow the BFA schedule. You will receive additional information directly from the NCTC. In the meantime, please direct your questions to Leeann Wright, Director of NCTC at lwright@maplerun.org or call 527-6510.
Opening of
School and Freshman Orientation
Tuesday, September 8, 2020, will be our official opening of school with only incoming freshmen and new students in attendance. We will devote the entire day, ensuring that our new students are welcomed and acclimated. Orientation is designed to have small groups of students become acquainted with the following topics:
Understanding the school’s updated health & safety procedures
Meeting their Advisors, staff, and teachers
Becoming familiar with the layout of the buildings
Accessing computer programs so they can engage with the curriculum, assignments, grades
Managing stress and building executive functioning skills to become resilient learners.
A grab-and-go breakfast will be provided and available throughout the day for students to have as a snack. A bag lunch will be provided for each student. The schedule for September 8th orientation: Freshmen Orientation Schedule.
Guidance
Office
Below you will find the school counselor assignments and contact information.
Schedule change requests: Please note that you may reach out to your school counselor through email to request an appointment through Google Meet, a phone conference, or simply to answer a question. Counselors will be available periodically from August 10th- September 4th and will return your message within a couple of days. ADD/DROP will end on September 11th. Please see your Powerschool account for your assigned counselor.
Counselor
Assignment Phone Class of 24’ Class of 23’ Class of ‘22 & 21’
Stephanie Hodgeman 527-6576 A-GIL
A-D
(shodgeman@maplerun.org)
Chris Pepin
527-6573 Gin –
M E
– Ma
(cpepin@maplerun.org)
Amy Turner 527-6574 N – Th Mart –
Thi
(aturner@maplerun.org)
Elaine
Archambault 527-6572 Ti – Z Tho
– Z
(earchambault@maplerun.org)
SAT: Will be offered in school to BFA students only on Wednesday, September 23rd, 2020. You may sign up in the Guidance office with Ms. Stevens dstevens@maplerun.org. Seniors who have not taken the SAT will be given priority; please let us know this when you register. We are limited to 50 seats.
New Staff
We are
thrilled to have new members in our BFA community:
Elaine Archambault - Director of Guidance
Michael Atwood - Tech Integration Specialist
Lisa Gunderson - Special Educator
Lauren
Liberatore -Math Teacher
Caitlin
Madeiros - Paraeducator
Kevin Murakami
- Design Tech Teacher
Andrea Plis
- English Teacher
Polly Rico -
Proficiency Learning Coordinator
Angela Riley -
Attendance Monitor
Matthew
Samuels - Business Education Teacher
Nicole
Schubert - School Interventionist
Derek Spear -
Paraeducator
Justin Zabrosky- Health & PE Teacher
While the start to the school year will look different than in years past, we remain excited to personally welcome and work with all our students. As consistent communication is always a key with learning, we ask all our students to reach out to their teachers with any questions. BFA is known for its strong academic programs, diverse co-curricular activities, proud traditions, and creating a supportive learning environment. We are pleased to welcome you to the 2020 - 2021 school year.
Sincerely,
Brett Blanchard Heather Fitzgibbons Sara Kattam
Brett
Blanchard Heather Fitzgibbons Sara Kattam
Principal Assistant
Principal Assistant
Principal