Paw Prints – October 26

Katie Grassa’s Reflections on the Exam School Changes:
Wednesday night was a historic moment for Boston Public Schools. It was unanimously voted at the Boston School Committee to suspend the test for exam schools for 1 school year. This plan is not perfect but it is a step in the right direction to offer opportunities and access to students in new ways. As a member of this working group, I participated in the School Committee until 2am Thursday morning and listened to over 185 community members share their thoughts and feelings. There were reactions on both sides of this proposal and some great ideas shared for how we can continue to move towards being an antiracist school district. It was an emotional meeting but an important moment for our City.

The most inspirational part of the evening was when Tanisha Sullivan, President of the Boston Chapter of the NAACP, shared her personal experiences with BPS as well as read a letter of support written by Dr. Ibram X. Kendi. This summer Curley staff read, How to be an Antiracist by Dr. Kendi and we continue to reflect on our policies, instruction and interactions with families. I wanted to share his words with you and encourage you all to read the attached letter. Dr. Kendi shared his support for the proposal and continues to push us as a community to create antiracist policies.

I know many of you have questions about this policy and the specifics regarding exam school entrance. BPS Communications Office is working on distributing this as soon as possible to all staff and families. Thank you for your patience and I hope you are as moved by Dr. Kendi’s message as I was.

Dr. Kendi’s Letter

SPC October Meeting & Elections: The Curley School Parent Council (SPC) will be holding elections for SPC leadership positions at our next meeting—Wednesday, October 28th from 6–7pm via Zoom. You can register for this meeting using THIS LINK. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Visit this News post to learn more about the School Parent Council elected positions, School Site Council, and volunteer committees and/or review this handout from BPS. If you have additional questions feel free to email SPC leadership at spc@curleyk8.com.

 School Site Council (SSC): Our first SSC meeting this year will be on Tuesday, November 17, 5:30 p.m – 7:00 p.m. All families are welcome to attend. More information on how to access the meeting online coming soon.

Remote Learning and Reopening: As of October 22, 2020 BPS has moved to full remote learning. For more information on the reopening plan please visit the BPS Reopening Plan Page. 

Health and Safety: We recently updated our website with health and safety protocol related information. Please find important COVID-19 information in both English and Spanish  here.  

Internet Supports: Comcast Internet Essentials – This is the BEST option for those who are eligible. Please have families apply for the free 60 days while we wait for the vouchers to come in. Here are a few tips:

• Households are eligible for this program if they:
  • Qualify for programs like the National School Lunch Program, housing assistance, Medicaid, SNAP, SSI, and others.
  • Live in an area where Comcast Internet service is available
  • Have not had Comcast Internet in the last 90 days
  • Households who owe money to Comcast may still qualify if approved by 12/31/20
• Be sure to call the correct phone number (see below). DO NOT call the regular service line. 
  • English: 1-855-846-8376 or InternetEssentials.com 
  •  Spanish: 1-855-765-6995 or es.InternetEssentials.com 
• The language of the application can be changed. There is a link to change the language on the top right side of the application.
• Amnesty for bad debt/past debt forgiveness is in place through 12/31.
• Families should elect to get the self-install kit first. If they ask for a technician to come and install, they will be charged an installation fee. However, if they call after they’ve received the self-install kit, they will send a technician at no charge.

Updated Contact Information: It is imperative that the school has your correct and up to date contact information. 

• The BPS Family Guide including media release can be found at https://www.bostonpublicschools.org/familyguide
• The parent & student agreement form including media can be filled out online at BPS Emergency Contact. You can also update your emergency contact information here.  Again correct contact information will be essential during this time. 

Breakfast and Lunch: Here is our Menu for the month of October. We are not able to offer hot lunch or breakfast because both of our kitchen spaces are being upgraded as part of My Way Cafe.

Who should I contact: If you have questions and you are not sure who to contact please use the chart below to support you.

Classroom related questions	Classroom teachers: (Contact information can be found at www.curleyk8.com)
K-2 Support	Dawn Durant ddurant2@bostonpublicschools.org or Cristina Silva csilva4@bostonpublicschools.org
Grades 3-5 Support	David Diaz ddiaz@bostonpublicschools.org or Justina Levey jlevey@bostonpublicschools.org
Grades 6-8 Support	Adrian Ward-Jackson Awardjackson@bostonpublicschools.org  or Sugeily Santos ssantos2@bostonpublicschools.org
Health Questions	Keilah Santana ksantana@bostonpublicschools.orgApril Pumphret apumphret@bostonpublicschools.org
Curley K-8 School Parent Council & Family Liaison	Manny Hernandez ehernandez@bostonpublicschools.org spc@curleyk8.com
Technology Related Questions	BPS Helpline 617-635-8873 – Please have families call the BPS Family helpline Monday – Friday, 9am – 5pm for questions about technology and other resources available to BPS families.Help is available in Arabic, Cape Verdean Creole, Chinese, French, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, Russian, Somali, Spanish, and Vietnamese.
Urgent Priority Questions	Principal  Katie Grassa kgrassa@bostonpublicschools.org

Social Media: For up to date information about the Curley K-8 School please sign up for email alerts by joining the Mailing List. You can also follow Principal Grassa on Twitter @principalgrassa and be sure to always use the hashtag #curleycares when sharing/posting/tweeting information about our school.