Sunday, March 16, 2025

 

Hello Roth Families and Friends,

I hope that you were all able to enjoy some outside time this past weekend. The weather has me feeling ready for the sunshine and warmth that are a few short months away. 

I’d like to take time, again, to ask (and give thanks) for home support. I believe that the most successful relationships are built on a foundation of reciprocity and trust. I believe the same is true for school and family communication. While in school, we have policies and procedures to help keep students safe. The effectiveness of these policies and procedures will be maximized if they are being reinforced and supported beyond Roth’s halls/walls. Last week, I made another plea about helping to curb, monitor, and have honest conversations regarding student social media activity. At school, we made a big push toward reinforcing our student device policy. As a result, students who may not have otherwise been identified were asked to store their device/s in their lockers. With a few hours of this weekend remaining, I am asking you to review and reinforce our personal device policy with your student. My goal is for students to come to school each day prepared and willing to learn. My goal is that the environment we create affords safety and support to all of our students. There are certainly other factors, but it has been my observation that unrestrained social media activity provides frequent challenges to those goals.

At Roth Junior HS, student personal devices (such as phones and tablets) should be stored in student lockers. These devices should not be carried in backpacks, pockets, hoodies, or otherwise. We are making an effort to demonstrate to students that a device-free school day is not just about unplugging to connect. It is also about helping to tamp down social conflict, and prevent the spread (and glamorization) of inappropriate content. So, Roth families and friends: I thank you for your continued support and partnership as we work together to maintain a safe, productive, and positive learning environment for all students. 

News and Updates

State Testing in April and May: Our 7th and 8th graders will sit for the English Language Arts State Test on Tuesday, April 8, and Wednesday, April 9; these same students will sit for the Math State Test on Tuesday, May 6, and Wednesday, May 7. Though one month apart, these two exams provide teachers and building leaders with key academic achievement data. Since September, our teachers have been working hard to deliver high quality instruction that gives students the knowledge, skills, and strategies necessary to feel confident and competent in any setting. Though testing is just one such setting, the data that results helps us reflect on and modify our instructional practices. When I was still in the classroom, I used to offer my students the following encouragement to prepare for State Tests (when I taught ELA 7) and the ELA Regents (when I taught English 11): “We have worked hard all year, and we know how skilled we are. Now we’ve got a chance to measure ourselves up against peers from across the state. So let’s do it!”

Eastern Monroe Career Center (EMCC) at Roth Parent Group: At last week’s Roth Parent Group meeting, guest presenter, Andrea Compo, shared a wealth of information that was especially relevant for our current 9th graders. Families who attended in-person or online received a lot of information, so I thought it would be helpful to include a link to EMCC’s website.  I mentioned this at Parent Group: when I taught high school juniors and seniors, I got to see many students shine because Career and Technical Education programs (offered by BOCES partners like EMCC) gave them hands-on and work-based experiences in fields that they enjoyed. Many of these students would go on to explore careers in their preferred fields. Please click here to learn more about what EMCC can offer. Families of our current 9th graders: please be sure to connect with your student’s counselor at the Senior High School next year to get the conversation going. 

R-H Spotlight Theater Presents: Forget all you know about the traditional story of The Princess and the Pea and be wowed by this fractured fairytale! Rush-Henrietta Spotlight Theatre’s production of “Once Upon a Mattress” takes place March 27-29 at the Senior High School. Our students and the adults who support them have spent three months preparing this show for our community. You won’t want to miss this silly, family friendly presentation! Tickets are $12 and are on sale now by visiting www.rhnet.org/onceuponamattress.

Roth JHS Yearbook: The 2024-2025 Roth JHS Yearbook is still available for purchase. Capture your memories in this year's Roth Jr. High School Yearbook. You can customize your two free pages:

• Add photos from your computer, Facebook, Instagram, Google Drive & more
• Answer fun Memory Questions to help remember the year
• The TWO Custom Pages are FREE and are printed ONLY in your book; Want more pages? Each additional two pages are just $1.98

Click here to purchase and customize your yearbook. Our school passcode is: 101556133544541.

Student Council Merch: This Roth merch sale ends this Friday, March 21. Roth Student Council is hosting an online merchandise sale. T-shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies, and sweatpants are available in various R-H colors and themes. Please consider supporting our Student Council, and repping our school colors.

D.C. Trip: The Washington, D.C. trip is about two months away. As almost 90 Roth 8th graders finalize their preparation for the trip, I ask families to check out the DC Trip Google Classroom for helpful information from your advisors, Mr. Mallaber and Ms. Flood. Please email the advisors with any outstanding questions you may have. The trip is from Wednesday, May 14 - Friday, May 18. 

Women’s History Month Essay Contest: Rush-Henrietta students are invited to submit a video essay of no more than one minute long answering the following: “Who is a woman that inspires me and why?” This contest is open to all R-H students. There will be winners in each of these grade bands: elementary (K-3), intermediate (4-6), junior high (7-9), and senior high (10-12). Winners will be invited to a special lunch with the superintendent in April. The deadline to submit your entry is Sunday, March 23. Click here for more information.

Spring Athletics Reminder: JV and Varsity practices start tomorrow. The Modified athletics season starts in two weeks, on Monday, March 31. Please click here for a message from Mr. Onze, R-H Athletic Director, regarding spring sports registration and important information. Let’s go R-H!

2025-2026 District Transportation Forms: This is a reminder. Transportation forms for Child Care and Split Custody for next school year are due on April 1. It’s never too early to start planning for next year. Please complete the appropriate form and send it to the Rush-Henrietta Transportation Department.

A lot of information. Again. Thank you for all that you do to contribute to Roth’s rise to excellence. 

Click here for previous E-News communications.

Sincerely,