Update: December 5, 2017

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Math Team News

The Greely High School Math Team has been doing great this season! They are currently in 1st place in both their division (Pi-Cone South) and in the Medium School Division. Below are some current standings: 
Pi-Cone Division:
     Madison Albert is in 1st place for freshman
     Matthew Smith-Erb and James Brouder are in 16th and 18th place for juniors, respectively
     Gregory Pershing and Peter Theodores are in 1st and 3rd place for seniors, respectively
     Gregory, Peter, and Madison are in 1st, 4th, and 10th place overall, respectively

For the entire state MAML (Maine Association of Math Leagues):
     Greely is in 5th place overall
     Madison Albert is the highest scoring freshman in the state, and 39th overall
     Gregory Pershing is in 2nd place overall
     Peter Theodores is in 17th place overall

Project Sticker Shock Collaboration with GHS and Casco Bay CAN


Project Sticker Shock is a project that brings community members, youth, law enforcement and local businesses together to raise awareness about the risks of providing alcohol to minors. The students place bright orange stickers on alcohol containers which emphasize the state law for providing alcohol to minors. The goal is to keep youth safe by reaching adults and reminding them they play a vital role by not purchasing alcohol for minors.

 Project Sticker Shock is a great opportunity for youth to see that their community supports this kind of messaging. When youth and retailers come together to raise awareness about the consequences that come from providing alcohol to minors, it sends a powerful message to the entire community and has positive ripple effects.

 Special thanks to students Olivia Murley, Jacob Boyle, Jake Cunningham and Kate Curran for their student leadership on this project. 

 This project would not have been possible without the collaboration with Casco Bay CAN, the Cumberland Police Department: Officer Dalbec, Chief Rumsey, Lt. Young, local Business Owners: Food Stop, North Yarmouth Variety, Cumberland Irving, J Brothers and GHS Principal Dan McKeone. 

I Love Public Education!

MIW Grade 3 students learn to fold the flag






Please go to this link and vote for our MSAD #51 photo (to left) which is part of a national contest on the American Superintendents' Association website. Voting is a 2 step process - click the button on the AASA website then confirm in your email. Voting is open until December 11.







Music News

Congratulations to Corrigan Farnham (class of 2018) who was chosen and participated in the All National Honors Chorus Festival, sponsored by (NAfME). She was one of approximately 280 singers who were chosen through a rigorous audition process from 49 states.


The 4th and 5th grade chorus held their first music concert of the year last week, and it was wonderful! 



MSAD #51's 2017 Annual Report


Last night I presented our 2018 Annual Report to the Board of Directors. You can find that presentation linked here.



Proficiency Primer

Over the last several blog posts, I have started to dive deeper into the major tenets of a proficiency-based education. Each blog through February, I will talk more about the tenets of a proficiency-based education (PBE). Stay tuned to my "Proficiency Primer" for more details on PBE.

Fourth Tenet: More emphasis on transferable skills in addition to content knowledge
When most of today's parents attended school, the major focus of learning was on understanding subject-area content. Whereas it is still very important to learn specific content, the fact remains that advances in technology have reduced the need to, say, know all of the battles by name during the Civil War. Instead, teachers are now more concerned with asking students about the impact of war on our country as a thread throughout history rather than dwelling on all of the specific battles in wars. Anyone can now google the Civil War and instantly have the desired information. The skill of analysis is both life-long and transferable to other areas of learning.

 Another feature of transferable skills is what has long been called "21st Century Learning Skills". In Maine, they are often referred to as "Guiding Principles" and all students must demonstrate competency in using these skills before graduation. These skills include:

 Effective communicator;
Self-directed and life-long learner;
Creative and practical problem solver;
Responsible and involved citizen; and
Imaginative and informed thinker.

Last spring, MSAD #51 hosted a Business Roundtable event that was attended by representatives of several local business. One of the striking themes that came out of this event was the importance of transferable skills, such as the Guiding Principles, as a preference for business leaders when recruiting and retaining new employees.