Today was the kind of day you never want to have to have as an administrator, but also a day that I could truly realize how exceptional and special the students, staff, and families are at GMS. Shortly after morning announcements, I received a call from the Litchfield Police Department that we needed to evacuate the building due to a threat that was posted online and wait for further instructions. The building was evacuated within three minutes and the students were being cared for. During this time the caring nature of our staff truly shined. Their instincts took over and students were comforted if needed, kept occupied, kept warm, and protected. Other staff jumped in where needed and handled parent pick ups and prepared students for transportation. Once the call was made, every student was loaded on a bus and all students were off site within approximately 45 minutes. I could not be more proud of the way the staff responded and how the students handled this truly abnormal day. I know that not everything went perfectly and there are aspects that can be learned from. Over the next few days I will be reviewing and collecting feedback so that we may continue to learn and grow from situations like this. If there were aspects that you felt did not go well, I would ask that you please share them with me.
We know that events like this can sometimes cause an emotional response in children and adults alike. We encourage you to talk with your children about how they may be feeling. It is important to recognize that sometimes threats are made, and we don’t know why some people make them, but that there are many people around who can and will keep them safe. It may be helpful to point to all the extraordinary work that the adults at GMS did today to keep them well. For more information you can reference THIS SHEET.
Finally, in addition to the staff, students, and families, we must mention the incredible response of the Litchfield Police Department, Litchfield Fire Department, First Student Bus Company, NH State Police, and the Tabernacle Baptist Church. This coordinated effort was crucial in keeping our students safe and allowing parents to reunite with their children in a fairly easy manner. Though today was difficult for all of us, it can also showed us the true definition of the word: Community.
Be Well, Be Curious, Now What?,
Maura Clinton-Jones, Assistant Principal
GMS News
COVID Update
At this time we are reporting 3 positive cases within our school community. Please continue to be extra vigilant when it comes to mitigation strategies such as distancing, hand washing, and masking. With our current high number of positivity, we feel it is helpful to show the breakdown in terms of grade impact:
Pre K | 0 |
Kindergarten | 0 |
First Grade | 2 |
Second Grade | 0 |
Third Grade | 1 |
Fourth Grade | 0 |
Other/ Non Grade Specific | 0 |
News from the Library
Thank you all for making the book fair a success! From the volunteers to the families who made purchases, GMS had one of the most successful book fairs in the last 20 years! The total sales was $9863.17 of which GMS earned half of that in Scholastic Dollars. That has been used to purchase BookFlix last year, and the subscription will be renewed for this year. If you have not checked out BookFlix, please do! BookFlix You do need to input gms1 as the username and flix as the password. Other purchases made will be books and other resources for the teachers and students to utilize or win as prizes.
News from the SAU/ Superintendent
No News at this time
News from the PTO
Apparel Drive
Stay tuned to the blog/PTO FB page for pick up details. Email Mandi (fundraisegmspto@gmail.com) with questions.
4th Grade Yearbook
Only current 4th grade students can be included in the photos submitted for the yearbook. These will NOT be shared online and will only be used for the 4th grade yearbook. Please only submit photos from this year using this form.
https://forms.gle/8G4oDWrPixEAufzY9
Please check out the December PTO NewsletterDecember Newsletter
News from the Community
No News at This Time
Repeated News/ Long Term Info to Know
New COVID-19 Resource - To help ensure clear and consistent communication, our three school nurses, Ms. Vail-Naylor (GMS), Ms. Chambers (LMS) and Ms. Boucher (CHS), have created a new web resource for students, families and staff. This resource contains up to date information about preventing the spread of COVID-19 in our school community. It also offers guidance on testing including a list of current testing centers. This resource is linked on the district website, and the website of each school.
End 68 Hours of Hunger
End 68 Hours of Hunger and Litchfield Schools are pleased to inform you about a free, confidential food program which provides students with meals from Friday after school until they return to school on Monday morning. If meeting the weekend nutritional needs of your child is challenging at this time, we would like to help meet that need. All food is non-perishable and easy to prepare. If your child has any food allergies, please let us know and we will do our best to accommodate this need. Nut products are included for those who are not allergic, but children are informed that they are not to open the bags until a parent can review the contents. The bags are delivered to schools and students will take the bags home with them on the bus or at parent pick-up. If you would like to pick up the bags yourself, arrangements can be made for pick up at the front office.
If you are interested in joining the program or learning more, please contact Elin Pelland, School Social Worker, at 424-2133 x 2215 or at epelland@litchfieldsd.org.
Powerschool Parent Portal
This summer we switched our Student Information System to Powerschool. As part of Powerschool, you are able to access the Parent Portal in the Unified Classroom feature of this system. Please follow the link below to set up you parent portal account. Please contact the main office if you have an issues creating an account.
For Parents - Directions for Parent Access
Bus Routes
Bus Routes for the upcoming year can be found here: Bus Routes
Absence Reporting Email
The GMS office now has a dedicated email address to use to report your child tardy or absent: GMSabsences@litchfieldsd.org. You can also find it on the Griffin Memorial School homepage, on the top, left side under “ABSENCES”.
When you send an email please include the following information:
*Child’s first and last name
*Teacher
*Reason for absence
If you would prefer to leave a voicemail message when your child is absent or tardy you are still welcome to call 424-5931 and then hit “2” when you hear the automated message. Please remember to include the above information in the voice message.
Please note that when you email or leave a voice message saying that your child “will be out” then the absence is recorded as unexcused. Please tell us the reason for the absence so it is documented correctly.
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