News from the Avenue

Volume 12, Issue 3

October 27, 2020

School Site Council

The BLS School Site Council held a virtual meeting on Tuesday, October 20. This was the first meeting to include the newly elected 2020-2021 SSC parent representatives:

members Ben Cui, Gene Lambert, and Lisa Liao
alternates Magda Hernandez, Ingrid Sheldon, Tamar Shay-Tannas, and Julia Xu

These members join the parent representatives who were elected last year, and include:

Kelly Chase, Yan Ou, Alexandra Taieb, and Lei (Alan) Tian.

Voting members of the SSC also include seven faculty and staff and two students. Head of School Skerritt is always one of two SSC co-chairs.

Election of officers

The October meeting included the annual election of officers, with the following results:

Kelly Chase was elected as Parent Co-Chair
Yan Ou was elected as Alternate Parent Co-Chair
Ben Cui was elected as Clerk
Lisa Liao was elected as Alternate Clerk

Following the elections, Ms. Skerritt discussed remote learning to date and provided insight regarding what a future hybrid model might look like given the unique needs and challenges at BLS. Meeting notes from the October meeting will be available after they are approved at the November meeting, and will be posted in this folder.

The council voted to continue to hold SSC meetings on the second Tuesday of the month during 2020-2021. The next SSC meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, November 10, at 6:00 pm, and will be hosted on Zoom via this link. We hope to see you next month. If you’d like to suggest a topic for a future SSC meeting, contact Co-Chair Kelly Chase.

Communications Committee

The BLS Communications Committee is seeking new members. The three main areas that we work on are putting together News from the Avenue, moderating the BLS Forum parent listserv, and administering the various Google Parent email groups for each class. We are in need of new parent members as a number of our current ones are senior parents, and it's time to bring in some new parental representation!

The SPC Executive Committee will be seeking parent representatives from each class to help contribute to communications efforts at BLS. If you are interested, please email us.

News from the Avenue navigation

If you are reading this newsletter on a phone, you will notice a stack of three lines in the top left corner of your device. This navigation tool allows you to easily access the Issue Contents, Calendar, and Contacts from wherever you are in the newsletter.

School Parent Council

SPC Election Update

Thank you to everyone who came out to participate in the SSC and SPC elections on October 13. The new SPC representatives include:

Fernando Domenech, Ekaette Dumel, Michael Malone, Lisa Parcell, Peng Sun, and Peililu Wang.

Congratulations to all of the newly elected SPC representatives and thank you for your service! The new representatives join those elected last year, and who are beginning the second year of their two-year term:

C.J. Connon, Bruno Giordano, Vonnessa Goode-Knight, Erin Lee, Lisa Green, Maolin Guo, Jing Ma, and Wendy Qiao.

Note: there is an open seat for a Hispanic/Latinx parent or guardian. If you are interested in filling this seat, please contact Jing Ma.

Citywide Parent Council (CPC) representatives

Elections resulted in Wenling Ma being chosen as the BLS CPC representative for this year, and Tamar Shay-Tannas as the BLS CPC alternate.

SpedPac and District English Learner Advisory Committee (DELAC) representatives

There is an open seat for a BLS representative to SpedPac (Special Education Parent Advisory Council) and to DELAC (District English Learner Advisory Committee). If you are interested in filling either position, please contact Jing Ma. More information about SpedPac is available here. More information about DELAC is available here.

SPC Officer Elections

SPC officer elections for co-chairs and co-clerks will be held on Wednesday, October 28, at 7:00 pm. Officer elections are open to all to attend but only representatives can run for a seat or vote. You can join via this Zoom invite (Meeting ID: 857 2323 2462 and Passcode: 403002).

Keefe Library

Guided Inquiry Design led by Dr. Leslie Maniotes

In August, fourteen members of the faculty at BLS gathered (virtually) in teams to develop projects that follow the Guided Inquiry Design process. This approach to thinking, learning, and teaching changes the culture of the classroom into a collaborative inquiry community and “helps guide students through the flow of discovery in the process of learning from a variety of sources of information to prepare them for successful learning and living in the information age.” By following the Guided Inquiry model, students will be empowered to engage authentically with their own curiosity and explore genuine interests.

The professional development was planned before Covid-19 sent us home in March, and we are fortunate that Dr. Maniotes worked tirelessly during the late spring and early summer to revamp the training to a virtual platform. Together the teachers and librarians were provided the time and support to develop new projects and prepare to teach research in the virtual classroom. Integrating this method are

the Earth Science project (Class VI),
the Civics project in U.S. History I (Class V),
the Toxins project in Chemistry, and
the independent research project in our Psychology elective course.

Funding was provided by donors to the Boston Latin School Association through the Keefe Library Fund and by Boston Public Schools.

The Guided Inquiry Process

Open: Invitation to inquiry, open minds, stimulate curiosity
Immerse: Build background knowledge, connect to content, discover interesting ideas
Explore: Explore interesting ideas, look around, dip in
Identify: Pause and ponder, identify inquiry question, decide direction
Gather: Gather important information, go broad, go deep
Create: Reflect on learning, go beyond facts to make meaning, create to communicate
Share: Learn from each other, share learning, tell your story
Evaluate: Evaluate achievement of learning goals, reflect on content, reflect on process

Graphics and definitions are from:Kuhlthau, Carol C., Leslie K. Maniotes and Ann K. Caspari. Guided Inquiry: A framework for your school. ABC-CLIO, 2012.

Friends of German

Ms. Heidemarie Floerke

Welcoming Ms. Heidemarie Floerke

The Friends of German are warmly welcoming Ms. Heidemarie Floerke, who has joined the Modern Languages Department at BLS.

Ms. Floerke, a native of Hannover, Germany, earned her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees at the University of Toronto, and comes to BLS with a long and distinguished teaching career in the Greater Boston area. Most recently and for almost twenty years, Ms. Floerke led the German program at Lexington High School where she launched important innovations to enhance language acquisition. Her noteworthy initiatives include introducing a student exchange program with a high school in Germany, as well as forming regular collaborations with the Goethe Institute and the German Consulate General in Boston. This experience will enable her to seamlessly join similar activities by Ms. Kuchta and Mr. Gavin, as well as the Clough Center for Global Understanding. Ms. Floerke also brings to BLS exciting complementary ideas, such as enabling local language immersion with the bilingual German International School Boston, and attracting extramural grants to support programming as she has successfully obtained before. Ms. Floerke hopes to leverage her additional graduate background in Arts and Cinema Studies to enrich the BLS German program once settled in.

As Friends of German, we are excited that such a high-caliber, passionate educator, recognized with several prestigious teaching awards over the course of her career, could be attracted to join our faculty. Beyond her skills in teaching German, we appreciate that Ms. Floerke brings to BLS a number of interests and talents - including experience as a Latin teacher and as a competitive rower - through which she may further cross-fertilize and support the school’s mission of providing a contemporary classical education.

Parents interested in learning more about planned activities in the German program, in sharing suggestions, and potentially becoming involved in helping with extracurricular activities are invited to join our contact list or renew their prior information – please sign up via blsgerman@gmail.com. We are preparing for an inaugural Zoom meeting for the year where Ms. Floerke will take the opportunity to introduce herself and discuss her vision for next steps.

Friends of Athletics

Please follow BLS Athletics social media accounts for scores and updates.

Twitter: @bls_athletics

Instagram: blsathletics

Athletics Update

The BLS Golf and Cross Country teams have been competing in the Dual County League this fall. The Girls Cross Country team is currently 3-0! Boys Cross Country is 1-2 and the Golf team is currently 2-3.

Winter sports and COVID-19 guidelines

Several of our other programs are conducting offseason training sessions within the guidelines set forth by the EEA, Department of Public Health, and the MIAA.

BLS is awaiting guidance from DESE, EEA, and the MIAA around winter sports. Communication will be released by the Athletic Department when recommendations and guidelines are established. In the meantime, all candidates for winter sports must complete the Winter Sports Registration on the BLS Athletics website.

Note that “Captains Practices” are not permitted by the MIAA or BLS. We encourage student-athletes to continue socially distanced training and conditioning safely on your own.

Sports Nutrition Presentation

BLS Athletic Trainer Courtney McTague will be hosting a presentation entitled “Nutrition Guidelines for the High School Athlete” on Tuesday, October 27, at 7 pm. The Zoom link will be registered participants prior to the event. All student-athletes, coaches, and parents are invited to attend.

Register here.

Virtual BLS Wolfpack 5K

While we are disappointed that we cannot host an in-person Wolfpack 5K at Franklin Park this year, we are pleased to announce our 1^st virtual Wolfpack 5K!

Run your own 5K route at a time and place choosing or relive the glory of past years’ Wolfpack 5Ks on the Franklin Park 5K cross-country course either on your own or with a family member or friend in a socially distant way.

Register here to run and post your time anytime between now and November 30 for BLS bragging rights.

This year’s registration fee is $25 per runner, with 100% of the proceeds to support Boston Latin Athletics and the renovation of the Paul Costello Fitness Center (aka the Weight Room) at BLS. Or if your knees are creaky and you prefer not to run but would still like to make a donation to BLS Athletics, please click here.

We hope you’ll run with the ‘Pack, this year now more than ever.

Go Wolfpack!

Virtual Friends of Athletics Meeting

The next Friends of Athletics meeting is scheduled for Monday, November 9, from 5 - 6 pm. The meeting will be held in a virtual format. If you would like to receive a notice link for the meeting, please email David Abdow or Shayne O’Brien.

BLSA Parents’ Committee

New Parent Welcome Meet-and-Greet

The BLSA Parents’ Committee would like to extend a warm welcome to all our new families this year. We all appreciate the importance of connecting with a new community and hope that you will take this opportunity to join us for an informal virtual evening of appetizers and drinks on Thursday, October 29, from 5:15 pm to 6 pm. While we cannot meet in person this year, we hope that the virtual evening will facilitate creation and growth of new and existing connections with other parents. This meeting will also be an opportunity to learn about the important role the BLSA plays in the everyday lives of your students.

The event will feature an address from Associate Head of School Jonathan Mulhern ’98 followed by small break-out sessions that will be purposely structured so you can meet other BLS families from your neighborhood and student’s cluster group. Parents of Class V (8th grade) and Class IV B-sie (9th grade) students will also have a private break-out session to connect with other families. We encourage you to ask questions and request that all questions be submitted at registration to allow time for these to be grouped and appropriately addressed.

The BLSA Parents’ Committee is dedicated to ensuring that each student has the resources they require to succeed. This year more than ever, as we face new challenges during the COVID pandemic and virtual learning, the role of this committee in ensuring that all the needs of our students are met will be even more critical, and we welcome this opportunity to meet with new families.

Please click here to register and submit your questions to the BLSA Parents’ Committee. We look forward to meeting with you all.

Science Department

Dr. Vivian Towe, Class of '91

Epidemiologist visits Biology II at BLS

On October 6, Dr. Vivian Towe, BLS '91, zoomed into Biology II classes to discuss the study of epidemiology, her personal story, and the current COVID-19 pandemic.

During Dr. Towe's incredible education, she earned degrees from Tufts, Boston University, Berkeley School of Public Health, and Johns Hopkins. Dr. Towe left her home to live in China to support rural people afflicted with HIV AIDS. This was transformational for her and inspired our own BLS students to follow their passions. Dr. Towe shared her illustrious career history, which includes work with the RAND Corporation, the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, the US Centers for Disease Control, and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Dr. Towe is currently a Program Officer at Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute. Dr. Towe left students with the latest status on COVID-19 vaccine challenges and successes. Students were enthralled by her visit and we hope to maintain our connection with her as well as introduce other young scientists to our students.

History Department

Wrongful Conviction Day

Earlier this month students from BLS history classes participated in the annual Wrongful Conviction Day program sponsored by the Innocence Project. This is the second year that Boston Latin School students and teachers have participated.

Wrongful Conviction Day brings attention to individuals who have been wrongfully convicted and incarcerated, and later freed from prison. Latin School students heard from two exonerees, Mr. Sean Ellis and Mr. Nat Cosenza, who shared their stories virtually from their homes. They were interviewed by Ira Grant and Radha Natarajan, both of the New England Innocence Project. The program is part of the continuing effort by the history department to bring varying viewpoints and perspectives to the classroom.

Deitch Leadership Institute

Junior Interview & Sophomore Resume Workshops (Virtual)

The DLI and Private Industry Council Office (PIC Office) are currently hosting the annual Junior Interview Lab, a comprehensive workshop for Class II students on how to prepare and succeed in a professional interview. Students attend one workshop during a study block. In November, the DLI and PIC will then host the annual Sophomore Resume Workshop, a similar workshop in which Class II students will build their resume in real time. If students have a completed resume already, they should bring it for additional review and editing. Email Mr. Jim Levesque or Ms. Lucey Gorrill with questions.

Take Stock in Your Future (Virtual)

DLI will partner with Junior Achievement to offer Take Stock in Your Future, an interactive program that introduces students to the stock market. Four 60-minute classes after school will teach stock fundamentals, buying/selling, IPOs, dividends, and risk/return. The last class will be a competition using a stock market simulation, and the winning team will compete at the JA Stock Market Challenge in December. Classes will meet every Friday over Zoom from 2:30 - 3:30 pm, starting October 30 until November 22. Email Mr. Jim Levesque to sign up or learn more.

Community Service

The Boston Latin School Community Service program recently adopted the community service platform InnerView to better support our students in becoming responsible and engaged global citizens, and in embracing our core competencies of social responsibility, civic engagement, and global awareness. InnerView allows students to post to and learn about community service work on their site, and link their service to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Students are recognized for their service as they work towards their BLS requirement of 100 community service hours served prior to graduation. All students received information about InnerView in extended homeroom and via email. Students must register with InnerView following the guidelines sent in the email to log and receive credit for their community service work. Students can contact Mr. Kennelly with any questions.

Clough Center for Global Understanding

The Boston Latin School Clough Center for Global Understanding is continuing its work virtually with a number of programs aimed at bringing students and educators together during this time when international understanding and cooperation is more important than ever.

Engagement with Counterparts in Jordan

Assistant Head of School Danielle Murray and Program Director Thomas Kennelly recently met with educators from Jordan to discuss keeping students engaged with school through their involvement in extracurricular activities. The program was coordinated by Boston Latin School global partner World Boston and moderated by Sarah Sibley of World Boston. After introductions, Mr. Kennelly talked about the wide range of student extracurriculars in athletics, music and the arts, as well as student clubs. He stressed the importance of these programs to both engaging students and supporting their whole development. At BLS, he noted, all students are involved in multiple activities outside of the classroom providing additional leadership and social opportunities as well as athletic and artistic development. Ms. Murray discussed the extensive student clubs and organizations that she oversees with the assistance of her student leaders, another key student service program at the school. She talked about the 100+ student led groups that are up in running during virtual school and how there are clubs for all interests at BLS. In addition she previewed the virtual club fair that took place the week of October 19.

Virtual Exchange Programs

Even though students are not traveling this year, the Clough Center is supporting teachers and students with virtual exchanges. Ms. Freeman has launched a Civic Global Responsibility & Obligation Initiative in her Facing History classes. All students have partners from different countries around the world with whom they will be communicating throughout the school year on topics related to civic responsibility. Grade 9 World History 1 students will be embarking on a year long virtual exchange with students from Morocco starting later this month. The program is run by Global One to One and sponsored by the Stevens Initiative. In addition, French students are participating in a virtual exchange with peers in Martinique. These and other virtual activities will keep BLS students engaged virtually until we are able to resume traveling and hosting exchange students.

International Education Week

Lastly, the Boston Latin School Clough Center for Global Understanding will be sponsoring BLS International Education Week from November 16 - 20 with a variety of virtual global events. Keep an eye on the BLS Daily Bulletin and News from the Avenue for updates.

CIEE Global Navigator Program

Interested in global travel? Learn about the CIEE Global Navigator program and scholarship opportunities by attending a virtual information session at on of the following times.

Mondays 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Tuesdays 10:30 am – 11:30 am
Wednesdays 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Thursdays 8:00 pm – 9:00 pm

Click here for more information.

Advanced Placement Exams

This is a final reminder that all BLS students currently enrolled in Advanced Placement courses should be registered on AP Classroom and the BLS AP Registration and Payment form. The AP exam order will be placed later this month and only students registered on AP Classroom will have an exam ordered. Payments are still being accepted and processed. Contact Mr. Kennelly with any questions.

Families for Equity and Diversity

Given the extraordinary circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic and its disproportionate impacts on Black and Latinx families in Boston, FEqD supports the recommendations for exam school admissions criteria for the 2021-2022 school year approved by the Boston School Committee last week. We believe the task force came up with the most realistic and equitable approach.

We hope you will join us for FEqD’s next virtual meeting this Thursday, October 29, from 7:00 - 8:30 pm! Our agenda will include elections (for a co-chair and a possible new position), recent activity around the exam school admissions proposal, and discussing some new ideas. All parents and caretakers are welcome to attend at any time.

Note: We share our meeting Zoom links, along with other updates, via the FEqD Google group. To join that group, fill out this quick form or go to our website and click “subscribe”. You do not need a gmail account to join.

If you have any questions or concerns about this process - or anything! - please reach out to FEqD co-chairs Denise Wilson-Joutras P’23,‘23 or Katy Roberts P‘18,’22.

Friends of the Arts

Friends of the Arts has been busy sorting show choir costumes.

Gospel Choir and Harvard's Kuumba Singers enjoy a workshop.

On October 8, the BLS Gospel Choir attended a collaborative rehearsal and Q&A session with the Kuumba Singers of Harvard College. Students had a chance to sing collectively and in sectionals, experience Kuumba's online rehearsal format, pick the brains of current Harvard scholars about music, academics and college life, and reunite with Kuumba's assistant director, Perrin Price '19, who was a cherished and talented member of the BLS Gospel Choir for 5 years.

Thank you TJ!

We are so grateful to TJ Zhang who has served as co-chair for Friends of the Arts, fundraising and organizing volunteers for concerts as well as helping out wherever needed for the past two years. TJ has promised that he will continue to be around to help. Thanks TJ for your dedication and big smile. We are happy that you are not going anywhere even though you are stepping down as co-chair.

Friends of the Arts needs you!

Being part Friends of the Arts is a wonderful way to feel fully connected to the school. If you would like to nominate yourself or a friend, please get in touch with Cathy Bosch. We are looking for candidates that will be around for at least two more years.

Open FotA Positions

Co-Chair - Share position with Cathy Bosch

Help preside over FotA meetings. Be a liaison to Ms. Margaret McKenna, BLS Program Director of Visual and Performing Arts, and other respective BLS school groups, Head of School Skerritt, and BLSA (Boston Latin School Association). There is room to figure out what you like to do most. We are looking for folks wanting to get more institutional knowledge.

Treasurer - Share position with Emmie Chatzimanika

Monthly financial reports are presented at FotA meetings. Invoices for expenses go directly to the FotA account at BLSA. Learn from Emmie now and help her when she can't make a meeting.

Next Monthly Meeting

FOtA will meet via Zoom on Wednesday, November 4, at 6:30 pm. All welcome!! Click here for more information.

More Big Thanks!

to Hairong Chen, Steve Murphy, Sandy Larson, Ruifeng Li, and Kim Emery for sorting artwork for Mr. Harris.
to Tiffany Jacob, Lee Rodrigues, Jane Connolly, Anne Freeman, Sharon Berke, and Lena Parvex for standing by to deliver instruments and art supplies, and
to Sandy Krauss for sharing her school fight song video!

From the Editor

Thanks to our Contributors

Many thanks to BLS faculty, BLS staff, and BLSA staff including Ms. Kathleen Bateman, Ms. Deeth Ellis, Ms. Kim Deely Emery, Mr. Jim Goodfield, Mr. Thomas Kennelly, Mr. Jim Levesque, Ms. Marybeth Oskowski, and Mr. Jack Owens, and BLS parents, including David Abdow, Martin Beinborn, Cathy Bosch, Kathy Cahill, Kelly Chase, Lisa Green, Jing Ma, Katy Roberts, Shayne Stump-O'Brien, Denise Wilson-Joutras, and Margaret Wood (as well as all supporting parents) for their contributions to this issue of News from the Avenue.

Past issues and future issues

The News from the Avenue archives can be reached through this tab on the Communications Committee site.

Submitting articles

If representative members of the community would like to submit articles, they are welcome to do so. Please contact editor Suzanne Elsasser P'21 with inquiries.

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