Sarah Grossi, who teaches Careers in Education courses at the Region 14 Applied Technology Center at ConVal High School, presented at the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) Region 1 Leadership Conference in Foxborough, MA. The focus of her breakout session was on the use of Universal Design in Learning (UDL) in Career in Technical Education (CTE).

Grossi was named a Fellow by the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) in January. The fellowship trains a cadre of leaders to position ACTE as a leader in developing an educated, prepared, adaptable, and competitive workforce by providing CTE educators with opportunities to participate in the development and implementation of laws, regulations, and other public policies at the local, state, and federal levels.

Earlier today, the members of the ConVal Envirothon Team, together with their advisor Andria Johnson, did a forestry walk with John Benjamin from the Harris Center for Conservation Education.

They conducted a survey of the forest behind ConVal High School, analyzing different tree types, measuring the width and height of the trees, and determining the overall health of the forest.

The next step for the team is the Envirothon competition in May!

Hope Squad met for an all-day in-school retreat on Monday, March 24. Members engaged in team-building exercises, participated in lessons and discussions centered around suicide prevention, and planned activities to gather student engagement for the future. 

Hope Squad is a group of students nominated by their peers who meet regularly with trained advisors to talk and learn about mental health. Members are trained to note signs of distress and reach out, connecting peers to help and hope. Hope Squads educate the entire student body to reduce stigma and change their school's culture.

The 2025 District Choral Festival took place in the ConVal Gym on Wednesday, March 19. It brought together choral ensembles from Great Brook, South Meadow, and ConVal Regional High School. A true district-wide endeavor, the event also featured singers from Antrim Elementary, Dublin Consolidated, Francestown Elementary, Greenfield Elementary, Hancock Elementary, Peterborough Elementary, Pierce, and Temple Elementary Schools.

The concert covered a wide variety of musical styles and showcased the diverse musical talents of ConVal students at different levels. The opening song was "All of Me" from A Vision Unfolding, a genre-bending piece inspired by gospel, blues, and spoken word elements. This was followed by "The Sound of Silence" by the folk-rock duo Simon & Garfunkel, a Celtic choral original, a selection from the musical Wicked, a traditional blues song, a piece from the movie soundtrack to Ad Astra, Shakira's Official 2010 FIFA World Cup™ Song "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)," and "Il Lampo," a dramatic, mixed-meter musical piece based on an Italian poem. The concert concluded with an all-singer rendition of "Truly Brave," a special mash-up of two great songs — "Brave" by Sara Bareilles and "True Colors" by Cyndi Lauper.

In this photo, Choral Director Brian Moore conducts a dynamic performance of "This Is Me" from the musical film The Greatest Showman by the ConVal High School Trouble Clefs, together with piano accompanist Mary Ann Fleming.

The 2025 District Band Concert took place in the ConVal Gym on Thursday, March 13.

Band ensembles from Great Brook and South Meadow middle schools, as well as Peterborough Elementary School, performed a wide-ranging repertoire that spanned multiple music styles, from contemporary pieces to movie soundtracks and classical music selections.

In this picture, ConVal Band Director Jonny Trudeau conducted the combined 7th through 12th Grade GBS, SMS, and CVHS Concert Band in a rendition of "The Never Ending Story" in an arrangement by Patrick Russell.

The Student-Staff Book Club met after school in the ConVal Library this afternoon to discuss Enter the Body by Joy McCullough.

The story develops in prose and stage directions that give voice to some of Shakespeare's female protagonists—Juliet, Ophelia, Cordelia, and Lavinia.

The book was a School Library Journal Best Book of the Year in 2023.

Students in Sarah Grossi's Careers in Education II class completed ALICE training. The training was conducted by School Resource Officer Justin Hyland who handed out certificates of completion at the final meeting.

ALICE (Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter, Evacuate) training focuses on violent intruder as well as other emergency situations in school settings and teaches specific mitigation strategies, such as: recognizing and reporting potential threats quickly; securing oneself in a safe location to minimize risk; communicating with school administration and law enforcement about the situation; engaging with the threat if necessary; and leaving the area when it is safe to do so.

The final lesson concentrated on understanding rallying points and reunification points. This knowledge is useful for students who will pursue careers as educators in the years to come so that they can familiarize themselves with the emergency protocols in the school where they will work.

During the morning session of the Professional Development (PD) day on Monday, March 10, ConVal High School staff gathered in the library to review the discipline data that are gathered in SWIS. The SWIS suite is part of the Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) framework that helps schools create positive learning environments for all students. PBIS is evidence-based and uses a multi-tiered approach.

There were several positive developments in the long-term view of discipline and attendance data since COVID, with attendance rising and average daily referrals showing a strong downward trend. In several cases, the data showed a marked decrease in discipline-related issues, in some instances rates that were 50% lower than last year.

Remarkably, as is shown in the slide on screen, 74% of ConVal students were never part of a discipline referral this year, and another 13% only received one referral during the current school year.

On the other hand, 1.7% of the student population received 9 or more referrals this year. This group of students, marked in red on top of the pyramid, is most in need of targeted behavior, social, and emotional interventions.