Harwood Families and Students -
Maintaining a community that is safe for our community remains Harwood’s top priority.
We recognize that the concerning behaviors of a few have had a great impact on our community.
While we can not share details regarding specific consequences and actions taken we want to assure families and students that we continue to actively address unsafe behaviors and create a community of high expectations for all.
Please note that not all misbehaviors fall within the ability to intervene and handle here at school . Student behaviors and/or choices that rise to a level of serious threat, damage, or harm will be dealt with swiftly up to and including loss of privileges, suspension, and involvement of law enforcement when necessary.
As community members - staff, students and families we ask for your collective effort in supporting our children in making safe decisions by:
discussing responsible use of social media
seeking support from adults as needed
promoting kindness and care by speaking up when something unsafe is seen
To that end, over the last three months 5 skilled youth facilitators at Harwood have been providing dialogue facilitation training to 50 of their peers. The purpose of this is to continue building capacity to hold all school TA dialogues that are youth led and supported by the adult TA partner in order to continue the collective discussions about how to collectively create a school community where all feel safe.
In order to be part of a community one must meet the expectations - we will continue to have high expectations for our community and work to support ALL our students in meeting them.
In ongoing partnership,
Meg, Laurie and Duane
Calendar:
February 17th - 9th grade Parent Transition Night (Program of Studies Q&A)
February 18th - Progress Reports emailed home
February 21st - March 1st - Vacation - NO School
Safe - seen, heard, respected & understood:
Topics | Information/Links |
|---|---|
 | Jen Dreimiller and Megan McCarthy offered a hands on-minds on ELO opportunity for HUMS students. Students took the time to connect, make wearable projects and plan for future wellness opportunities. |
 | As we continue to support all of our students in being safe - seen, heard, respected and understood we are working vigilantly to ensure clarity of expectations for student attendance. Consequences for arriving late or not at all to class without an excuse will result in a detention. This might include a lunch/recess detention for middle school and an after- school detention for both HUMS/HUHS (Wednesdays on 3:30 - 4:40). |
Update from our Health Office  | All HUUSD students will be receiving KN95 masks from their schools in the next few days. The CDC recommends you wear the most protective mask you can, for your safety and the safety of others. The mask should fit well. Some masks, like the KN95, that have multiple layers, offer higher levels of protection. It is important that you wear a mask that fits well and is comfortable for you. Additional KN95 masks are available in the health office. COVID Questions? Please visit the HUUSD COVID Website. Please reach out with any additional concerns or questions. |
Rigorous & Robust Academic Program:
Topics | Information/Links |
|---|---|
 | HUMS presenters connected with their classmates about their projects that included learning about local individuals and their contributions to the greater Harwood community. Families were invited to a live zoom to watch their students make their presentations. |
 | HUMS scientists exploring chemical reactions/interactions with liquid nitrogen this last week. Students enjoyed freezing different objects instantly - and made frozen ice cream as well. Way to go HUMS!  |
The Governor's Institute of Vermont 2022 Summer Applications are open (and in-person)  | This summer, high school students in 9th-11th grade are invited to join a community of young Vermonters as passionate as they are at one of GIV's nine residential Institutes! Topics include Art, Astronomy, Engineering, Entrepreneurship, Environmental Science & Technology, Global Issues & Youth Action, Health & Medicine, Mathematical Sciences, and Technology & Design.
At GIV, students will spend 1-2 weeks living on a college campus, totally immersed in a topic of their choosing. They'll learn from industry professionals, participate in hands-on projects and research, explore career options, and make new friends!
Applications are open until April 3rd, and tuition starts at just $20. For information and to apply visit their website atGIV.org/summer |
 | HUMS historians participate in a National History Day zoom meeting with students across the country in preparation for presenting their own projects. |
Semester 1 - 21-22’ Harwood Art Show |  |
Positive school climate and culture:
Topics | Information/Links |
|---|---|
 | Students from Harwood were able to attend a cyber security field trip at Norwich University on Thursday, January 27th. They learned about the variety of career opportunities available within cyber security and entry level certifications, including Certified Ethical Hacker. Students were able to spend time in the War Room and took a tour of Norwich's campus. Students who attended included Scout Bednash, David Rivera, Tina Pan, Quinn vonRecklinghausen and Eamon Knight. |
Middle School Food Drive | Middle School (Only) Food Drive We encourage Harwood Middle School students to bring in non-perishable food for our Annual Food Drive next week. In past years we have had great success with helping the Mad River Valley Pantry with re-stocking their shelves after the winter holiday season. Thanks in advance for supporting us!  |
She’s the First raffle opportunity  | Worldwide, 62 million girls are out of school. Harwood Union High School She’s the First is running a raffle to raise money to send girls to school who are the first in their families to attend high school in Ethiopia and Uganda. We are gathering prizes from many amazing local restaurants and businesses! Some prizes include a GoPro, day tickets to Mad River Glen, artwork, and gift certificates to local businesses. Tickets are $5 a piece, or a book of 5 for $20. To purchase a ticket, please email shesthefirsthu@gmail.com with your name, email, phone number, mailing address, and preferred method of payment. Payment can be accepted through Venmo (@Kathryn-Youngdahl) or cash and checks (payable to HUHS She’s The First) can be mailed to Kate Stauss at Harwood Union High School, 458 VT RTE 100 Moretown, VT 05660. The raffle drawing will be over Zoom on March 8th (International Women’s Day), along with a showing of a short film. An email with the zoom link will be sent to you after you purchase a ticket (you do not need to be present to win a prize). Please email rmurphy2022@huusd.org or mdewey2022@huusd.org if you have any questions. Help us support this important cause! |
Community Announcements
Harwood's Rotary Interact Bottle Drive is less than two weeks away! We hope you are willing to donate your bottles and cans to support our effort. There are options for making your donation. | Check them out below: Option 1: Where: Rodney’s Transfer Station (on the road to the Waterbury Ice Rink) When: Anytime between now and 2/19/22 Please designate that they are a donation for Harwood Rotary Interact OR: Come to Hannon Home Center When: Saturday, February 19th between 9:00 AM and 1:00 PM OR: Request a pickup with Ron Gulyas by emailing buzzerman12@aol.com When: Any time before 2/19/22 Proceeds from the drive will be donated to Outright Vermont, an organization that supports LGBTQ+ youth. Outright Vermont is a 501 non-profit working to create “a Vermont where all LGBTQ+ youth have hope, equity, and power.”. You can learn more about their mission at www.outrightvt.org. Questions? Contact Ellen Berrings (eberrings@huusd.org) |
 | Spring soccer registration opened on January 24, 2022, for age groups U9-U19. (We will open registration up for younger players at a later date so please be on the lookout for that). Early bird pricing of $130 will be until February 6th. Pricing will increase to $150 after February 6th to the end of registration on February 27th. |