Weekly News
6/1/2016
* Head’s Note
Dear Parents,
I am looking forward to celebrating the Move-Up Ceremony with you on June 14. For those of you who are new to the event, please note this is a “dressy” morning as it is our final assembly of the year and a celebration of many of our students’ achievements since September. When I think back to the fall and our first days together, I am often amazed at just how far our students have come in the last nine months. They have taken important strides intellectually, emotionally, socially, and in so many other ways.
And in my first year at Crossroads, I also feel as though I have learned along with your children. For that, I want to thank you, our parents, for helping to orient me in this first year and helping Crossroads to “move up” as an educational institution. In the last year, we have created a new administrative structure, earned our reaccreditation through NEASC, introduced Spanish and French language classes in K-3, participated in a character education study in the Middle School, established a Lower School strings program, initiated classes in coding beginning in kindergarten, purchased a mini-bus to make it easier for faculty to arrange student field trips and community outreach, formed exciting partnerships with other educational institutions in the Upper Valley, initiated a range of new summer programs, designed a new and improved school web site that will be live soon, planned for a new range of after-school programs in 2016-17, and begun a conversation to lay the groundwork for a possible STEM Center housed on our campus. These positive changes have been received very enthusiastically within the Upper Valley community. As a result, though there are still a few months remaining in our admission cycle, student numbers for next year are looking very strong and we anticipate this upward trend in our enrollment continuing over the next few years.
Of course, there are many other positive changes in our school that are too numerous to mention, but they all result from the efforts of many who care deeply about our school and are motivated by a strong desire to help Crossroads continue to evolve and better live its mission. I am so proud of all we have done together this year, and I very much look forward to celebrating your children and our school “moving-up” on this very special morning.
—Yours truly, Brad
Follow me on Twitter @CrossroadsHead
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* Head’s Note
* Virtues for this Month: Loyalty
* Admissions Office News
* School News
– Welcome new French teacher Kevin Quigley
– Updated Move-Up and Graduation Ceremonies Information (6/14)
– Summer Camps
– Classroom Clips
* Parent Association News
– Lunch Program (week A)
– Clothing Swap Donations
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* Virtues for this Month
* June: Loyalty
Loyalty is being faithful and true to our duties, relations, and ideals.
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* Admissions Office News
Greetings from the Admissions Office! It’s hard to believe that it’s almost summertime. The past few years we have had a great summer admissions initiative called Where in the World is Crossroads Academy? While you enjoy the beautiful summer days on the beach, at the farmer’s market, on vacation, or at camp, take a picture of yourself or your children with a Crossroads sticker or spirit gear. Send the photo to me and we will post it on the Crossroads Facebook page. It will be fun to see all the places our community visits over the summer. Thank you for helping to spread the word about Crossroads, and I hope you enjoy the lovely long days of summer!
Reminder…
The New Parent Welcome will be held this Wednesday, June 8. I hope you can join us in the library from 8:30-9:30 am for a time to meet and greet new families. This will be an informal gathering for new families to meet members of the administration, Board, Parent Association…and you. Please RSVP if you are able to come.
Have a wonderful week! —Warmly, Marilyn
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* School News
* Welcome new French teacher Kevin Quigley
Kevin Quigley grew up in Northern Ireland and earned his master’s degree in French language and literature at the University of Glasgow, Scotland. He is a firm believer in the transformative power of language learning and its ability to help us appreciate and critique our own language and culture. He has also experienced first-hand how knowledge of other languages can open doors in quite unexpected ways.
Kevin’s knowledge of French led him first to France (where he worked both in Aix-en-Provence and in Paris), then to Switzerland (where in lived in an Alpine village of two hundred people), and also to Morocco. His love for language is clear in his knowledge of German, Italian, and Spanish, as well as his study of Korean and Icelandic. In 2015, he received a diploma in Icelandic studies from the University of Iceland.
Professionally, Kevin has always worked in the domain of education. He has taught in private and public schools in France, Scotland, Switzerland, and South Korea. He has also worked as a tour guide in sixteen different European countries and most recently developed a small tourism company in Reykjavik that offered educational tours to students and tourists from around the globe.
Between work and travel, he seeks out opportunities to volunteer in fields that interest him. Kevin has worked with non-profits in Scotland, France, Switzerland, and Canada, and in early 2016 he spent some time working with refugees in the north of France.
He enjoys writing and has been published in journals and magazines in the United States, Sweden, and Iceland. Most recently he had the privilege of translating a series of short stories (from French to English) by a French artist that was featured in an exhibition at the Museum of Photography in Reykjavík.
Kevin is absolutely thrilled to be joining the Crossroads family and is looking forward to incorporating his diverse range of interests (and passion for grammar!) into the French classroom.
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* Updated Move-Up and Graduation Ceremonies Information
Although it is difficult to believe, the Move-Up and graduation ceremonies are just around the corner. This year both events are being held on the same day.
Move-Up will begin promptly at 8:15 am, at the Bancroft Campus Center on Tuesday, June 14.
Dismissal for all Lower School and Middle School students will be immediately following the Move-Up Ceremony. All Middle School students should return to Crossroads for graduation no later than 3:45 pm. All sixth and seventh grade students should be picked up immediately following the ceremony at 5:00 pm.
The graduation ceremony will begin promptly at 4:00 pm at the Bancroft Campus Center on Tuesday, June 14.
The dress requirements for the Lower School students and Middle School students for Move-Up are as follows:
Boys: Dress shirt and pants or shorts
Girls: Skirts or dressy pants with a nice top, or dresses
The dress requirements for graduation are as follows:
Graduates:
Boys: Dress shirt, khaki colored pants, navy blazer, and tie
Girls: Dresses (preferably not strapless) or dressy pants and a nice blouse
Grades six and seven:
Boys: Light-colored dress shirt and tan pants, tie optional
Girls: Pastel-colored blouses and skirts or dresses or dressy pants
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* Summer is Almost Here…Please Join Us for a Great Summer at Crossroads!
Signs of spring have us looking forward to summer! Any given week this summer, we can expect to see kids exploring the stream, scaling the climbing wall, conducting scientific research, or producing art in the outdoors. We have nearly two hundred total enrollments and at least ten different programs will be offered. Though many programs are full, we still have spaces available in late July and August and in select programs in June. If you haven’t enrolled yet, join us! A full calendar and links to register are available here. Any questions? Contact Clare Smith, Summer Program Coordinator at summer@crossroadsacademy.org.
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* Classroom Clips
Classroom Clips is a weekly space for students and teachers to share their writing with the Crossroads community. Today’s entries are written by seventh graders Andrew Huang and Constance Hammer. The seventh grade students created character maps of Shakespeare’s The Tempest. Please click here to view Andrew’s map and here to view Constance’s map.
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* Parent Association News
* Lunch Program
This week follows the “Week A” menu. Please be sure you are following the correct week. In addition, please consider sending in a set of silverware for your child to keep in his/her cubby; we are trying to avoid the waste of disposable silverware.
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* Clothing Swap Donations
Are you doing your spring cleaning? Pulling all sorts of outgrown clothing from your kids’ closets? Please consider donating school-appropriate clothing to the PA for the Fall Dress Code Clothing Sale! As you may remember, every year at the Family Picnic, the PA sells dress-code appropriate clothing donated by our community members. It’s a great way to find wonderful quality clothing, and it is a great fundraiser for the PA at the same time. So, all week this week, there will be a large tub outside at drop-off where you can leave any clothing you’d like to donate. Thanks very much!
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KEY LINKS: http://www.crossroadsacademy.org/
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* Crossroads calendar
* Crossroads Parent Association
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* Spirit Gear
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