Local economic, health, and educational information for Worcester Public School families.
This running-list provides up-to-date information on school plans, school committee meetings, resources for care givers, and parents.
Most recent announcements:
‣ Now hiring: There is an open Student Success Coordinator position at the Nativity School in Worcester. View job description.
‣ Come sign up for summer programs! The City of Worcester will host the “Whole Kids” event in the Worcester Commons. Bring your kids to enjoy food trucks, family games, and community. View and share the flyer.
Previous Announcements:
2020
‣ Worcester Public Schools are currently closed at least until early May.
‣ A COVID-19 Information Line has been established. Call for information and with questions, available in multiple languages. 508-799-1019
‣ You may also call 2-1-1 for information, resources, and referrals in multiple languages.
‣ Reach Massachusetts Advocates for Children’s hotline at 617-357-8431. English is available at ext. 3224 or here. Spanish is available at ext. 3237 or here.
‣ Click here for an outline of what we know about the virus.
‣ Worcester begins 2020 spring/summer mobile meal schedule on March 18, 2020. Click here for the schedule.
‣ Click here to learn how students will be learning at home.
‣ Click here for clarification on the expectations that Worcester Public Schools has for its students and teachers at this time.
‣ Charter is offering limited free internet access to families with students. Click here for more information.
‣ For continuous updates follow Worcester Public Schools on twitter.
‣ Click here for information on the coronavirus in Haitian Creole.
‣ Managing Social Distancing can be hard. Click here for tips and resources.
‣ Informational blog about education in Massachusetts written by Tracy Novick. Click here.
‣ Worcester Public Schools and Friendly House are serving healthy breakfast, lunch or supper meals for all children. Monday through Friday. Click here to see the spring/summer schedule.
‣ Live and Archived School Committee Video Meetings Available by month and day. Click here.
‣ Worcester Public School families, please join us to share you experience, thoughts, and suggestions on remote learning, hybrid learning, and equity. Fill out this form and select your date, the upcoming Family Visioning Sessions: Wednesday, July 29th @ 7pm Monday, August 3rd @ 6:30pm.
‣ Did you receive your pandemic EBT card in the mail? Click here for instructions in English. ¿Recibió su tarjeta EBT pandémica por correo? Haga clic aquí para obtener instrucciones en Español.
‣ FREE Telehealth Clinic run by the Worcester Free Clinic Coalition. Monday - Thursday 6-8pm EST. Click here for instructions in English. Haga clic aquí para obtener instrucciones en Español.
‣ Worcester Public Schools has been developing a Caregivers #Technology Academy Website - it is a GREAT resource for staff, students, and families/parents. It is user friendly and explains and walks you through all the applications students will be using during remote learning. From Google Classroom tutorials all the way to Zooms/Google Meets. Another great feature is they have it translated in over 6 languages and are looking to add more. Click here. Flyer with information here.
‣ Happening on 10/7, the Massachusetts Education Equity Partnership (MEEP) welcomes you to a public family forum. Whether you want to chime in with your experience or listen to other families, you won't want to miss this. Click here
‣ The Latino Education Institute provides Latino families and students with access to a community learning hub, parent navigation center, and many other resources. Transportation and food are provided! Click here to find out more details. Haga clic aquí para Español.
‣ Equity Vaccine Mobile Clinic: The YMCA is hosting a vaccine mobile clinic on Saturday, April 10th, 2021 at 766 Main Street Worcester, MA 01610 from 9 am - 2 pm. The COVID-19 vaccine equity initiative will prioritize communities and those disproportionally impacted by COVID-19. For more information click here or email lmateo.vaccineinfo@gmail.com.
‣ The Worcester Public Library hosts community events every month related to reading, technology literacy, career development, and more. To register for their events check out their monthly calendar.
‣ Equity Vaccine Mobile Clinic: The YMCA is hosting a vaccine mobile clinic on Saturday, April 10th, 2021 at 766 Main Street Worcester, MA 01610 from 9 am - 2 pm. The COVID-19 vaccine equity initiative will prioritize communities and those disproportionally impacted by COVID-19. For more information click here or email lmateo.vaccineinfo@gmail.com.
‣ The Worcester Public Library hosts community events every month related to reading, technology literacy, career development, and more. To register for their events check out their monthly calendar.
‣ Latino Education Institute (L.E.I) at Worcester State University is recruiting Juniors and Seniors for their hybrid early college course Spanish Readers Theater. The focus of the course is to enrich the oral, reading, comprehension, and literary development skills of the academic Spanish language through theater. It encourages students to practice their biliteracy in the classroom.
The course is set to run from July 14th to August 18th (no class on August 25th- take-home final exam due). They will be meeting every Wednesday from 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm. in Sheehan Hall, Room 109. Learn more information on their flyer in English and Español.
‣ Do you have a child age 11-15? The Boys & Girls Club of Worcester is a partner of YouthConnect Worcester, and they are offering a FREE evening program at our Harrington site, beginning July 6. To register your child, please visit the United Way’s YouthConnect website.
‣ WPS is hosting a virtual School Reopening Community Forum for parents and caregivers this coming Tuesday. We hope this will be an opportunity for us and the parents and caregivers we serve to voice concerns about out-of-school-time programming plans. Here's the event information to share with your staff and families: School Reopening Community Forum - Tuesday, 8/17, 6pmZoom Link HERE.
‣ TEEN ENTREPRENEUR PROGRAM. Calling all parents, caregivers, teachers, and mentors! Technocopia Worcester is providing a great opportunity for a student to learn more about careers in STEAM. Send this link to a student who might be interested in applying. To learn more about qualifications, job description, and the application process, click HERE.
‣ STEM in the classroom | Educational webinars for PreK- 5th Grade educators
The WPI STEM Education Center is offering two free 1-hour sessions that will introduce the problem solving process, show you how to navigate the I am STEM lesson library and allow you to briefly explore grade level lessons with colleagues. Register Today! Share the flyer.
‣ Free Commerical Driving License Training for Eligible City of Worcester Residents! Commercial Motor Vehicle operators are in high demand! Starting wages can range between $17-$20/hr. Limited spots, apply today. The Worcester Jobs Fund is offering three FREE transportation trainings:
School Bus Driver’s License: Six-week course that will prepare you for an entry-level position as a school bus driver.
CDL-B: Four-week course that will prepare you to earn a Commercial Driver’s License Class B (next course starts in August).
CDL-A: Five-month course that will prepare you for CDL Class A exam (next course starts in August).
‣ We are excited to share a new toolkit from the Massachusetts Education Equity Partnership to help ensure an equity-focused pandemic recovery in our districts and schools. Keeping Equity at the Forefront: Pandemic Recovery is a resource for both education leaders and advocates. The toolkit’s pages are packed with ideas for how districts and schools can use new federal and state funds to both support students and families in this moment, and begin to tackle educational inequities that long predate the pandemic.
2021
‣January 6th, 2021 - Youth Equity Vaccine Clinic “The Boys & Girls Club will be hosting a vaccination clinic on January 6th, from 5 PM - 7 PM. All individuals who are 5 years of age and up are eligible. First dose, second dose and boosters will be provided by the City of Worcester.”
View and share flyer.
‣ Changes in school committee election process
As a result of a legal consent decree, Worcester will be changing how it elects School Committee representatives. Members of the public are invited and urged to attend one of the convenings of the Municipal and Legislative Operations Committee Meetings. At these meetings options relative to a district-based system for electing School Committee members will be discussed.
View information in English and Español.
2022
‣ We invite you to participate! The WPS Superintendent Search Survey is now posted on the WPS website in both English and Spanish.
This is an anonymous survey that will ask questions about what members of the community think WPS, the School Committee, and the Search Firm should be looking for in a superintendent. This will include opinions on Worcester Public Schools in general and the qualities needed for leading us in the future.
‣ Community input sessions for the Worcester superintendent search will continue next week. For more information click here.
All are welcome, especially parents of English learners, parents of students in special education, family members, and community.
‣ On March 9th 2022, The Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy and Transforming Education will lead a webinar to help practitioners bridge transformative social-emotional learning strategies into their existing practice that affirm the experiences of students and educators as they continue to grapple with the challenges of this pandemic.
Register to join the virtual call.
‣ Last year, Massachusetts Appleseed released a report which found that Black girls in Massachusetts public schools are 4x more likely to be disciplined than white girls. Since then, they have partnered with a Community Advisory Board to design a new study that will explore the stories behind these statistics, provide explanations for these disparities, and amplify how we can change current discipline practices.
Do you know any female-identifying students, or students assigned female at birth, of color impacted by school discipline in Massachusetts? Massachusetts Appleseed wants to hear from them! Students who participate in the study will receive $25 per hour, for a 1-2 hour Zoom interview. Here is a link to sign-up for the survey to participate in the study and a link to a social media toolkit to share information about the study. For additional information please see the attached flyer.
‣ The Massachusetts Education Equity Partnership - MEEP released a family funding toolkit to ensure families have the tools to weigh in on how millions of $$ should be spent to address the impacts of the pandemic on student learning & well-being.
Learn more here.
‣ The Worcester School Committee is accepting nominations and applications for the next Superintendent of the Worcester Public Schools. The School Committee is seeking an individual who shares their commitment to putting the interests of students first and ensuring that each child is prepared to be successful. Learn more here.
