"Loose, footloose
Kick off your Sunday shoes
Please, Louise
Pull me offa my knees
Jack, get back
C'mon before we crack
Lose your blues
Everybody cut footloose"

Kenny Loggins

Volume 5, May 5 -9, 2008, Number 32

As most parents and guardians of 7th graders know, last Friday's dance was canceled due to an insufficient number of chaperones. As stated in my Friday email, I join the 7th graders in their disappointment and apologize for the short notice. The commitment to a 25:1 student to staff ratio is essential to maintaining a safe social environment, and I have to say that this is the first time we found ourselves in a situation where the dance had to be canceled. As the PTSO and I continue to encourage parents/guardians to assist the staff in chaperoning, I appreciate the recent outreach from our parent community. This will put us in a much better position for the future.

For those of you who have expressed interest in better understanding what this responsibility entails, 8th grade dances can only be chaperoned by parents of 7th graders. Seventh grade dances can only be chaperoned by parents of 8th graders. Chaperones would not be serving refreshments in the lobby, but instead, would be present in the gym with other staff members. A brief training prior to the dance is provided to meet staff and receive instructions. CORI approval is required as well.

While the cancellation of the dance was difficult for all of us, I do want to draw attention to the maturity of our 7th grade students. While disappointed, these 12 and 13 years olds grasped the importance of safety and appropriate supervision and offered a number of good suggestions. Specifically, the students expressed their strong desire to have a dance before the end of the year. They also stated that while an evening event would be preferable, they would be quite happy to have the dance immediately after school should that be the most viable option.

In rescheduling the dance, we found that the only limiting factor was the availability of our DJ, whose evening time slots were booked through the end of the year. Accordingly, I am pleased to announce that the dance has been rescheduled for May 30, from 2:30-4:30PM. To make this a more special event, we will be providing an ice cream party at no extra charge.

The chaperone list for this dance will be completed shortly and we will contact parents/guardians who submitted their names for consideration as needed. As always, thank you for your support.

On a different topic, last Thursday and Friday over 100 parents of current 6th grade students came to our school to learn more about RJG. This is an annual event, designed to support our parents/guardians in the transition from elementary to junior high school. Over the two day period, twenty 7th and 8th graders participated in a question and answer forum and gave tours of the building. I am proud to share with you that multiple parents stopped me to share how impressed they were with our students. Their poise, knowledge of the school, and welcoming nature made these groups of parents feel wonderful about sending their children to RJG.

Reminders
8th Grade Picture Day, May 7 at 1PM
MCAS testing sessions, May 13-19

Have a good week.

Craig Hardimon, Principal