Greeting from Julie Craven

Dear RAUC Families,

Happy New Year! I can’t believe it is 2020 already. While it can be a challenge to transition back to school, rest assured that RAUC staff welcomed students back with purpose and warmth.   

We have a lot planned for January – be sure to check out details later in the newsletter. I want to draw your attention to two particular items. First, please check out the flyer for our upcoming Unity Concert Thursday, January 30. We are very excited to have an expanded theme – Unity Through Diversity. The music teachers have been hard at work to create a powerful musical program that brings together the RAUC ensembles. We also invite families to help us celebrate the beauty of our diverse community by bringing in a dish from your own cultural tradition. We will of course provide a full dinner of pasta, salad and bread as we have in the past. But we are hoping that the opportunity to share and sample food from our many cultures will enrich an already fun event. Check out the blurb and flyer in the newsletter.

The other important – and sad – piece of news is the departure of our amazing Family Partnership Coordinator, Taraneh Ahmadi, who will be relocating with her family to the west coast. Taraneh gives her farewell later in the newsletter. Her leaving is a real loss to our community. She has brought professionalism, warmth, passion and initiative to her work. As the first ever Partnership Coordinator, she set a high bar. I know I am not alone in saying I will miss her deeply and wish her all the best.

Peace,

Julie Craven, Head of School

A Grateful Goodbye from Taraneh Ahmadi

Dear RAUC families, for the past year and a half, I’ve had the honor and privilege of serving as your Family Partnerships Coordinator. In my time here, I’ve met so many of you, learned so much and felt very supported. Reflecting on what my time here has been like makes it harder to say goodbye to the RAUC family: the staff, faculty, students and families. My last date with RAUC will be January 15. As my family prepares to move to the west coast, please know that this amazing school community on the east coast will always have a piece of my heart. Ms. Craven is currently working on recruiting your next Family Partnerships Coordinator so stay tuned. If you know someone who would enjoy working with and supporting families, and thrive in this position, please let Ms.Craven know as soon as possible.

Book Discussion: White Fragility

A Book Discussion of Robin DiAngelo’s ‘White Fragility’ will be hosted at the RAUC/Peabody library from 6:30-8PM, on Wednesday, January 22nd. Refreshments will be provided. The book discussion, organized by Courageous Conversations, is targeted towards the family, staff/teachers, and community members of RAUC, Baldwin and Peabody schools to consider, “What is “white fragility”? How does it develop? How does it protect racial inequality, and what can be done to engage more constructively?” Ten copies of the book (just 192 pages long) are on reserve at O’Neill branch library.

Please join us if you are new to the conversation about racial equity, or wish to learn more before our Courageous Conversations spring sessions work to bring down barriers to equity in our schools and community. Robin DiAngelo is speaking about her book at the Fitzgerald Theatre at Cambridge Rindge & Latin, 1-3PM on Saturday, Jan. 18. (Sign up for waitlist: cambridgepl.libcal.com/event/6137676)

Questions? [email protected] 

Social-Emotional Tip of the Week

By focusing on a student’s efforts in solving a problem, parents can promote a growth mindset. Saying something like “You worked so hard to solve that problem!” promotes a growth mindset where children understand that their hard work led them to success. This mindset helps create the desire to work hard in the future.

Reminder: 7th Grade Vision & Hearing Testing

The vision and hearing is scheduled for Thursday, January 9. This is the first full week of school after we get back from winter break. Attached is an opt-out letter for 7th grade families. Please reach out to nurse Anita Barandao if you have questions.

Parent Speaker Series:
Friday, January 24 from 6-8PM

RAUC’s successful Parent Speaker series continues with its 2nd event scheduled to coincide with the school’s Winter Dance. The speaker series has offered parents and guardians a space to meet, learn, and grow together on issues that affect children. While the goal of the speaker series has been information sharing and skill development, it has also been a wonderful place for adults to gather in a friendly, non-judgmental and supportive environment learning to navigate the challenges that adolescence brings with it. With that in mind, our topic for this evening is: What Middle Schoolers are saying about vaping and other substances. Learn tips on how to talk with your middle schooler about substances like alcohol, marijuana and vaping. This information can also be used to start a conversation about mental health, sex, and other topics that young people deal with at this stage of like. Both speakers, Tracy Rose-Tynes and Mary Kowalczuk, are from the Cambridge Public Health Department. Please view the flyer for more information.

Unity Concert Coming Soon!

Please save the date for January 30th when you can join RAUC at its most popular community event for the year: community dinner and concert. With this year’s theme of “Unity Through Diversity,” we invite all our families to join us as we gather to experience diversity of food and music. We are asking our families to bring a dish to share from your culture. It can be anything that you think represents your family, your culture and your food. Cambridge in incredibly diverse and this is an effort to get to know each other just a little bit better: through our love for food and also for music. Our music teachers, and the students, are working very hard to prepare for the concert and we would love to see all our families show support. The event is open to children and adults and we hope you will leave with your heart singing a little tune as well! You can view the flyer here!

Enrichment Opportunity for Girls of Color

This Saturday, RAUC girls of color have been invited to a special Town Hall sponsored by Congressional Representative Ayana Pressley.

Focus Topic - School Pushout
–Why are a disproportionate number of girls of color leaving school before they graduate?
–What are the causes of this?
–What can politicians, educators, community members do to help solve this issue?

Students were told about this opportunity in social studies classes today. Anyone interested was given a permission slip. You can also find it here. Please reach out to Katie Gribben ([email protected]) with any questions. Julie Craven, Gisel Saillant, and her intern Rachel Schlosser will chaperone.

Mr. Tobin Wins Scholarship to Attend Key West Literary Seminar

We are very proud to announce that Dan Tobin, Grade 6 ELA teacher at the Rindge Ave Upper School, has been awarded a Teacher & Librarian Scholarship to attend the Key West Literary Seminar, “Reading Between the Lines: Sports and Literature.” Mr. Tobin joins nineteen other teachers and librarians from ten different states who have been chosen to receive financial aid packages totaling more than $22,000 to attend the 38th annual event January 9-12, 2020.

During their attendance at the Seminar, scholarship recipients will expand their professional network and be exposed to leading contemporary authors such as Megan Abbot, Buzz Bissinger, Daniel James Brown, Billy Collins, Joyce Carol Oates, Lionel Shriver, and Kevin Young. They will also have the opportunity to meet with colleagues at the Monroe County Public Library and Key West High School.

The Key West Literary Seminar Scholarship Program aims to nourish a vibrant literary culture by providing support to a diverse group of teachers, librarians, readers, and writers. Since 2008, they have provided 520 individuals with nearly $520,000 in fee waivers and lodging and travel assistance.

See a complete list of winners and their bios >> 

Second RAUC CommUNITY Dance:
Friday, January 24 from 6-8PM

This is the second of three dances this year. Each one is sponsored by families of a different grade level. This one is sponsored by 6th grade families. All proceeds go directly to school enrichment funds through FRAUC. Please help the 6th grade do its part by signing up to donate your time, money or items to sell at the event: http://bit.ly/2N2Lozg (Parents do not chaperone the actual dance itself, we have staff for that. But you can get a fun view from the edges if you volunteer your time for one of these jobs!)

Things to keep in mind about the dance:
–ALL students are welcome. As a RAUC community event, only RAUC students may attend; no outside guests please.
–Tickets are $5, going on sale during lunch the week of the dance or at the door.
–Refreshments (pizza, snacks, water) will also be sold at the dance.

6th Grade Learning Previews

Out of School Opportunities

All flyers and registration forms are available at the RAUC Out of School Time (OST) Board or by contacting Mr. McNulty @ [email protected].

See flyers for the opportunities below >>

Neighborhood Design Project (see application)
When: February 24- May 29
Where: Local Youth Centers
Time: 4-8 hours per week
Ages: 14-15 years old
Payment: Students earn $12/hour
Deadline: February 3, 2020
Contact: George Hines 617-349-6268 [email protected]

Code It! (see flyer)
When: Saturdays, 2/29-4/25
Where: Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Time: 11am-3pm
Grades: Girls or nonbinary students in grades 6-8
Application Deadline: Friday 2/7/20
https://tinyurl.com/s20codeitapp
Contact: [email protected]

Math Festival (see flyer)
When: Saturday, January 18th
Where: Fletcher Maynard School
Time: 10am - 1pm
Grades: K-8
Contact: [email protected]

Belmont World Film’s Family Festival (see flyer)
When: January 17-20, 2020
Where: Arlington, Belmont and Cambridge 
Time: Varies, see flyer
Ages: 2+
Cost: $6-$20, Festival Pass $50
Contact: https://www.belmontworldfilm.org/ 

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