Nipmuc Homecoming

It is about this time each year that the color of the trees provides the first indication of the change in season. As you drive on the roads of Mendon and Upton, you can find bursts of yellow and gold in the foliage - a sure sign that autumn is on its way. Similarly, as each September comes to an end at Nipmuc Regional, the celebration of our homecoming weekend marks another change of sorts. For our students, homecoming signifies that our year is in full swing. When we reach homecoming weekend, we know that the introductions and adjustments of coming back to school have been made. Homecoming is a chance to celebrate the new year and show pride in being part of our school.

Junior and senior students
at the DECA cookout

Homecoming events began on Friday with the DECA cookout and student activities fair. DECA - a business and marketing group that gives students a chance to apply their classroom learning to the world of business - provided great food and excitement for our entire student body. The students' hard work along with donations of local businesses, the support of our volunteer chefs from the Upton Police Department, and the guidance of Mr. Gary Perras helped to start our day with enthusiasm. After filling up on hamburgers and hot dogs, our students attended the activities fair where over 400 students signed up to be part of different extracurricular groups.  

By 1:30pm our students had gathered in the gym for our homecoming pep rally to cheer on our teams (click here for Rachel Burke's rendition of The Star-Spangled Banner from the pep rally). Despite having our athletic schedule altered by the rain, our teams had a successful weekend including the inaugural game for our fledgling volleyball program and a victory for the football team against Bartlett on Saturday.



Homecoming King & Queen
Katie Estabrook & Matt D'Innocenzo

On Saturday evening nearly 500 students returned to the school for the homecoming dance. Throughout the day on Saturday our student council volunteered at the school to decorate the gym and prepare for the festivities. Their efforts paid off as we had a great night and a wonderful celebration of homecoming.

Thanks to the planning, organization, and enthusiasm of our student council, this year's homecoming was an especially memorable weekend of celebration and pride. StuCo advisers - Mrs. Janis Grady and Mr. Nick Pezzote - along with the StuCo leaders and members deserve a great deal of credit for hosting a wonderful weekend of events and ushering in this new stage of the school year with style.

College Planning Night/ Back to School Night

I am looking forward to welcoming parents to Nipmuc tomorrow night from 6:30pm - 8:30pm for our Back to School Night. In preparation for this evening, I have included below a copy of the Nipmuc Activity Guide. Please be aware that student representatives from each of the groups will be available on Thursday night to provide you with additional information about their clubs and organizations.

In addition to offering a reminder about tomorrow's Back to School Night, I also wanted to let parents of seniors know about the guidance department's college planning presentation. Parents of seniors should review the included letter that provides information about Senior College Planning Night to be held in the Nipmuc auditorium at 7pm on Wednesday, October 5.

I look forward to seeing you tomorrow.
Sincerely,
John Clements

Nipmuc Activities Guide:

Senior College Planning Night Letter:


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Nipmuc Travelling Art Show



If you've ever had the chance to walk through the halls of Nipmuc Regional, then you are familiar with the tremendous student artwork that decorates our corridors and stairwells. Whenever I am welcoming teachers or administrators from other schools to our building, I always begin the tour of our building by showing this display of student artwork. Each one of the paintings, drawings, and photographs on our walls provides a great source of pride for our school and a wonderful introduction to the creativity, skill, and achievement of our students and teachers.

We know how fortunate we are to spend each day surrounded by a gallery of student work. We are also excited that each year is a new chance to share this work with the community. Each year the Nipmuc Art Society puts together a collection of some of the most accomplished student artwork to be part of the Nipmuc Regional High School Travelling Art Show. This professionally framed collection of student work is then made available for local businesses to display for a month at a time for a donation of $100. These donations are then used to fund art scholarships for students in the current senior class.

I am excited to let you know that Dean Bank in Mendon is the site of the first showing of the 2011 Travelling Art Show. The show will be displayed until October 31st. We are very thankful for the support provided by Dean Bank and hope that you will stop by to view the show.

Congratulations to the students whose work is part of this year's show including: Aislyne Calianos, Bethany Laquidara, Celia Taylor, Hailey Smith, Hannah Smith, Jennifer Pittman, Kelsey Campbell, Marisa Camden, Michaela Arrigo, Michaela Bolotin, Skylar Griswold, Timothy Sabean, Danielle LaCroix, Nicole LaCroix, and Chenoa TraceyStone.

Congratulations, also, to our art teachers - Mr. Kevin Campbell, Mrs. Alison Clish, and Ms. Jessica Grady (now teaching at Memorial School) - for their inspired teaching of our artists.

Travelling Art Show Brochure:

Please be aware that automatic notifications of blog posts via email are often delayed by several hours. I am working to resolve this issue as quickly as possible. Thank you.

Safety Drill

Good morning,
I am writing to let you know that just a few minutes ago our school conducted a planned drill to practice our lockdown procedure. In cooperation with the Upton Police Department, we practice this procedure each year to be sure we have an effective plan in place to keep our students safe in the event of an emergency.

When holding class meetings last week, we informed our students that we would continue to hold these drills and thanked them in advance for their cooperation. During today's practice, our students were once again respectful and cooperative. I am thankful for their help, the guidance of the teachers and staff members, and the assistance of the police department in conducting this safety drill.

Should you have any questions about today's planned safety drill, please feel free to contact me at jclements@mursd.org.

Thank you,
John Clements

Back to School Night

As we begin our year, I am very pleased to invite parents to join us for Back to School Night at Nipmuc. Please know that our students are not expected to attend.  The scheduled evening for parents of students in grades 9-12 is Thursday, September 22, 2011 from 6:30 – 8:30pm.  Back to School Night will give you an opportunity to meet your child’s teachers, become familiar with the curriculum and extracurricular activities as well as see where your child spends the day. We will meet briefly in the auditorium to welcome you. Parents will then follow their child’s schedule. Schedules with corresponding room numbers will be available that evening. 

Another opportunity for you to meet with your child’s teachers will be in November after the first term report card has been issued.  Conferences are scheduled to take place on Wednesday, November 17 from 12-2:00 p.m. and on Thursday, November 18 from 6-8:00 p.m. 

I hope as many of you as possible will be able to join us on September 22.  As always, should you have questions concerning Back to School Night or anything pertaining to your child’s education here at Nipmuc, please feel free to call our main office.