Making Waves in Education at Our Sisters' School June 2018 Edition

What's Happening at OSS? OSS10 This month, OSS celebrated the school's tenth anniversary in conjunction with the annual Festival of Arts and Achievement. Activities at this event included a vine cutting for the new Outdoor Classroom, a tree planting in honor of the founding trustees, art exhibits by OSS students, a student performance honoring our 10 years and more. One community member commented, "It was amazing. The show was the best yet." Another community member stated, "What a lovely event! Kudos!! All was so touching and beautifully done." Thank you to all who helped make this event a success. ​   Women's Advocacy ​ With sponsorship from the Women's Fund, ​OSS 8th graders participated in Women’s Advocacy Day at the State House in Boston. Students met with local representatives and discussed important issues such as gun control legislation and paid family medical leave. One community member who joined OSS on the trip said, "I had the good fortune of leading a small group of OSS eighth graders...as always, I was proud to be in their company... I watched as aides to Senator Mark Montigny and Representative Chris Markey listened attentively to the passionate, data-backed presentations delivered without the help of any notes.  They were clearly impressed and encouraged the students to keep up their advocacy. I hope they will, too.  Once again, it is a joy to be a part of OSS."​   Alumnae Successes Jordan Lopes, OSS class of 2015, was named the recipient of the Christian A. Herter Memorial Scholarship by the Massachusetts Department of Education's Office of Student Financial Assistance. Only 25 students in Massachusetts were selected for this award, which makes this an extraordinary accomplishment. With this scholarship, Jordan may receive up to 50%  of her calculated need at the college of her choice. When Jordan stopped by the school to share the news with her OSS community, she beamed with pride and explained, "I work really hard, and this opportunity is the most amazing thing that has ever happened to me. I've had so many obstacles to overcome, but it finally feels like the hard work is paying off." We are so very proud of our sister sailor and wish her smooth sailing through the college selection process.   Service Enterprise  OSS has successfully been certified by Points of Light, the world's largest organization dedicated to volunteer service. With this new Service Enterprise certification, OSS joins a prestigious group of nonprofits committed to effectively delivering on their missions by strategically engaging volunteer time and talent. Jocelyn Mitchell, OSS Volunteer Coordinator from fall 2013 through spring 2017, spearheaded this effort. The amount of time and commitment required to undertake and complete this certification process demonstrates a commitment to our core values: Excellence, Community, Citizenship,and Leadership. Thank you Ms. Mitchell, Ms. Pickup and Mrs. McSweeny for your efforts in this process. In the photo: The vine-cutting ceremony for the Outdoor Classroom included Tobey Eugenio, Lisa Schmid-Alvord, Jaliyah '19, Janiya '21, Lanah '21, Jocelyn Mitchell, Julianna '20, and Victoria '16   Our mission, as an independent, tuition-free, nonsectarian middle school, is to educate and inspire economically disadvantaged girls from the New Bedford area. Our Sisters' School empowers girls to step into the future with valuable life skills and a mindset of achievement and excellence by providing a safe, supportive, and academically challenging environment. To learn more about Our Sisters' School please click here.   June - August Calendar June 6 - June 7 Student Portfolio Presentations from 4:10 PM to 6:45 PM June 8 Portfolio Presentations by appointment No School June 11 Early dismissal begins 11:45 AM for the rest of the school year June 13 OSS Graduation 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM  at Our Sisters' School June 15 Last day of school and Annual Family Picnic from 12 PM to 2 PM June 25 - June 29 Performing Arts Camp with Ms. Hartigan  at Our Sisters' School July 9 - August 21  Summer Tutoring Sessions - every Monday and Tuesday from 4:00 PM to 5:15 PM August 7 Student Council Retreatfrom 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM August 12 Annual OSS Car Wash from 10:30 AM to 2:00 PM Click here for information about the Morning Speaker Program and other details on our calendar.

Making Waves in Education at Our Sisters' School May 2018 Edition

What's Happening at OSS? Sensata Service Day Sensata Technologies visited OSS on April 24th. In the morning, the Sensata professionals ran stations where they shared interactive components of their work with OSS students. In the afternoon, students, staff, volunteers and members of the Sensata team focused on a community build project. They worked together to construct tables, benches and other items for use in the Outdoor Classroom.   Students in Action Winners OSS has been chosen as the banner level winning school in the Eastern Mass Students in Action 2018 competition. The Jefferson Awards Foundation judges agreed that the OSS students, "clearly put their hearts and souls into their projects and into learning the skills that Students in Action was created to deliver." One project they worked on this year, the "Our Hands to Yours" project, was the topic of our April Making Waves. As a result of winning this regional competition, three students and two advisors from the OSS team have been invited to attend the Jefferson Awards Foundation National Ceremony in Washington, D.C. on June 28.   On the Horizon: OSS10 This month, OSS will celebrate the school's tenth anniversary in collaboration with the annual Festival of Arts and Achievement. All community members are invited to the school on May 25th at 4pm. Activities at this event will include a ribbon cutting for the new Outdoor Classroom, a tree planting honoring the founding trustees, performances from OSS students and more. In the photo: Rayn, Janiya, and Ed Norberg from Sensata   Our mission, as an independent, tuition-free, nonsectarian middle school, is to educate and inspire economically disadvantaged girls from the New Bedford area. Our Sisters' School empowers girls to step into the future with valuable life skills and a mindset of achievement and excellence by providing a safe, supportive, and academically challenging environment. To learn more about Our Sisters' School please click here.   May Calendar May 3 Senior Awards Dinner 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM May 4 Professional Development No School May 7 to May 11 National Teacher Appreciation Week May 16 OSS field trip to Women's Advocacy Day at the State House May 18 Early Dismissal 11:45 AM OSS/Nativity dance 7th and 8th grade  May 19 OSS and CBC field trip to Newport, RI for the Volvo Ocean Race May 24 Festival of Arts & Achievement preview for OSS students and families, past and present 5:00 PM May 25  10th Anniversary Celebration and Festival of Arts & Achievement 4:00 PM to 7:30 PM May 28  Memorial Day OSS Closed Click here for information about the Morning Speaker Program and other details on our calendar.

Making Waves in Education at Our Sisters' School April 2018 Edition

Our Hands to Yours In February, Our Sisters' School was one of five finalists in the Jefferson Awards LEAD360 national competition, in which young people submit their solutions to problems they feel most passionate about. For this contest, the OSS students designed a project they called "Our Hands to Yours." They filled uniquely decorated tote bags with contents created to inspire, educate, support, and welcome recent immigrants and refugees arriving to the United States. Each classroom collected items such as educational materials, clothing, school supplies, and hygiene products, and wrote personal welcome letters.  Alejandra Mendez, the student-leader of this project, explained, “This project has a dual mission: first, to provide immediate physical comfort in the form of hygiene products and warm clothes and, second, to connect new arrivals to the services and community centers that will allow them to not only survive, but also thrive here in New Bedford.” In addition to the collection of goods, students also received product donations from a variety of organizations, including UMass Dartmouth, Domino’s Pizza, Dr. G. John Fraone Pediatric Dentistry, Perfect Smiles in Westport, the Workers’ Education Program, the Kennedy Donovan Center, and the New Bedford Main Library. Most notably, CVS Health Foundation made a significant contribution to the project by donating over $9,000 in products. The culmination of the “Our Hands to Yours” Project was the delivery of the tote bags and items to the New Bedford Immigrants’ Assistance Center, where OSS students got to meet some of the families they helped. Sarah Herman, Head of School, praised the project, saying, “I like everything about this initiative, ranging from the underlying theme of reaching out to and proactively supporting marginalized community members, to the student-driven aspect of the project.  This project is pertinent to what we stand for, and what we teach at OSS.” Students in the photo:  Kathy, Lyla, and Janie Our mission, as an independent, tuition-free, nonsectarian middle school, is to educate and inspire economically disadvantaged girls from the New Bedford area. Our Sisters' School empowers girls to step into the future with valuable life skills and a mindset of achievement and excellence by providing a safe, supportive, and academically challenging environment. To learn more about Our Sisters' School please click here.   April Calendar April 5 and April 6 Mrs. Eugenio & select students will present a workshop at the New England Middle Schools Annual Conference in RI April 7 Admissions Open House 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM April 12 Science Fair 5:00 PM to 6:00 PM April 16 to April 20  OSS Closed: April Break Office Hours 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM April 24 STEAM Fair and Community Engineering Day in collaboration with Sensata Technologies 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM April 27 Annual Volunteer Luncheon 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM May 4 Professional Development Day No School   Click here for information about the Morning Speaker Program and other details on our calendar.

Making Waves in Education at Our Sisters' School February 9, 2018

#MakeItReal In an effort to bring more sophisticated technology into the STEAM lab at OSS, four students and two teachers invested their weekends and after-school hours to make a video for a grant application that ultimately earned 10 new Chromebooks for our school. When asked about her feelings, 8th grader Karla Acosta said “I was proud to do the work for my community. It feels good to give back while doing a project I learned from and really enjoyed!” The link to the video and the blog about their award is https://blog.tinkercad.com/2018/01/15/makeitreal-contest-winners-drum-roll-please/. To be celebrated like this on an international stage is remarkable. It is an opportunity to tell our story and celebrate that our Core Values of Excellence, Community, Citizenship and Leadership are so clearly a part of everything we do at OSS. This video is a true representation of our students’ amazing dedication to their learning, willingness to collaborate, and ability to thread their understanding of our Core Values into the work they do on a daily basis. We are also proud of this example as it demonstrates how the work they do is authentic. They learn through activities that are meaningful and relevant to them, driven by their interests, and often self-initiated – with appropriate guidance from their teachers. This gives our students voice and choice in how they learn. To put it simply, our students have agency. Students in the photo:  Alejandra, Karla, Aimee, and Isadora. Our mission, as an independent, tuition-free, nonsectarian middle school, is to educate and inspire economically disadvantaged girls from the New Bedford area. Our Sisters' School empowers girls to step into the future with valuable life skills and a mindset of achievement and excellence by providing a safe, supportive, and academically challenging environment. To learn more about Our Sisters' School please click here.   February and March Calendar February 12 to 16 Spirit Week at OSS  February 19 to 23 OSS Closed: February Break Office Hours 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM February 26  Tool Belt Awards Community Meeting 11:15 to 11:45 AM March 1 Humanities Showcase 4:30 PM to 6:00 PM March 3 STEM4Girls Day at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth March 8 Exhibition Opening for Grade 6 at the New Bedford Whaling Museum 4:00 PM March 21 Board Meeting 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM March 24 MaBaCh at Bishop Stang High School 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM March 30 Good Friday OSS Closed Click here for information about the Morning Speaker Program and other details on our calendar.