Dear Parents/Guardians:

I want to share a few thoughts about NAHS this week.  First, our annual musical goes up this Thursday at 7:00 p.m.  Our student cast and musicians have worked hard for weeks with our wonderful director, Linda Schoonmaker, to present a fun and entertaining show.  See the details about the musical Grease below.  Our athletic teams are in their final competitions and many are hoping for tournament bids.  We wish all our athletic teams and performing arts students success in their awesome final performances.  

I would also like to share the announcement I made this morning to all our students and faculty.  Our country is in an important political transition, which has continued to be a topic of conversation amongst faculty and students since the presidential campaigns.  I have written to parents previously about this.  Over the weekend we also experienced another bombing of a place of worship in Montreal, Canada.  The national and international events last weekend generated some important faculty conversation on Monday.  Some teachers worried that we would compound for our students the tensions in the world by having our important “lockdown” drill on Tuesday.  We talked through this, went ahead with the drill yesterday, and I felt it was important to speak to the NAHS student body about all of this in my morning announcement today.  The text was announced as follows:

Good morning.  I want to thank everyone for a successful ALICE drill yesterday.  We think a lot about keeping students and faculty safe at NAHS.  Although it is highly unlikely that we will ever have to use this protocol, it is better to be prepared and practiced in the event that we have to.  I would also like to recognize that over the weekend, we all saw on the news national protests, many different views about immigration policy, and the tragic event of the mosque bombing in Montreal, Canada.  These events can be confusing, and some are sad and concerning.  Some of these events may directly impact North Andover High School students and their families.  So please think about your classmates who might be impacted by changes in national immigration practice or by an affront to a Muslim place of worship.  And if you are someone whose family is impacted, please know that you can reach out to a classmate, teacher, counselor, or administrator if needed.  NAHS is a safe and welcoming space for all students.

I give our students, and in particular our teachers who guide students, a lot of credit for navigating our many modern realities in a thoughtful, inquisitive, and open manner.  I believe that NAHS will continue to be a place where a diverse group of thinkers and learners can hold, share, and discuss different points of view and perspectives.

Sincerely,

Deborah Holman

NAHS Interim Principal

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Grease, the musical, NAHS auditorium

Thurs., February 2 at 7:00 p.m.

Fri., February 3 at 7:00 p.m.

Sat, February 4 at 1:30 and 7:00 p.m.

For tickets visit www.actingouttheater.com