Districtwide Family Service Night - February 4, 6-7:30pm, HHS Cafeteria

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Save The Date! You’re invited to our PreK-12 Family Service Night on Tuesday, February 4, from 6:00 to 7:30 PM at Holliston High School.

  • Join us for a districtwide Family Service Night, an evening dedicated to giving back, spreading kindness, and making a difference in our community! This event is open to all families to come together, participate in meaningful activities, and support causes that matter to our students and neighbors.

What to Expect:

  • Hands-on table activities focused on acts of kindness and community service.

  • Opportunities to create positive messages and crafts to brighten someone's day.

  • Ways to support local charities and student-led initiatives.

  • Time to connect, collaborate, and build each other up as a school community.

  • If a snowstorm cancels school, the event will be rescheduled for Wednesday, February 5, at the same time and location.

PTO Business-Matching Program

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Building upon our impressive response to our Keep What You Love annual fund campaign led by our families, we have contacted many area businesses to launch a business matching program. Our hope is that with their help, we can grow your $5,500 to $10,000 by the end of the year. So far, our community of businesses has helped us raise $675 towards that goal! A huge thank you to Stucchi Landscape and Design, BDR Automotive, Chesmore Funeral Home, and The Candy Cottage for leading the way.  Please thank them for supporting our students and teachers the next time you stop in! If you own a business or know a business that may want to support our schools, please help us by forwarding them this business-giving link we created specifically for them. Thank you for your help!

Spiritwear Pick-Up Information

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Thank you for supporting your Holliston PTO by purchasing spirit wear. The spirit wear sale helps us show Holliston pride around our great town! Also, it is one of the ways that helps the Holliston PTO to continue to support the Holliston School System. 

There will be 3 different opportunities to pick up your spirit wear. Spirit Wear pick up will be held at the Gilman Room at the Holliston Public Library downtown. The Gilman Room is the room located on the lower level of the Holliston Public Library. 

The times are: 

  • Saturday 12/14 from 10:am-11:30am 

  • Monday 12/16 from 3:30pm-6:30pm

  • Tuesday 12/17 from 2:00pm-4:30pm

Thank you again! Email pto.funds.holliston@gmail.com with any questions.

Elementary Readathon (Oct 21-Nov 14): Fall Into Reading

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The Elementary Read-a-Thon has moved to the fall and begins on October 21st. Our young readers have been busy building their reading stamina during the first month of school, and they can keep building up their reading habits by coloring in their bookmarks each time they read, with top-reading classes each week earning the coveted Golden Pumpkin Trophy! Stay tuned for more info later this month & look out for readathon bookmarks in your student’s folder.

Yearbook Reminders & Deadlines for Seniors

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Here we go Senior Parents!!!

Hello everyone!

It is hard to believe that we are already planning for the HHS 2024-2025 Yearbook! As we know many seniors like to purchase a yearbook, we wanted to make you aware that sales for the 2024-2025 yearbook go live on Thursday 8/1/2024. At that time, yearbooks will be $65.00 and prices will increase on 10/1/2023 and again on 2/28/2025. We wanted to make sure seniors/parents/guardians know and get their books purchased early at the discounted price. Last year, the books sold out and some people were not able to purchase a book, so the earlier you buy the better!

You can purchase the yearbook at www.yearbookforever.com (search for Holliston High School). If you need financial assistance, please contact administration and they will contact the yearbook advisor (Ms. Victoria Roy)

Additionally, for seniors here are some important dates for the yearbook:

Senior pictures are due Friday 10/25/2024 NO EXCEPTIONS

If you take pictures with Henry Studios, they will send us your photo

Otherwise, please email your senior photo to yearbook@holliston.k12.ma.us

Photos should be 4” by 5” @ 300dpi jpg format

Senior Baby photos due by Friday 11/8/2024

Please email to yearbook@holliston.k12.ma.us with the subject “STUDENT NAME- baby picture”

Family and Business Ads → if you would like to purchase an ad for the yearbook please see the pricing below. All ads can be created at www.yearbookforever.com

Pricing:

Personal/Family Ad (for seniors)

Full page

$230

1/2 page

$165

1/4 page

$80

1/8 page

$40

Business Ad:

Full page

$250

1/2 page

$185

1/4 page

$60

1/8 page

$40

Please reach out with any questions. We are looking forward to creating a great yearbook!

The HHS Yearbook Staff

Senior Night Dates for Fall Athletics

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Senior Night Dates for Fall Athletics:

Panther Fans- “Senior Night” for Fall athletics is upon us. Let’s fill the stands and celebrate our teams!! Dates/times/locations below. Congratulations Class of 2025!!

  • Wednesday, 10/9/24, 3:45pm Boys & Girls XC vs Hopkinton (Sr. Day) HHS XC Course

  • Thursday, 10/10/24, 7pm Football (Cheer) vs Dedham (Sr. Day) HHS Kamitian Field

  • Tuesday, 10/15/24, 5:15pm Volleyball vs Nashoba (Sr. Day) HHS Rowles Field House

  • Monday, 10/21/24, 6:15pm Field Hockey vs Ashland (Sr. Day) HHS Kamitian Field

  • Thursday, 10/24/24, 6:15pm Boys Soccer vs Ashland (Sr. Day) HHS Kamitian Field

  • Tuesday, 10/29/24, 6:30pm Girls Soccer vs Norwood (Sr. Day) HHS Kamitian Field

  • Wednesday, 11/6/24, 3:45pm Unified Basketball vs Ashland (Sr. Day)

Save the Date! The Holliston PTO Ski and Snowboard Program will open registration on November 1st, 2024!

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Save the Date! The Holliston PTO Ski and Snowboard Program will open registration on November 1st, 2024! Do not miss this opportunity to get your student on skis for the first time or improve their skills.

Miller 4th & 5th grade students will be bussed to Nashoba for 5 weeks on Fridays starting January 3rd, 2025

RAMS  students will go to Nashoba for 5 weeks on Thursdays starting January 2nd, 2025.

High School students will go to Watchusett on Sundays for six weeks (starting week TBD, likely 1/7/25)

We will be recruiting chaperones for these trips during registration— ski for free with a valid CORI!

Please contact hollistonskiclub@gmail.com with any questions!

Outdoor Learning Alliance Back to School 2024 Updates!

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Can you smell the back-to-school flowers? The Outdoor Learning Alliance (OLA) sure can! OLA is a subgroup of the PTO committed to providing spaces for our students and staff to take a break from the fluorescent lights and classroom walls. These spaces provide a blank educational canvas for any teacher to use while rejuvenating everyone’s minds with nature. This week, OLA has been hard at work in a few outdoor learning areas at Placentino and RAMS.

At Placentino, the courtyard vegetable beds are ready to be planted by students, the weeds are gone, and the flowers are tucked in with a fresh layer of mulch. Some of the students even helped to decorate a newly donated birdhouse to add to the collection. Oh, and did we mention the smell of flowers? That would probably be the new colorful planters which now greet students and staff every morning at Placentino and Miller.

Meanwhile, RAMS has their Outdoor Learning Area Project in full-swing. Beds have been dug and filled, and the picnic tables (AKA Adult Legos) have been assembled and placed. This will surely be a cool place to read a book or witness some abscission!

If doing all of this sounds like fun, then please do not hesitate to get involved with OLA here.

If you prefer to keep the dirt from under your fingernails then we would greatly appreciate donations here or via Venmo @HollistonPTO (OLA in the comments). Our funds are used for projects such as these as well as wish-list supplies for teachers wishing to use it in their curriculum.

Lastly, if you happen to come into any of these schools for Back to School Night then please do check these projects out!

PTO Fundraiser: Mabel's Labels - Label your kids items & support the PTO!

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Mabel’s Labels creates waterproof, laundry-safe, labels with your child’s name for all of their items to avoid mix ups or getting lost at school, daycare, camps, extra-curriculars - anywhere your child goes! You can support the Holliston PTO’s fundraiser which will earn 20% of your purchase. Just choose the “Holliston PTO” fundraiser at checkout. Use our coupon code HOLLISTON10 for 10% off all labels (except for sale items).

PTO Reads - New for 2024

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The PTO will be sharing some of our favorite reads throughout the year. Click here for the full list.

Some will be thought provoking - we’ll hold discussion circles for anyone who wants to join, others will be easy reads- simply for the joy of reading.

For August, we’re highlighting:

  1. The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt

From Amazon: THE INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A must-read for all parents: the generation-defining investigation into the collapse of youth mental health in the era of smartphones, social media, and big tech—and a plan for a healthier, freer childhood.

“Erudite, engaging, combative, crusading.” —New York Times Book Review (Editors’ Choice)

“Words that chill the parental heart… thanks to Mr. Haidt, we can glimpse the true horror of what happened not only in the U.S. but also elsewhere in the English-speaking world… lucid, memorable… galvanizing.” —Wall Street Journal

2. Swan Song by Elin Hilderbrand

It’s still SUMMER until September 21st and this is a PERFECT Summer read!  

From GoodReads: In the grand finale of "queen of the beach read" Elin Hilderbrand's beloved Nantucket novels, there's a new couple in town... and they instantly shake things up. Amid the extravagant parties on land and sea, there's trouble on the island, forcing Chief of Police Ed Kapanesh to postpone his retirement and changing the fabric of life on the picturesque island forever...

Full List of PTO Reads

REGISTER FOR THE ELEMENTARY COLOR RUN - AUGUST 25, 2024! VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!

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Registration is now open for the 2nd annual Elementary Color Run! This year the Color Run will be part of the Back to School Palooza held at Holliston High school. While the Palooza is open to everyone, the Color Run continues to be just for elementary students in PreK to 5th Grade (ages 3-11).

 

Thank you to our Teacher Appreciation Week volunteers!

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THANK YOU to Karla Alfred for once again planning and executing an amazing teacher appreciation week! From receiving TONS of deliveries for teacher treats at her home, to working with a team to assemble 540 snack bags, Karla always goes above and beyond! A special thank you the volunteers who assembled the snack bags and delivered them: Sarah Fitzgerald, Emily Knup, Catie Ehret, Jess Scalzo and Beth Leach, and to Parks and Rec for letting them use their space to assemble.

Thank you to all of our teacher lunch set up/clean up volunteers:

  • Sixtine Herold

  • Laura Durham

  • Elizabeth Navarro

  • Pooja Gupta

  • Jennifer Burgett

  • Orawan Guan

  • Meg Boggess

  • Ileana Utke

  • Liz Kelly

  • Doriane Daniels

  • Patty Baribeau

  • Barbara Ryan

  • Laura Sawicki

  • Jill Forchielli

  • Sarah Kane

And to our Miller Espresso Dave’s Coffee Cart delivery volunteers:

  • Catherine Savard

  • Bethany Gerry

  • Emily Knup

  • Carrie Russo

Join us on June 5th for the PTO Annual Townwide Meeting!

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Holliston Parent Teacher Organization (PTO)

501(c)3

May 3, 2024

An Open Letter to the Holliston Community at Large:

The Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) of the Holliston Public Schools is rounding out another fruitful school year and cannot wait to share all our happenings! Please join us for our final town wide meeting on June 5 th , 7 PM, at the Holliston High School Library.

The PTO Executive Board is presenting an annual report and forecasting an exciting list of enrichment events, volunteer opportunities, and more for School Year 2024-2025!

The PTO is all of you – parents, caregivers, community members. We maintain “it takes a village” and a collective spirit to make all the things we do happen. Every effort was made this year to put more rigor into our processes, engage more community members, and recruit more volunteers. We reorganized the leadership structure and welcomed all ideas and requests. New events were added, some sunsetted; and while we supported most initiatives and “asks” we could not support all.

Our enthusiastic and creative volunteer fundraising leadership raised a significant amount money through the generosity of local businesses, our members, and community at large. We saw a marked increase in PTO participation and even volunteering! We know so much good has happened this year like in years past – because of the goodness that resides in Holliston!

In the best interest of our children, schools, and community, the PTO Board, Committee Leaders, volunteers, and members continue to work together to make all of this happen in support of our mission: “Create community through volunteering; Support the education of our students, Pre-K through 12+; Thank and support our teachers, staff, and administrators along the way!”

We believe our “PTO village” efforts create a happier, healthier, more vibrant community. Please join us June 5 th at our final meeting of the year to hear more about all the contributions made by our volunteers, what we desire to accomplish in the upcoming school year, and where perhaps you would like to join us!

Our Best,

Barbara, Stacey, Evie, and Sarah

PTO Executive Board

Family Photo Mini Session Fundraiser with Lovely Pictures Studio

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Lovely Pictures Studio is offering fun-filled Family Mini sessions at Broad Hill Lavender Farm on June 23 (slots are available between 8am to 11am). A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the PTO.

The mini session is $160 and includes access to the final gallery from where you choose 4 edited HR digital images and print release.

Instructions to book your slot: click to 6/23 on the google calendar (or photo above) and choose the time slot marked "Broad Hill" that works for you. Type your full name on the top field and you will receive a confirmation email.