Dear GDRHS Parents and
Guardians:
It is with great anticipation
and optimism that we open our doors for the 2015-2016 school year. In less than a week we will greet our incoming
freshmen, welcome our returning sophomore and junior classes, and look to our Class
of 2016 to provide the leadership necessary to make every student’s high school
experience positive and memorable. We begin this school year with a dedicated
learning community in place, all working towards the common goal of keeping
Groton-Dunstable High School among the top performing in Massachusetts and the
country.
Our objective is to prepare
students for the competitive 21st Century global environment, and we
aim to assist them in developing into productive, prosperous global
citizens. As a team and also as
individuals, we will continue to work hard to meet the mission of the school:
We
foster academic and personal excellence in cooperation with the community.
Through an evolving curriculum, we cultivate skills and attitudes that
encourage students to develop a spirit of inquiry, the disposition to adapt to
changing environments, and the intrinsic motivation to become responsible,
contributing citizens.
The Global Scholars Program was
developed to help marshal us towards this honorable mission, and one primary
component of the program is the growing international student program, now in
its fourth year at GD. Over the past
three years we have hosted more than fifty international students, and each
student has added diversity to our hallways, enhanced our classroom discussions, and enriched our community.
This fall we welcome sixteen more students from Asia, Europe and South
America. In addition, more than one
hundred Groton-Dunstable Regional High School students will traverse the globe
during the course of the coming school year.
Students will take part in a language immersion trip in France, a
cultural immersion trip to Greece, a science expedition to the Amazon, a
leadership summit in The Hague, and service learning trips to both the
Dominican Republic and Ecuador. Lastly,
as part of the Teachers of Critical Languages program through the United States
Department of State, we welcome a teacher from China who will teach courses in
Mandarin.
All of our goals support the
overarching objective of preparing Groton-Dunstable Regional High School
students for their future. Preparing our students to compete in the 21st
Century is a monumental task that requires a hardworking, dedicated staff
committed to student achievement. That challenge begins soon, and I am
confident we are worthy of the challenge. Continuing the implementation of the
Common Core State Standards, continuing our work on the Global Scholars
initiative, expanding and strengthening our AP program, providing our talented
staff with ongoing professional development, increasing student exposure to
computer science, coding, and robotics are but a few of the initiatives
targeting our goals.
Three necessary components of
any successful school systems are safety, organization, and high expectations
for learning. I assure you that these three factors will guide our daily
decision-making in the months and years ahead. I look forward to your input, participation,
and support as we work together to achieve our goals. In an effort to enhance
our academic, athletic, and extracurricular programs, parent and community
involvement are both welcome and needed. I look forward to meeting and working
with each and every one of you.
Sincerely,
Michael
Mastrullo
