March 21, 2025
Dear Staff and Families,
It’s all things spring now, with just three short months until the summer break. There’s so much going on in our district as students continue their learning and showcase their talents in music, theater, arts, spring sports, and many others. Student engagement is a priority in FPS with countless opportunities for students to get involved. Our schools offer hands-on engineering experiences from kindergarten through high school, with opportunities like the Robotics Club at FHS, where students as young as eighth graders can get involved.
Robotics
Falmouth High School’s Regal Seagulls, Cape Cod’s first varsity robotics team, made an impressive debut in the New England FIRST Robotics Competition. Competing in two district events, the rookie team advanced to the semi-finals in Greater Boston and captained their own alliance at the University of Rhode Island. Their strong performance earned them the Rookie All-Star Award, recognizing their teamwork and dedication to STEM. The team is now in contention for a spot at the State Championships, marking an exciting milestone for Falmouth’s robotics program.
STEAM Fair
The Falmouth Public Schools recently hosted the 47th Annual PreK-12 STEAM Fair, where students showcased their science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics projects alongside community exhibits. Volunteer judges from prestigious scientific institutions evaluated student work, with top projects earning awards and over $10,000 in prizes and scholarships. Some high school students also earned the opportunity to compete at the regional and state levels. The event celebrated student innovation and scientific excellence across all grade levels.
Upcoming Events for staff, families, and the community…
FPS Health Fair: Our school nurses are providing an opportunity to connect students and families with educational materials, immunization and healthcare resources, activities, student presentations, raffle prizes, and more. Please join us on March 27, 2025 from 5-7pm in the FHS Field House - Open to ALL FPS Students & Families.
Navigating the Future Together Community Forum: FPS is hosting a Community Forum on April 3, 2025, from 6:00 to 7:30 PM in the Falmouth High School Auditorium. Staff, families, and the Falmouth community are invited to provide in-person feedback on the recent report completed by the New England School Development Council (NESDEC) and proposed changes to our schools. Your input is essential as we plan for the future! For more information, please visit: https://www.falmouth.k12.ma.us/district/future
Bully Prevention and Intervention Training: Parents and guardians are invited to join us for an educational Bullying Workshop led by Falmouth attorney, Mary W. Gans, who will discuss bullying and cyber-bullying under Massachusetts law, what distinguishes bullying and cyber-bullying from peer conflict, and how school districts must respond when they receive reports of bullying and cyber-bullying. This virtual family session will be offered on April 15, 2025 at 6:00 pm. You may join by clicking on this link.
Student and Staff Recognition (too many to share, but please enjoy just a few highlights)
Sports: Our winter sports teams finished a successful season, with many student athletes being recognized at the FHS Winter Athletics Awards. The Falmouth seventh-grade girls’ basketball team captured the Old Colony League championship on March 9th. A special shout out to Raelynn Spellman, the Cape and Islands League recipient of the 2025 Boston Bruins-MIAA Sportsmanship Award - Raelynn was honored during the Bruin’s March 17th game against the Buffalo Sabres. This week marks the start of a new sports season for many of our Spring teams. Go Clippers!
Arts: Artwork by Sasha Fiske, Eleanor Rosenthal, Azaria Viall, & Sophia Schofield will be on display in the FHS Student Art Gallery from March 20th until April 2nd. Artwork and a student collection of writing, Back to the Lighthouse, by FHS Art and Literature Students will be on display at the Nobska Lighthouse from March 27th until April 11th. FHS ceramic students, Maisie Chase and Marysol Jurczyk, were selected to compete in the National K12 Ceramics Exhibition. Their artwork will be shipped to Salt Lake City and be displayed during the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) conference and will be seen by tens of thousands of ceramic artists, potters and educators from around the world. Works by Isabel Pardee, Dorothy Linton, Thomas Geraghty, Eleanor Rosenthal, Azaria Viall, Shophia Schofield, Heather Crowell, Victoria Webber, Asad Cotton, James Morrison, Sadie Enea, and Charlotte Coulstring were chosen to represent Falmouth High School at the 2025 Congressional Art Competition for the 9th Congressional District. Jane Baker was recognized this month as the Massachusetts Art Teacher of the Year. Congratulations!
Theater: Lawrence School has an upcoming production of Disney’s Frozen Jr. on March 29th & 30th, get your tickets today! Coming up in May, FHS will perform The Little Mermaid. Information forthcoming.
Music: The FHS Jazz Band took home the Silver medal at the MAJE Jazz Festival! Grade 3 at the Mullen-Hall School also had a wonderful performance on March 10th. March is “Music in our Schools” month, and I’d like to congratulate our talented vocalists and instrumentalists and give thanks to our amazing educators for providing phenomenal programs, like the long-standing Falmouth traditions of All Bands Night and All Choral Night. Nowhere else do students in grades 5–12 have such an extraordinary opportunity to perform together!
The Soup for the Soul event last night is one more example of “Only in Falmouth!” This unique Clipper experience demonstrated student learning and career readiness with amazing collaboration among our ceramic students, culinary students, and FHS Jazz Combo. This tradition provides a truly joyful and lighthearted atmosphere among new friends and old friends across the generations.
Many thanks to our families for encouraging and supporting our students to excel in their many interests.
Sincerely,
Lori S. Duerr, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools