No images? Click here
Dear Gateway Community,
It’s an exciting time for Gateway. After more than a year of weathering the social, emotional, logistical, and technological challenges of distance teaching and learning, we are finally making our first steps towards coming back together as a school community. And top of mind is at least one excellent reason for doing so: to celebrate our extraordinary Class of
2021, who have had a most unusual senior year but have continued to exemplify tenacity, excellence, and graciousness. We are delighted that the most up-to-date advice from local and state public health officials suggests we can convene outdoors in the fresh air on June 5th to mark the start of the next exciting chapter for our graduates, and a new chapter for Gateway, too.
In this issue, you’ll see some of the ways life is returning to our campuses, from the big and exciting (competitive sports are back!) to the smaller and more intimate, like our sixth graders getting to know their campus and each other for the first time through working in the garden together. You’ll also see more of the creative ways our staff has found this semester to keep our community engaged and present in one another’s lives, no matter the distance.
While many challenges await us in our shared work to navigate a safe return to campus for all students and staff in the coming months, there is a lot of joy and gratitude awaiting us too -- and there is no other team of educators, families, and supporters I’d rather be facing them with. Now please excuse me, I have to start thinking about what to wear to graduation!
Warm regards,
Sharon Olken
Executive Director, Gateway Public Schools
Back on the Field: Competitive Sports Returns to GHS
While classes may be held virtually for a little while longer, a big part of in-person campus life has returned to Gateway High School: competitive athletics has resumed once again after a long year on hiatus, with students eager to make the most out of the spring season. READ MORE >
GMS Sixth Graders Revive Campus Garden
Drive by the GMS campus and you may notice it’s looking a little snazzier and greener than usual. This is largely thanks to the hard work of the school’s sixth graders, who have been visiting campus with their advisory classes to give the school garden some much-needed TLC while getting to know each other in-person for the first time. READ MORE >
GHS Seniors Celebrate "Decision Day" 2021
Gateway High Seniors and their loved ones had a rare opportunity to come together and cheer their truly singular accomplishments on Friday, April 30, at the school’s Drive-Up Decision Day event, a celebration of the Class of 2021’s first steps toward post-high school life. An old and beloved GHS tradition, Decision Day usually takes the form of a school-wide assembly. This year’s outdoors, socially distanced celebration was no less grand however, with student volunteers from the School Culture Committee and staff putting together music, photo ops, goodies and more for seniors and their families. READ MORE >
Meet the Winners of Gateway's Got Talent!
The Gateway community once again made history on Saturday, March 13 by taking the Great Gateway Gathering virtual with our Gateway’s Got Talent broadcast! Dozens of videos were submitted by our talented community and the voting was fierce, but in the end only a few could be named the winners. Meet our champions and hear what they had to say about honing their talents and their rise to Gateway stardom. READ MORE >
GHS' First Virtual Career Day Brings the World of Work to Students
Each spring Gateway High School hosts Career Day, welcoming visitors to campus from a wide variety of professions to speak with students about their field and answer student questions about what it’s like to spend a day in their vocational shoes. While an in-person career day wasn’t in the cards this year, GHS’ counselors weren’t going to be deterred, planning a virtual version that would connect students with guest speakers over Zoom. READ MORE >
Help Us Meet Gateway's Spring Fundraising Goal and Double Your Impact!
As we look toward the 2021-22 school year, we’re planning for a return to campus that prioritizes the health and well-being of all students and staff and in which anti-racism and equity are centered in our shared work to open doors of life-changing opportunity for the young people in our care. To that end, Gateway’s Board of Trustees has promised to match all gifts up to $65,000 to support these efforts!
We’ve been humbled to see so many people step up to help us reach this challenge match, but we still have more to go. As of today, we’ve raised $23,000, which means we still have $42,000 to match -- and this is where you can help! Your gift this spring will be matched, doubling its impact as we plan for an in-person graduation celebration for the Class of 2021, professional development to empower our teachers to hit the ground running once they’re back in their classrooms, and orientation and community-building programs for the next cohort of incoming sixth and ninth graders -- as well as current students who will effectively be joining us on campus for the first time next year.
Help us seize this singular moment and double the impact of your gift!
Alumni: Share Your Feedback
Calling all alumni! Whether you’re just a year or two out of high school or haven’t thought about your Gator days in a while, we want to hear from you! Take our brief alumni survey -- in just a few short minutes your feedback will help inform how we can best support our current and future students, as well as strengthen our alumni network. In addition, you’ll be entered into a drawing to win one of two $50 Amazon gift cards -- a pretty sweet reward for ten minutes or less of your time.
Are you the parent of a GHS alum? Please forward this survey link to your child! Our goal is to hear from 1,000 alumni by June 30! With your help, Gateway students and teachers will continue to grow and thrive for many years to come! Thank you!
Gateway Alumni Offer Insights from the Workplace at Conversations for Impact
After a nearly year-long hiatus, Gateway’s Conversations for Impact returned last week with “Conversations for Impact: How Has COVID-19 Changed Work and School?” We turned to a panel of Gateway alumni working in disparate sectors -- tech, healthcare, and youth development -- for an in-depth conversation with Executive Director Sharon Olken about how schools can better prepare students for a workplace that has been irrevocably altered. READ MORE >
Opportunities for Incredible Educators at Gateway in 2021
Hard as it may be to believe, planning for the next school year is already underway at Gateway, and a new school year brings with it opportunities to add inspiring and innovative educators to our faculty roster at both Gateway Middle and Gateway High School.
Gateway is currently accepting applications for teaching positions as well as additional roles. Our ideal candidates are deeply committed to educational equity, passionate about their students and subject area, and eager to become a part of our tight-knit school community.
If you know an outstanding educator who may be a good fit for our faculty, please send them our way! Women, queer, and POC candidates are especially encouraged to apply – as are alumni!
