The Amherst Regional Public Schools are pleased to announce the First Day Welcome Party, a back to school celebration for kids and the community that supports them, on Wednesday, September 1, 2010 from 6:00-7:30 pm on the Amherst Town Common.
Amherst’s schools are participating in the First Day of School America Campaign, a family involvement program initiated in Bennington, VT in 1997, which has been enjoying steady growth ever since. The First Day Welcome Party is a kick-off to the events planned in the elementary schools on September 2, the first day of school in Amherst and Pelham.
“The Amherst Public Schools are partnering with families, civic organizations and town leaders to unite our community and celebrate with our children the start of a new school year,” says Maria Geryk, Interim Superintendent of the Amherst-Pelham Regional School System. “The schools are the center of our community and we hope to share the celebratory spirit of the First Day with everyone.”
That spirit will be in full view during the First Day Welcome party on the Amherst Town Common, as children and parents are invited to bring a picnic dinner or snack and join their classmates and friends to enjoy a number of festivities. Activities will include a performance by BOMBA, music, pony rides courtesy of Muddy Brook Farm, and more.
On Thursday, September 2, the first day of school, parents are encouraged to join their children during First Day activities in the schools. “I am requesting that area business owners play a role in strengthening this essential collaboration by allowing parents who are employed in your organization to attend these brief activities of 1 to 1 and ½ hours,” says Ms. Geryk. “In this way, you will support our students, families and their combined involvement in the Amherst schools.”
The First Day activities have been put together by a broad group of community organizations led by the Amherst Regional Public Schools, including the Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce, Amherst College, Amherst Education Foundation, Representative Ellen Story’s Office, Interfaith Opportunity Network, Amherst Parent Guardian Organizations, the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and the Town of Amherst.
Free shuttle service will be provided between the Town Common and the Amherst Pelham Regional Middle and High School parking lots. Participants are encouraged to take advantage of this service.
