Principal's Message

The start of the school year can feel like a hurricane of change; this one has been a particularly pleasant hurricane season, and we are off to the races with a flurry of activities and events. Students have been engaged in classes for three weeks already; fall athletics are deep into their seasons, spirit week is next week, and we just learned the theme of this year’s MOHIBA (see the trailer below). It has been a great start to the school year!

The Class of 2030 has joined the club here at the high school and has made their presence known in a great way. We look forward to having them with us for the next four years and seeing them grow through their high school years.

In addition to welcoming the Class of 2030 to Morse, we have also welcomed several new upperclassmen to 826 Shipbuilder Drive, including three exchange students from Italy, Sweden, and Spain. These exchange programs are certainly mutually beneficial; often I feel what they bring to Morse is even more impactful than what we provide them for an experience. In any event, we are happy to have these students as part of our classes, teams, and clubs this year.

Morse and Bath Tech hosted an open house on September 17th. The Morse Student Services Team also hosted a post-secondary planning session for senior students and families following the open house. There was a great turnout of familiar faces and new Morse families; thank you to everyone who could attend!

There is nothing more important than having clear and sensible plans for the case of a school emergency. We have already had one evacuation drill this school year; with over 620 students and 100 staff members, we are able to evacuate the building and account for everyone in approximately 5 minutes. We partner with the Bath Fire & Rescue, who attends most of our drills. We also partner with the Bath Police Department for our response to school safety concerns. As I am sure you are aware, Morse uses the ALICE protocols in the event of a threat to school safety. We have held one training session with the staff and full student body already and have reviewed the plans with the Bath Police Department. We hold four ALICE drills and several evacuation drills each school year.

We also have a different week for the week of October 5th, with many different programs and opportunities happening. First, on October 7th, we are very fortunate to have the Maine Judicial Supreme Court visiting Morse for the day. This is a unique opportunity that we applied for years ago; to my knowledge, Morse has never held Supreme Court sessions. The Montgomery Theater will be transformed into the ME Supreme Court for the morning. Following brief introductions, the court will hold its regular session and hear three real court cases. Each case will be followed by a Q&A session. Several classes will visit at least one of these court arguments as an in-house field trip on 10/7. 

October 8th is also a unique school day with each class engaged in a different activity: 

• Grade 9 will have our annual Community Service Day (more details below)
• Grade 10 will have the mandatory state testing in math and literacy in the morning, followed by classes in the afternoon
• Grade 11 will have a choice in the morning: students may attend their Bath Tech program, take the PSAT, take the ASVAB, or attend a job-shadow of their own design. They will also have regular classes in the afternoon.
• Grade 12 students will have their post-secondary planning day. Students may use the day to visit a college, complete an application, work on their FAFSA, complete a job shadow, or another enrichment activity of their choice. Bath Tech students are encouraged to attend their program.

A reminder that there will be no school on October 9th due to a professional development day for RSU1 faculty and staff. There will also be no school on October 12th in observance of Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

Looking farther ahead to the end of next month, the first quarter grades close on October 30th. Parent-Teacher conferences will be held the week of Thanksgiving; much more information about that will be forthcoming.

Have you downloaded the Infinite Campus App? I highly recommend having this app to monitor your student’s grades, attendance, etc. The Infinite Campus link is below, and you can download the app to your phone or tablet wherever you get your apps.  

Finally, it is with mixed emotions that I report that Ms. Ortiz, one of our fabulous math teachers, has taken a position in administration at another school district. We are sorry to see her go, but understand that this has been a long-term goal of Ms. Ortiz. I am pleased to announce that we have hired Patrick Quinn to take over for Ms. Ortiz. Mr. Quinn has been teaching high school mathematics for many years in Gardiner and Scarborough; he comes to Morse with a wealth of experience in teaching, coaching, and officiating athletics. They will teach together on October 1st and 2nd before Mr. Quinn takes over the classes the following week. 

Thank you for your continued involvement in your students’ education and Morse High School!

Sincerely,