Well its Football season

Lets welcome our new Coach Paul Worth.



The Tri-County League went to the spring chopping block and what’s left is a five-team division.
Three former TCL teams were moved up into the new-look Intercounty League this fall and another program dropped athletics entirely. The five teams that remain should form a competitive division, including the lone local team from Pioneer Valley Regional School.
For the past couple of seasons the top two teams in the TCL have been McCann Technical High School and Franklin County Technical School, both of which were pulled into the IL by realignment. Franklin Tech is now in the IL North and McCann is situated in the IL West along with three former Berkshire League teams, as well as Mohawk Trail Regional High School, the third team from the TCL to get moved. Dean Technical High School is also no longer in the TCL because the school folded its athletic department and all its students are playing with Holyoke High School.
That leaves Ware, Pathfinder Regional Vocational Technical, Palmer, Smith Vocational & Agricultural high schools and Pioneer. The five teams all finished in the middle of the pack last season, setting up an exciting season.
Pioneer welcomes a new coach with lots of experience this season in Paul Worth, who formerly coached at North Shore Technical High School, launching the school’s football program in 1994. By 1997, Worth and North Shore went unbeaten and won a Super Bowl. In all, he served as the school’s coach for 20 years.

In 2014, North Shore merged with Essex Agricultural and Technical High School to form the current Essex Technical High School. Worth stopped coaching at that point but continued on as athletic director, a position he has held for five years. On Sept. 2, Worth will officially retire from his AD post.
Worth’s daughter, Greenfield Community College professor Caitlin Heinzmann, recently gave birth to a son and, for her to return to her job, she needed a sitter. Enter the retired Worth, who decided that, since he was going to be in the area to care for his grandson, he would also hunt a football coaching gig. He said wife Claudia Worth knows his love for the sport and supported the idea. When he saw the Pioneer job posted, he applied and was hired.
Worth said that during his time at North Shore, the school had around 400 students, so Pioneer is a bit smaller. He was used to coaching teams of around 36 players at North Shore, so the 22-man roster he has at Pioneer is also smaller. He said that despite the low numbers, he has some very talented athletes, and if those bodies stay on the field, he expects to be competitive.
“I’m really excited,” Worth said. “We have a good group of kids and I think if we stay healthy, we should do well.”
Pioneer will have a new look this season after the graduation of quarterback Zach Lambert, who accounted for a lot of the offense the past couple years.
Taking over under center is the player who caught many of Lambert’s passes in recent years, as senior Alex Tyson moves from wide receiver.
“Alex has picked up the offense very well,” Worth said. “He throws on the run well and I think we can be successful at running the ball a little bit and throwing on the run.”
Junior Bryce Dobosz returns to running back, where he gained nearly 500 yards last season to easily pace the ground attack. Lining up in the backfield with him and Tyson will be senior fullback Josh Baker. Senior Terrell Hicks will also see time in the backfield during three-back sets.
Hicks will start at tight end while senior Hunter Cote and junior Karl Wheeler will start at wideout. Sophomore Jake Wallis has a great pair of hands and will also play at receiver.
The team is thin on the line but the five starters are solid. Connor Johnson is the only senior on the line and will start at center, while junior Justin Hubbard will play the right guard and sophomore Ethan Lanoie will play the left guard. Sophomores Drew Denney (right) and Jake Comiskey (left) will start at tackle.
Worth will play with three linemen on defense, as Comiskey starts at nose tackle with junior Tristan Dresser spelling him. Hubbard and Lanoie will start at the ends with sophomore Wyatt Keith serving as the backup. Johnson, Tyson and Hicks will play the three inside backers, while Dobosz and Baker will line up outside. Cote and Wheeler will start at corner and Wallis will play safety.
“Our defense is predicated on quickness and speed,” Worth said. “We will be moving a lot and if we are going to be successful we need to use our speed.”


 GOOD LUCK PANTHERS .. WE ARE ROOTING FOR YOU !!!

Opinions ?

 So whats your voice in this matter ? Opinions ?

NORTHFIELD — Pioneer Valley Regional School Committee seems divided over the issue of charter schools.
Ballot question No. 2 in the Nov. 8 general election, if approved, would let state officials approve up to 12 new charter schools each year or expand enrollment at charters, effective January.
Sue O’Reilly-McRae, a Pioneer parent and Warwick resident, stood before the committee Aug. 25 to ask for its united opposition to  new charter schools.
O’Reilly-McRae argued that, given a combined population of 6,652 people in Northfield, Warwick, Leyden and Bernardston, the Pioneer district doesn’t have a large enough school-age population to sustain both charter schools and public schools.
The majority of the committee expressed opposition to charter schools, which could draw students from the district’s already dwindling enrollment and, as a result, compromise funding.

Under the stipulations of ballot question No. 2, total enrollment at a charter school could not exceed 1 percent of the total statewide public school enrollment for that year.
It would give preference to charter applicants seeking to open or expand schools in districts that fall within the bottom 25 percent for performance on statewide standardized tests, where demand is greatest.
Members of the committee also expressed concern that charter schools disproportionately don’t accept special education students and tend to serve high-achieving students. However, under the stipulations of ballot question No. 2, new charter schools would be required to develop a recruitment and retention plan to ensure that special education students, English language learners, low-income students and students at risk of dropping out are enrolled in a proportion comparable to the sending districts. The schools would also be subject to annual performance reviews.
The committee voted on whether to support the mission of Save Our Public Schools, a grassroots organization that opposes lifting the cap on charter schools in Massachusetts. Though seven members present at the August meeting voted to support Save Our Public Schools, they could not reach a consensus.
Committee member David Young offered the sole vote supporting charter schools.
“I personally think charter schools have a lot to offer students that don’t respond to the heterogeneity model,” he said.
Young also argued that adding competing schools could result in improvement within the Pioneer district’s public schools.
“We thrive through competition,” he said. “It’s what makes us better, it’s what forces us to become better.”
Committee member Jeanne Milton abstained from the vote, having worked as a nurse at Four Rivers Charter Public School in Greenfield for 10 years.
Last month, both the Mohawk and Hawlemont regional school district committees unanimously adopted a resolution opposing expansion of charter schools.

This is a more we'll see

I think this is a positive move , however school choice who also pays taxes and funds to the school should of  been asked and added to this group .  
What happen last year was far from a little hiccup , it was a disaster ! It not only put the school in a whirlwind , but communities as well. Not to mention teachers worried about if they would have jobs or not .
 My first suggestion to this group is to watch the BUDGET. This is where you will need to make sure you are on top of your game. I warn you Miller is . This SC is clearly under her thumb and you may be  allowed to speak , but nothing states you will be heard .
We will also be watching  and reporting . As of now you have our support.

NORTHFIELD — After a rather tumultuous end to the 2015-2016 school year, residents of the Pioneer Valley Regional School District have formed a Community Committee.
The ad-hoc group was organized over the summer by Jack Killeen, 69, of Bernardston, who has had three children attend Pioneer Valley Regional School and whose wife and son are teachers there.
“This year has seen a lot of upset and it just seemed like that hurt a lot of things,” Killeen said. “I thought the best thing to do would be to move forward in a positive way.”
Killeen said he wanted to create a committee of residents to help Pioneer move forward in a positive way. Near the end of the previous school year, Superintendent Ruth Miller faced sharp criticism from parents, staff and students on several fronts, particularly over what was seen as high staff turnover.
Pioneer’s acting Principal Mike Duprey, Computer Network Manager Mike Holloway, Director of Special Education Sharon Jones and Bill Wehrli, principal of PVRS before Duprey, were all long-term staff members who resigned within the year. Outraged community members outwardly expressed their frustrations with the turnover at May and June School Committee meetings.

The mistakes made during the previous school year are all history now, Killeen said.
“Pioneer has a lot going for it,” he said. “We had a little hiccup, but people in the community thought that we wanted to accentuate the positive. It seemed to me that the best way to do that was to have representatives from all four of the towns.”
Killeen sought out residents of Northfield, Bernardston, Leyden and Warwick who would be interested in serving on what he decided to call the Pioneer Valley School District Community Committee.
“It’s a diverse kind of group that we’re trying to pull together for the greater good,” Killeen said.
It currently includes nine members: Killeen, John Lepore, Kim Willis, Martha Parker, Karen O’Neil, Jed Proujansky, Jennifer Chabott, Michele Giarusso and Sue O’Reilly-McRae. All members are former or current parents of Pioneer students, former Pioneer faculty or staff, former members of the Pioneer school committee, or members of town government.
“I think anytime you can have better communication and collaboration, it’s important,” said Giarusso, Community Committee member and chairwoman of the Leyden Finance Committee.
Killeen said the goal of the group will be to preserve Pioneer’s core values such as open communication within the school, diversity in the classroom, sound personnel practices and teamwork toward common goals. To do this, he said the group will meet several times a year to discuss topics members feel are important to be addressed at the next School Committee meeting.
“The (chairwoman) of the School Committee (Patricia Shearer) has indicated we can be a regular part of the agenda,” Killeen said. The Community Committee members introduced themselves before the School Committee at the Aug. 25 meeting.
Killeen said members of the community are welcome to contact him with concerns they might have about the school district, and are welcome to become members of the Community Committee themselves. Killeen can be reached by phone at 413-648-9703.

Speak out

OK ,lets hear what you think of this . Not only was the budget taken into consideration  but also the taxpayers  and needs of the children by Union 38.
We have Warwick, Bernardston and PVRS High School and Northfield Elem.  The different depts could be moved to another School such as Special Ed etc and Warwick is a large school with a low student count which could be used for Superintendent . Why are taxpayers footing a bill for a large  building which is a large expense , when we have other options in front of us that are more reasonable and already have the available space needed and paid for ?




WHATELY — Union 38 central school offices will likely move into converted classroom space at Frontier Regional School.
Following months of looking for a new building to house administration staff, after tests found poor air quality in the current administration building on Christian Lane, the school district has decided to use existing school space.
A report on air quality in the building found the health of employees’ has been adversely impacted. The report recommended the school district remedy the situation as soon as possible — by either moving employees or upgrading ventilation systems to ensure clean air quality.
In a statement, Superintendent Lynn M. Carey said a sub-committee formed to investigate potential locations agreed earlier this month to move the school offices from Christian Lane to other district-owned locations.
“A vote was made to pursue the Frontier Regional School as the most appropriate relocation of the central office,” the statement said, noting that the space the offices will move into is “surplus to the educational needs” of the school district.

Before deciding, the sub-committee also looked into what it would cost to repair the current building, and considered renting space in the Whately Town Office building on Sandy Lane at more than $20,000 per year — a location that is also being considered as the future home of South County EMS.
When the news first broke earlier this year, members of the sub-committee estimated it would cost the school at least $50,000 just to patch up the current building, a former elementary school. Repair costs would be in addition to the roughly $24,000 it takes to annually maintain the building.
In the end, Carey said, the school sub-committee decided based on costs and a need for more space than the town of Whately could offer.
“The space at Frontier Regional School was 4,500 square feet as opposed to 2,600 square feet at Sandy Lane,” she wrote, adding that costs to modify existing structures owned by the school is the most financially responsible path to take.
“The best use of district funds includes using the space that the taxpayers own and currently maintain,” the statement concluded.

Special shout out to Mr. Duprey

Your presence is missed and sadness fills  many of our hearts today as this year begins and you are not here to welcome us .

We wish you all the best and we thank you for all the years you gave us and what you taught us.

Those children who walk into your  building today are blessed beyond measure to have someone like you to guide them.

Be well and we hope to see you at some of our games. You are and always will be a part of PVRS.

Welcome PVRS Students and Teachers to 2016/2017

Welcome to a new year and Congrats to the new Seniors.
Lets hope not much damage has been done and we can keep a lid on things.

What we need to watch closely is the budget .. first and foremost .

Secondly, because enrollment is down we have alot of available space within the school , now would be a good time to  move back from main street to the school or fix the old Superintendents building . Way to much money is being wasted on a rental and no, we should not be buying a new building when we have available ones that can be used . This money can be used in others areas where its needed more.
 I can guarantee you that  this building and buying it  is first and foremost on Millers agenda .
 Also now  that we are also paying LESS for qualified teachers etc,( all high paying teachers were forced out or left ) we should also have a surplus and if we rid tax payers of the burden of extra expenses of the building no longer really needed , when as I stated room is available in the school , this only adds to the surplus.  Again, the warning is clear , watch the budget . 

Next Meeting is 9/22/16 @ PVRS

                                                                   We are watching ..