Teachers have been taking advantage of the beautiful weather and students have been outside as much as possible this past week. The garden is being prepped for our annual Harvest Festival. This year we will hold it on October 18th with Open House. The Junior class will provide a delicious meal as part of their ongoing fundraising efforts. The public is invited to attend both events. Students have also been out and about performing community service in the form of yard work and fall chores for local residents. If you are on-island and would like a hand, please call us. 

     Students from Unity College visited Islesboro Central School (ICS) Tuesday. They enjoyed a tour by the Head of School and spent some time in classes. We enjoy hosting and sharing our wonderful school with future educators. Unity students could see the growing pile of supplies we’ve been collecting to send to hurricane victims in the Bahamas. We have worked closely with our solar installers, ReVision Energy, in gathering enough food, tarps, and hygiene necessities to fill a pickup truck. Those supplies will be driven to South Portland and loaded into the solar voltaic trailer they built and are sending to the Bahamas. As part of an island community ourselves, ICS is proud to partner with ReVision in lending a hand to the victims of Hurricane Dorian. 

     ICS students enjoyed a day at the Common Ground Fair, Friday. An annual field trip, students were able to explore and meet new people during the “student day”. This particular fair fits in nicely with our sustainability theme and we are happy to see their enthusiasm when they return. 

     Head of School, Chuck Hamm, attended another conference. Hosted by Maine School Management Association (MSMA) at the Island Institute, school board members and administration from North haven, Vinalhaven, and Islesboro, spent time learning about the roles of school boards and the parameters of their authority. Meeting leadership teams from other islands is vital in keeping abreast of best practices. We share many of the same challenges and have all experienced a large turnover in staff this year. 

          Looking ahead, we’ll see a new fence going up near the playground, October 9th we’ll flip the switches to our solar panels in a school-wide, community event, and the Anne Dillon House will be breaking ground. Stay tuned and thanks for reading. 

Chuck Hamm