Groton-Dunstable​ ​Regional​ ​High​ ​School

IMPORTANT UPCOMING DATES:

Friday, October 24th - Early Release (10:50) PD District

Monday, November 3rd - Beginning of Term 2

Tuesday, November 4th - No School/Curriculum Day

Tuesday, November 11th - No School Veteran’s Day

Wednesday, November 12th - Term 1 Report Cars Published

Monday, November 24th - Early Release (10:50) Parent/Teacher Conferences

Tuesday, November 25th - Early Release (10:50) Parent/Teacher Conferences

Wednesday, November 26th - Early Release (10:50) District Conferences

Thursday/Friday, November 27th/28th - No School Thanksgiving

PRINCIPAL MESSAGE

As predicted, our students and advisors delivered on making Homecoming week a huge success. Spirit Week, the fundraisers, Pep Rally, Tailgate, athletic games and the dance, all added to bringing our school community together.  With so many organizations involved in our events, including the North Middlesex Marching band, a  baton twirler, cheerleaders,  The 6th Middlesex Regiment of Minutemen, all of the fans and supporting clubs, it allows for so many people to feel like they BELONG!  

Speaking of inclusive events……the Best Buddies Match Party took place this week.  Not only did we have lots of fresh faces participating, there were many students and staff on hand to witness and cheer on this event. 

Tuesday we had our district’s senior leadership team meeting at the high school and I want to thank our unrivaled PAVE CAFE crew who provided breakfast and refreshments.

Wednesday we hosted our Vision Committee Event that was well attended.  It was good to see so many different people involved sharing their thoughts on the future of GDRSD. The ever popular snacks were provided by Whitson’s…Grazie!!

With so many traditions being formed, brought back and retooled to include even more students and  members of the community, it warms my heart knowing  when our students, staff and families work hard at bringing people together, specialness happens!!   

See the 5 live feeds for pictures of all the events.  

Go Crusaders!!!

Sincerely,

Rick Arena

VETERANS INVITED!!

Our school is thrilled to be bringing back our annual Veterans Day Assembly, a special tradition we haven't held in several years. A key goal for us this year is to deeply involve the community in this important event.

We are reaching out to ask you, our local veterans, to be our honored guests. We will introduce each participant individually with a brief reading. Please feel free to wear your uniform, everyday clothes, or any pin, hat, or item that represents your branch. This is your day, and we want you to be comfortable.

If you are a veteran and would like to sit with us, or if you know a family member or friend who would like to participate in this recognition, please reach out to Hanna Vella at hvella@gdrsd.org.

Thank you for your service!

ATTENTION CLASS OF 2026 AND FAMILIES,

This is just a reminder of a few things that are special to seniors for the 2026 yearbook.

Mr. Adams helps me (Ms. Cook, the adviser) by tracking senior submissions as we get them, so please write to him at jadams@gdrsd.org if you have any senior-based questions.

SENIOR PORTRAIT SUBMISSIONS

• Senior portraits are due on October 31, 2025. Here are the specifications we gave you during your senior portraits class assembly on June 5, 2025. 

• Once you've selected your headshot for the yearbook, go to https://yearbookshare.com/eShare and use the code gdyearbook to upload your portraits. (Exception: If you used Mark Lawrence Photographers to take your portrait, they upload your portrait directly to our publication. Everyone else must upload their portrait using the link above.)

SENIOR TRIBUTE ADS (from parents and friends)

We can only guarantee page space for purchased tribute ads up until December 31, 2025. After that date, we can't guarantee we will have ad space left because our staff has to designate space for the rest of the content that will fill our 144-page book at that time. Here's how you can build a senior tribute ad:

• Go to GDRHS's Yearbook Order Center Page, and click to continue. (If you ever get asked for our job number, it's #6666.)

• Scroll down to "Share Your Love," where you can design and pay for a senior tribute ad. This allows you to upload photos, write messages, and decide what size ad you want to buy. 

• Be sure to follow through on the process! We've had parents stop mid-design and forget to complete and pay for their ad. The ads do not get to us until they are paid for.

PURCHASING A YEARBOOK FOR YOUR SENIOR

• Our presales deadline is December 31,  2025. The cost is $80, and guarantees your senior will get a book in May before they graduate. 

• Go to GDRHS's Yearbook Order Center Page to purchase your 2026 yearbook.

• On January 1, 2026, the cost goes up to $90, and our staff has to estimate how many books beyond the presale we think we'll need in May when some students in grades 9-12 and their families realize they meant to buy a book but forgot to buy one during presales. Consequently, we do sell out.

Here's a link to a 1m 30s video, a page-turning tour of our 2025 yearbook. We can't wait to build your 2026 yearbook!

Sincerely,

Kelly Cook, Adviser, & the Entire Key Staff

DRAMA GUILD UPDATE

Drama Guild has been busy!  Our set is painted and lights are set.  Our cast may be small, there are ten actors in the show, but the crew is mighty.  Many of the crew take on multiple roles to make productions happen at the high school.  Our assistant director, Bee Hawthorn,  is also club president.  Her input into rehearsals and her knowledge of tech make her a superstar.  Milo Devereaux is not only our stage manager, marking blocking and reading lines for missing actors, Milo is also our house photographer and has created our show’s advertisement.  Caleb Bilodeau has a lead part in the show as Claudio and is also in charge of costumes and make-up.  Katy Donovon has painted a majority of the set and has created our set plan. Anthony Dillon showed off their incredible talent painting the design detail on our faux carpet in addition to managing props.  Adriana Slater and Kate Sun are life savers as crew and filling in as the night’s watch during the show.  This is just a sample of what our actors and crew do.  Please come watch William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, November 7 and 8 at GD’s Black Box Theater.

FROM THE ARTS BOOSTERS

Our See’s Candy Store is Back!  Treat yourself (or someone you love) to delicious See’s chocolates and candies while supporting the arts! Every purchase helps fund arts programs at Groton-Dunstable High School and scholarships for graduating seniors pursuing the arts in college. Orders begin shipping in November, and the store will be open through December 5th.

Shop Here: bit.ly/4mEHeLV    Visit our website to view all upcoming events

SEPAC NEWS

GD and North Middlesex SEPACs are hosting a joint workshop with a focus on ADHD both in and out of the classroom, preschool through high school. The workshop will be held at the North Middlesex High School auditorium on October 28th at 7pm. Please see the flyer below for more information. We hope you can join us! 

GUIDANCE DEPARTMENT NEWS

MEFA NIGHT - Thank you to those who attended the MEFA Financial Aid night. Here is a link to the slides used and a website mentioned during the presentation. MEFA is a great resource for financial aid questions.

https://www.mefa.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/FA101-JS.pdf