Strong connections between schools and communities are essential for success in a school
district like ConVal. Our communities are spread across a diverse area, with each town having different populations, infrastructure, and resources. When schools and communities work together to educate the next generation, everyone benefits.
Community connections are intentionally cultivated throughout a student’s education.
Since 1972, ConVal has partnered with the Harris Center for Conservation Education to offer students a place-based education, connecting students to the natural world. This long-standing collaboration has transformed our local forests, farms, and waters into outdoor classrooms.
Students tackle real-world challenges, like the second-grade seed design challenge, where they study how animals and plants depend on each other. In seventh grade, students build solar-powered cars for the Solar Sprint competition. Older students take on advanced environmental work, such as auditing building energy use in ninth grade and managing invasive plant species on campus in 10th grade.
The Cornucopia Project runs a school garden program providing our elementary students with an “edible education.” First graders spend seven weeks learning in the garden during spring, then continue for another seven weeks when they return as second graders in fall. Students grow their own food and learn where it comes from by participating directly in the growing process.
Arts education is a major strength at ConVal, supported by several community organizations. Students meet resident artists through MacDowell Colony school visits. Monadnock Music performers demonstrate different instrument families and teach musical concepts.
In December, Children and the Arts created a “Garden of Light” in downtown Peterborough, where ConVal students carried handmade lanterns in a nighttime parade that ended at Putnam Park, which had been transformed into an awe-inspiring array of glowing gardens. This theme continues as students prepare to march in the Children and the Arts Festival parade this spring, where students will carry self-made puppets, bringing to life the idea “Let Your Garden Grow.”
ConVal recently partnered with Monadnock Community Hospital and AmeriHealth to become the first New Hampshire district with Hope Squad programs at middle and high schools. Hope Squad is a peer-to-peer suicide prevention program where students nominated by classmates reach out to others who may be struggling. Hope Squad members learn to create safe spaces where people feel valued and understood. This collaborative effort aims to build and strengthen community connections with the singular, life-saving goal of preventing suicide one student at a time.
Safety is further anchored by trusted partnerships with local police and fire departments. These relationships are essential to school safety, community confidence, and swift, coordinated emergency response. In addition to serving as valued members of our schools’ emergency management committees, it is not unusual to see first responders standing with school staff to greet students as they arrive for the day or sitting and talking with students as they have lunch.
Memorial Day and Veterans Day school programs honor community members who serve or
have served in the military. In November, Senator Maggie Hassan recognized students and
teachers from Dublin Consolidated School as “Granite Staters of the Month.” Students and staff invited local veterans to an assembly in honor of Veterans Day. Almost 20 local veterans attended this event, where students thanked them for their service. Prior to the assembly, students learned about the Wounded Warrior Project and raised over $900, which USAA Bank matched, exemplifying one of ConVal’s core beliefs that it is important “to participate and ‘give back’ to our local communities.”
At the middle school level, students take on increasing civic responsibilities through a
community service requirement that grows from five hours in fifth grade to 20 hours by eighth grade. Students partner with civic organizations such as Rotary and the Lions Club to support local community needs and broader humanitarian efforts. Community connections and support are also provided by organizations such as The Grapevine, The River Center, and Avenue A, where teens learn to build resilience, navigate challenging circumstances, and develop as young leaders.
This commitment to community service continues at ConVal High School, where students regularly collect donations of food and hygiene items for those experiencing homelessness at shelters like the Monadnock Area Transitional Shelter and Hundred Nights. In homerooms, students compete to raise donations for the New Hampshire Food Bank and support the “New Hampshire Tackles Hunger” campaign.
High school students develop leadership skills through service. In the Youth and Government club, students participate in model governments at local, state, national, and international levels. Nominated students attend training through the Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership Foundation, which inspires youth leadership and service. Last year, National Honor Society members organized a Day of Service that was so successful they plan to hold one each fall and spring. These events engage students in meaningful community projects and develop leadership skills outside the classroom.
Parent-teacher organizations play a vital role in connecting homes, schools and communities. By mobilizing parents, educators and community members, these organizations provide resources and support that often fall outside a school’s budget. By supporting events such as open houses, community suppers, community luncheons, and enrichment programs, parent-teacher organizations help to create a warm, welcoming atmosphere that makes schools the heart of their communities.
The high level of community involvement at ConVal — from students, parents, residents,
businesses, public institutions, and first responders — reinforces the collective sense of
togetherness, trust, and transparency. It ensures that the district’s decisions about education funding and resource allocation reflect the collective priorities of all ConVal towns. When schools and communities partner closely, they strengthen both the educational experiences for students and the social bonds that unite us.