School Committee Meeting Summary
April 8, 2021
Public/Citizen Participation of School Committee Meeting
Due to the ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic and State of Emergency, on March 12, 2020, Governor Baker issued an Executive Order Temporarily Suspending Certain Provisions of the Open Meeting Law, G.L. c. 30A sec. 20. Pursuant to the Order, public bodies are temporarily relieved from the Open Meeting Law’s requirement that meetings be held in public places, open and physically accessible to the public, so long as measures are taken to ensure public access to the bodies' deliberations "through adequate, alternative means."
Citizens with a question or comment can join the meeting through the Zoom. The “chat” feature will be enabled at the “Citizens Comments” portion of the Agenda. Participants are asked to comment in the chat that they would like to speak, indicate your name and address in the chat and you will then be let into the Meeting. Please unmute your microphones at that time. If you have any questions regarding this process, or would like to send a comment in advance, please email mmortali@walpole.k12.ma.us.
All votes taken by the School Committee in a remote participation meeting are done via roll call.
The recorded School Committee Meeting can be accessed here.
Moment of Silence
Walpole High School Student Report
Brendan M., Walpole High School student representative to the School Committee, gave a report as follows:
This week all students, both cohort A and cohort B, returned to school together, five days a week, for the first time since March 13, 2020.
Monday was the beginning of Term IV. We are now in the final stretch of the year, with some students beginning new classes.
As for return procedures, all desks are at a minimum of 3 feet apart, and all equipment including desks are sanitized after each use. One-way hall ways are now in effect for student travel during passing time, and passing times have been extended to 9 minutes as opposed to the previous 7 minutes. Instead of having one lunch at the beginning of D-block, there are now 4 lunches within C-block, and students within each class are broken up based on cohort to either eat lunch in the cafeteria or in the classroom. Overall, the return has been very smooth and beneficial for all students.
English teacher Kerry McMenimen, a.k.a. Ms. Mac, the Advisor for Walpole High School Student Council, was awarded Massachusetts Association of Student Council’s Advisor of the Year Award for all of the amazing work that she has done for the school. As a council, we are all so proud. Some student council members will be attending the MASC leadership conference this weekend virtually.
Student council has been working diligently to plan events for the rest of the school year, with more details to be released soon.
Fall two sports such as Football, Volleyball, and Track and Field have all finished their seasons, and registration for the spring season of sports is open now, but will be closing shortly.
Walpole has had various athletes, both boys and girls, commit to play sports at a collegiate level, with sports such as football, basketball, and lacrosse.
Clubs at Walpole High School are continuing to plan events during these difficult times.
On March 27th, Walpole’s National Honor Society worked on a project for the Walpole Trails Commission to clear the Town Forest’s Anniversary Garden that was overgrown with thorn bushes, and it looks amazing.
Best Buddies had their April meeting on Monday.
The Walpole High School Film Festival members held a technology recycling fundraiser this past Saturday, and raised a lot of money for the program.
Walpole High School’s chapter of the Tri-M Music Honor Society will be hosting a fundraiser at the East Walpole Panera Bread on Friday, April 9th from 4:00 p.m. -8:00 p.m. People can show the flyer and a portion of the sale will go towards the Walpole Music Program.
The Random Acts of Kindness Club and the Spanish Club held meetings this week for the month of April.
RECOGNITIONS
Virtually present also were many coaches, captains, athletes, club advisors, club leaders and students to be recognized for their participation in Walpole High School athletics and clubs. Leadership is a big factor to a positive school culture and contributes to school pride as well. The School Committee and Administration is proud of the number of people who step up to be leaders for sports and clubs at Walpole High School.
The School Committee thanked all of these individuals for their committed and passionate leadership at Walpole High School and especially during this pandemic.
Mrs. Gallivan also asked these leaders to continue leading by example by being vigilant about maintaining all safety protocols so that everyone can finish the school year strong and healthy.
Superintendent Report
Dr. Gough was excited to welcome back all of our students in grades K-12 for full in-person learning. She thanked the staff for their hard work and continued resilience while we shifted to another learning module. Dr. Gough also thanked the Walpole Police Department for their assistance with arrival and dismissal procedures. Please continue to be patient as we assess and make adjustments as needed.
Walpole Public Schools will continue to work collaboratively with our Nurse Leader and Board of Health to meet all safety protocols to minimize risk and maximize the safety of our students. As always, we will abide by contact tracing and quarantining policies per our protocol. It is important to note, as we have done all year, we will be prepared to make adjustments at each level as warranted. We can only control what happens in our schools and therefore need families' continued support to mitigate risk to keep our school doors open and our athletic, extracurricular, and end of the year programs running smoothly. We are part of an exceptional educational community that is willing to work together to support our students and overcome obstacles.
On Thursday, April 1, Commissioner Riley announced that he will recommend to the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education that they modify the state graduation requirements for the Class of 2022. If approved, this year’s 11th graders would not be required to take the MCAS test. In addition, the timeline for administering the tests in grades 3 through 8 and 10 will be extended until June 11 in an effort to provide maximum flexibility for school districts.
In conjunction with the Walpole Coalition for Alcohol and Drug Awareness, Jessica M. Kuhn, Regional Coalition Coordinator of the Substance Abuse Prevention, is asking middle school and high school families to participate in a five-minute survey about the perceptions of underage drinking and other drug use. This regional survey is collecting data from the towns of Canton, Holbrook, Stoughton, and Walpole. The survey is anonymous and will assist the Coalitions in supporting our community. Any questions, please feel free to contact Jessica Kuhn at jkuhn@stoughton-ma.gov.
Finally, Dr. Gough thanked all community members who were able to attend or listen to the webinar on Thursday evening for the Middle School Building Project Community Forum. If you missed the presentation, you may view it here. Last night’s agenda included the project’s history and timeline, the decision-making process, the preferred schematic design, and the estimated cost, reimbursement, and tax projections. Participants also had the opportunity to ask questions.
OLD BUSINESS
The School Committee voted to approve the Strategic Plan for 2021-2024. This year the Strategic Planning committee met virtually on February 24th. A great deal of work is done to review and revise the Plan as needed. Many stakeholders are involved in the Walpole Strategic Planning process including administrators, teachers, support staff, parents, students, and community stakeholders. The goals and action steps for the Strategic Plan are:
Goal 1: To provide engaging curriculum, differentiated instruction, and ongoing assessments for all students.
- 1.1 Create consistent, coherent, and sustainable curriculum maps for PreK – 12
- 1.2 Provide personalized learning through flexible instructional practice that fosters growth for all students.
- 1.3 Utilize qualitative and quantitative data to inform instruction and improve practice.
- 2.1 Identify and provide professional development and resources for families, students, and staff
- 2.2 Embed consistent social emotional learning practices across curriculum
- 2.3 Engage, educate, and partner with students, families, and communities
- 2.4 Develop ethical students who value multiple perspectives and demonstrate responsible citizenship in the school and community
Goal 3: To demonstrate a high level of Cultural Proficiency as evidenced by active promotion of diversity in all aspects of instruction, learning, and participation, thus ensuring equity for all and full inclusion of members of the educational and greater community.
- 3.1 Focused leadership to analyze and promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in Walpole Public Schools
- 3.2 Create a shared community vision of belonging where everyone feels accepted, valued, heard, and encouraged to participate as their authentic selves
- 3.3 Infuse diversity, equity, and inclusion within the curricular and co-curricular activities and instruction
Goal 4: To ensure that facilities and resources support student learning and well-being.
- 4.1 Effectively provide for the safety, health, and welfare of all members of the Walpole school community
- 4.2 Identify and plan for future ready facilities projects
- 4.3 Identify, secure, and responsibly manage sustainable funding for all school department needs.
The full Strategic Plan can be accessed here.
CURRICULUM SUBCOMMITTEE MEETING/SUBCOMMITTEE REPORT
Mrs. Syrek gave a summary of a recently held Curriculum Subcommittee Meeting. There were three topics discussed. One topic was diversity and inclusion and how that impacts curriculum. Mrs. Syrek said that diversity and inclusion is something that we will continue to look at and noted that it is also a part of the Strategic plan. Secondly, the Curriculum Subcommittee also discussed the future practice of ELA leveling in the middle schools. Lastly the Subcommittee discussed potential professional development opportunities for the Mathematics department at the high school.
Assistant Superintendent Mr. Bill Hahn added that there has been a decision to eliminate the leveling of English Language Arts courses for seventh and eighth grade students. This decision has been considered for quite a while and has been made in collaboration with leadership and staff. The use of data, empirical research, and best educational practice were factored into this decision. Mr. Hahn noted that more information will be forthcoming to parents directly from the middle schools during the course selection and scheduling process.
Walpole Public Schools
Website: www.walpole.k12.ma.us
Location: 135 School Street, Walpole, MA 02081
Phone: 508-660-7200
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/walpolepublicschools/
Twitter: @PublicWalpole