School Committee Meeting Summary

At a regional competition on December 10th, both of Walpole's 4th grade robotics team (Radbots) and the 5th grade robotics team (Wild Wolfpack) qualified for the First LEGO League state championship which was held at Worcester Polytech Institute. To qualify, the teams placed within the top 12 out of 48 competing. It is such an accomplishment to have both teams qualify, especially in their rookie year. The students, coaches, volunteers, mentors and parents were recognized for this tremendous achievement.

The Walpole High School student representative to the School Committee was unable to attend the meeting. Dr. Gough read the following report provided by WHS representative Grace R.:

• Students are currently preparing for assessments as they approach the end of the first semester on Monday, January 23. Semester-long classes are coming to a close and students are excited to begin new semester classes on January 24.
• Service trips to Spain and Thailand for February vacation are finalizing their plans.
• Seniors applying to colleges have submitted their applications and many have even begun to hear from colleges.
• The winter sports season is already almost at its halfway point. Our teams continue to work hard to improve their records.
• Clubs are very busy at the high school. Yearbook continues to gather senior photos and responses for superlatives. Journalism issued their December Magazine just before break and have begun to work on their January paper. UNICEF club is currently running a drive for the More Than Words enterprise. Clubs, such as speech and debate, mock trial and the photography club, continue to hold meetings and compete.
• Student Council has begun to plan their major winter and spring events including a hypnotist at the end of the month.
• Student Council is also preparing to attend the Massachusetts Association of Student Councils annual conference in March.

ELA Update: An ELA curriculum update was provided by Walpole High School English Department Chair Lauren Culliton, Grades 6-8 Humanities Coordinator Jodi O'Rourke, and Grades K-5 ELA Curriculum Coordinator Shannon Findley. The full report can be viewed here at time marker 30:11.

2023-2024 School Year Calendar - Second Reading: The School Committee had a second reading of the proposed calendar for the 2023-2024 school year. This calendar proposes that teachers will return to school on Monday, August 28; students in grades 1 through 12 will return to school on Wednesday, August 30, 2023; PreK and Kindergarten students will return to school on Tuesday, September 5, 2023. The last day of school for Grades K- 11, without snow/emergency days would be Wednesday, June 12, 2024. The School Committee wanted to be sure that the community was aware that Friday, December 22, 2023 is a full school day. This calendar is posted on the District webpage. The School Committee unanimously voted to approve the 2023-2024 School Year Calendar.

2023-2024 School Committee Meeting Calendar - Second Reading: The School Committee had a second reading of the proposed draft calendar for the 2023-2024 School Committee Meetings. The School Committee voted to approve the 2023-2024 School Committee Meeting calendar.

Dr. Gough reported:

• WPS continues to work on the budget for the 2023-2024 school year. On Tuesday, at the Select Board meeting, Town Administrator Jim Johnson provided an update on the FY24 Town Budget.

• There is no school for students tomorrow, January 13th. All staff will be participating in EdCamp, which is designed to provide participant-driven professional development for educators. We also have multiple outside presenters. This year’s theme is Integrate and Innovate, and we have nearly 80 workshops scheduled for a good day of learning and collaboration! Thank you to Tom Reeve, Jesenia Burke, Jill Kimball & Sarah Scales for spearheading this work. It is an enormous undertaking to put this together.

• Reminder: There is no school on Monday, January 16th (Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day)

• On January 26th, WHS will hold its 8th grade curriculum night at 7:00 p.m. There will be an overview of the scheduling process and a review of curriculum from the Department Chairs, who will be available to answer any individual questions. Additionally, specific special education information will be presented at 6:30 p.m. in the Library/Media Center.

• Title I Night will be held on January 30th 6:00 - 7:00 p.m. at Boyden Elementary School.

• District Strategic Planning will be held on February 9th @ 8:30 in Walpole Public Library Community Room. During this day, we will review the District’s progress toward achieving the goals, objectives, and action steps outlined in the Strategic Plan and prioritize actions in order to promote growth and achievement of all students.

• The Extended Day Program is excited to offer a February Vacation Camp for the upcoming school break on February 21 - February 23. The Vacation Camp is open to all Walpole Schools students in grades K - 5. To register, please complete the online registration form. For more information, please see the attached flyer. Please also feel free to reach out directly to dclifford@walpole.k12.ma.us with any questions.

• Aside from school/classroom visits, Dr. Gough attended Instructional Coaching Training on Tuesday, which was facilitated by Dr. Hahn. Across the district, we have begun this training in order to provide a blueprint for establishing, administering, and assessing a robust instructional coaching program in Walpole Public Schools. Dr. Gough was impressed with the commitment and enthusiasm of all of our coaches, Director of Digital Learning Mr. Reeve and Assistant Superintendent Dr. Hahn.

• Kindergarten Pre-registration for the 2023-2024 school year will be conducted from January 3 - January 31, 2023. To pre-register a kindergarten age-qualified* child, a parent or legal guardian must:

  • Complete the online pre-registration form

  • Present the required registration documents to the neighborhood school. If unable to drop off documents at your neighborhood school during the day, families may bring them to the Superintendents’ Office (135 School Street) on Mondays and Wednesdays until 5:00 p.m. and Tuesday evenings until 8:00 p.m.

  *Kindergarten age-qualified children are those that have turned five (5) years old before September 1 of the school year for which they are pre-registering.

  To find out more about registration, click here.
  

• An update on the Solar Project was given, and Dr. Gough requested direction from the School Committee about how to proceed with these projects. After reviewing the information provided by Mr. Friscia and engaging in discussion, the SC is in agreement with moving forward with the process.

Mr. Breen provided an update to the middle school building project. He indicated that the foundation footings for the new building are being poured. Final bid prices for the project are currently being received. A project timeline and three-week look ahead schedule can be located on the middle school webpage. The community is encouraged to visit the webpage and reach out to the Middle School Project team with any questions or comments via email at middleschoolproject@walpole.k12.ma.us.

Mr. Ahern provided a timeline of how the high school renovation needs came to light. He indicated that two previous renovations to the high school were done - one in the 1950's and one in the early 2000's. Due to technological advances, educational updates and teaching and learning methodologies provided to our students, there are growing and emerging needs for updates to the high school. Mr. Ahern's full report can be accessed here at time marker 2:32:40.