Dear North Reading Public Schools Community,
I’m writing this afternoon to provide two important updates on recent developments that will impact the North Reading Public Schools.
First, at this morning’s board meeting of the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) the Board of Directors voted to invite our Statement of Interest into the MSBA eligibility period. This is great news for our district!
What this means is that we are now able to begin the next steps in the process that will gather information for submission that could lead to us potentially being considered for the feasibility study phase. Between now and then we will continue to share updates and present on this topic publicly, as many of these steps will require public input and vote.
Our proposal involves the replacement of modular units at both the E. Ethel Little and J. Turner Hood elementary schools with a permanent structure at the Hood and potential updates to the Hood school that could extend the life of that facility.
This project would consolidate the existing Pre-K programs at the Little School and the Hood School into one early childhood center / physical structure.The new classrooms would also include right-sized spaces for special education programs in the new wing at the Hood School.
Kindergarten students would remain at their own school. Currently Batchelder, Hood, and Little each have Kindergarten.
The second item that I wanted to discuss today is the recent draft report of the Statewide Graduation Council and the recent updates the North Reading School Committee has adopted to its policy for graduation requirements and competency determination.
The Statewide Graduation Council’s recommendations, which will be finalized in June, include seven elements (program of study, end-of-course assessments, capstones or portfolios, MyCAP, FAFSA/MASFA, financial literacy, and seals of distinction) that we believe the North Reading Public Schools are well-positioned to implement. At this time we either meet or exceed these recommended requirements or we have a pathway toward implementing those elements that are not fully in place presently.
Currently there is no timeline established for the implementation of the Statewide Graduation Council’s recommendations, and we will continue to provide feedback in order to strengthen the successful implementation of these next requirements.
In the meantime, we have adopted updated requirements for graduation and competency determination since the passage of Question 2 last year changed the long standing use of the MCAS assessment for this purpose.
Our Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning, Mr. Sean Killeen, and our High School Principal, Dr. Miriam Meyer, high school administration and curriculum leaders, have been working throughout the fall to ensure that our courses and assessments are aligned with our updated policy, which will be submitted to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education for approval in the coming days.
Our policy meets all of the requirements for rigorous standards while also allowing multiple pathways for students to demonstrate their competency; including students with disabilities, multilingual learners, and late enrolling students.
Specific details about the requirements will be shared in the coming weeks. If you have any questions about this policy or changes to graduation requirements please feel free to contact me or Mr. Killeen directly and we will be happy to provide you with additional information.
Thank you,
Dr. Daly