Dear North Reading Public Schools Community,
As summer winds down, I hope our students and families have all had time to recharge and enjoy special moments with loved ones. Our campus is already bursting with energy this week as our athletes, band, and performing artists return—a fantastic preview of the excitement ahead for the new school year!
As we focus upon the start of the 2026-27 school year I write to offer a few reminders and important updates:
Tuesday, September 8, 2026 is our first day
of school for students (grades 1-12)
PreK & Kindergarten Orientation is on September 8th and 9th
Thursday, September 10, 2026 is our first day
for PreK and Kindergarten students
Throughout the year we will also be offering many opportunities for learning together through our ongoing Family University series. Our first event of the year is a Welcome for New Families and will take place on August 26, 2026 at 6 p.m. in the Distance Learning Lab/Virtual. Registration is required and a virtual link will be shared with those who register: https://forms.gle/pryQxoDkjvfYX9fM6
Later this week Mr. Sean Killeen, our Assistant Superintendent for Teaching and Learning, and our leadership team will welcome our new staff for orientation.
This year we are excited to welcome two new administrators to join our leadership team. Mrs. Sarah Auger has joined us as a new leader for North Reading Middle School and Mrs. Renee Young is our new Humanities Coordinator. They join our tremendous group of veteran leaders, including Mr. Michael Maloney at the Batchelder, Dr. Glen McKay at the Hood, Mrs. Julie Fahey at the Little, and Dr. Miriam Meyer at the High School.
As always, I would like to offer a sincere thank you to Mr. Sonny Campagna and our incredible Facilities team who have once again done an amazing job preparing our school buildings and grounds for the fall. Similarly, our Digital Learning team, under the leadership of our Coordinator of Digital Learning, Mr. Jim Sgroi, have spent countless hours this summer preparing our classrooms and setting up our technology tools in order to welcome our students and educators. I would also like to thank Mr. Chuck Campobasso, Director of Athletics and Student Activities, who has invested time throughout the summer scheduling and coordinating so many events and opportunities for our students!
Thank you to our administration and the educators who led our extended year programs and academies for students. Our Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations, Mr. Michael Connelly, and Director of Student Services, Mrs. Cynthia Conant, along with their teams, have dedicated countless hours in July and August to prepare us for the upcoming year. Mrs. Morgan Soares, our Human Resources Director, has coordinated with our principals to finalize the hiring of the new staff to fill our vacancies.
This summer our full leadership team met during our retreat days to review our district strategy for continuous improvement, NRPS 2030. I look forward to providing updates on our work in the coming weeks with our school committee and the school community.
School Safety
The primary goal of our schools is providing the safest and most supportive learning environment for all students. This year we will continue to implement several action steps in cooperation with the North Reading Police and Fire Departments.
As always, our School Resource Officers (two officers sharing one position) will be present in our schools and provide our students with a positive connection to law enforcement on a regular basis. In addition, we will continue to have an increased presence of patrol officers who will continue to familiarize themselves with our school buildings, staff, and students as they routinely visit our schools in coordination with the building administration in order to provide enhanced visibility, security, and accountability for our emergency operations plans.
Our school safety team, composed of members of the school, police, and fire departments, met over the summer to revisit and update our school emergency operations plans. We have developed a schedule of fire and evacuation drills, as well as School Safety training for staff and students. While this schedule does not provide the exact dates and times of each drill or training it communicates a plan for the year and the windows for when drills will occur in order to provide an opportunity for families, students, and staff to better understand our proactive approach for school safety. This will also provide all stakeholders with an opportunity to inquire with specific questions related to these drills and training in a timely manner.
School Safety Training and Drill Timeline
2026-27
Safety Drill with Administrators and Office Staff: August/September
All Employee School Safety Training Review Sept
FIRE Drill #1 (September)
Safety Drill planning and debrief (December/January)
FIRE Drill #2 (October)
School Safety scenario exercise with All Employees (January 2027)
School Safety scenario exercise with Students and Staff (January 27, 2027)
FIRE Drill #3 (possible additional scenario*) (Spring)
School Safety/ Health and Safety scenario with Students and Staff (Spring)
FIRE Drill #4 (possible additional scenario*) (Spring)
*Possible additional scenarios could include a tornado watch, evacuation for gas leak, chemical spill, blocked egress etc.
As a school safety team we have reviewed the developmental appropriateness of the drills and exercises as well as concerns related to trauma. Our approach will incorporate this awareness and we will practice drills that are sensitive to these concerns.
We will communicate more information at the school level as a follow up to each individual drill so that you are able to have a dialogue with your children and students. If you have any questions about this upcoming schedule or our approaches please contact your building principal and we will be happy to discuss any questions or concerns.
Finally, as a district we are once again participating in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Cybersecurity Training program. This grant funded program, offered by the Executive Office of Technology Services & Security, provides training for all North Reading Public Schools educators and staff that has proven beneficial both professionally and personally as we work to ensure data privacy, safety, and security in the cyberworld.
Technology and Personal Device Policy Updates
The North Reading School Committee approved policies that will provide additional guidance and support for internet acceptable use, using artificial intelligence (AI), and establishing the North Reading Public Schools as a cell phone-free community. This means that, subject to certain exceptions, cell phones and other personal electronic devices (watches, smart glasses, etc.) are not accessible to students during school hours.
We recognize that our elementary and middle school policies already disallowed these devices in grades Pre-K-8 and so the most significant change in practice for this fall will be at North Reading High School. Each school will be communicating updates along with their student handbooks related to these and other policies which are designed with student safety and well-being in mind. Parents and caregivers who need to communicate with students throughout the day should contact the main office. Students with disabilities or medical needs should continue to work with the school to provide the necessary accommodations.
FY 28 Budget and Modular Project
As you are aware, budget cuts that were implemented for the 2025-26 school year have impacted class sizes, left key positions unfilled, and eliminated some important programs and supports for our students. As a district we will always find a way to move forward, despite these ongoing budget challenges, and we will continue to communicate critical financial updates to our community as we recognize the needs for the upcoming fiscal year 2028.
This fall we are also planning to present at town meeting in October the next steps in a modular replacement project that would consolidate the modular units at the Hood and Little Schools (six early childhood classrooms). If we are fortunate to receive both town meeting (October) and ballot approval (November), this project would move forward in 2027.
Thank you for all that you do for our students and to support our schools. We look forward to welcoming our students back on September 8, 2026, and wish you a wonderful conclusion to your summer with family and friends.
Sincerely yours,
Patrick C. Daly, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
