Arts

Watertown School Staff Putting on Play with 1 Day Prep to Raise Money for Band Trip

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Some familiar faces in the Watertown Public Schools will have just one day to prepare a play for a performance on Saturday night. The proceeds from the event will help defer cost of the Watertown High School music program’s trip to New York. 

The Mystery Staff Show features 16 members of the WPS staff, who will not know what they will be performing until just 27.5 hours before they go on stage at the Watertown High School auditorium on Saturday, Dec. 1 at 7 p.m.

Tickets cost $10, and the money raised will help cut the cost of the every-other-year trip to New York by Watertown High School’s music program. Members of the band, orchestra and chorus head to the Big Apple for a weekend that includes performances, a trip to a play, and visits to tourist spots. The cast includes: Zack Allen, Heidi Baildon, Laurie Brackett, Culley Byham, Holly Cachimuel, Megan DiDuca, Aine Dirrane, Jess Donato, Amy Donohue, Chad Foster, Chris McDermott, Pat O’Neill, Nyssa Patten, Magen Slesinger, Siran Tamakian, and Sarah Thiemann.

Schools

School Committee Votes Against Seeking Membership to Minuteman Vocational District

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The Town of Watertown will not seek to join the Minuteman Regional Vocational Technical School District, at least not this year. 

The School Committee voted last week to follow the recommendation of a subcommittee that looked into whether to join the regional district which runs the vocational high school in Lexington. Watertown has consistently sent more than 50 students to Minuteman each year over the past 10 years. This year there are 56 students, or more than 10 percent of the total enrollment (516) and sends more students than all but one community. Arlington, a member community, sends 119 students this year. There are 10 member towns, and students from those communities are accepted before the school looks at out-of-district applicants, Minuteman Superintendent Edward Bouquillon said at the joint Budget & Finance and Curriculum subcommittee meeting.

Schools

Mixed Results on MCAS for Watertown Middle, High School Students

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The MCAS scores at Watertown Middle School and Watertown High School showed both improvements and drops from prior years, as well as compared to the state average. The School Committee heard the report last week, and members were interested in what is being done to improve Watertown’s scores. Interpreting the scores is not as easy as past years, said Theresa McGuinness, Assistant Superintendent of Teaching, Learning and Assessment, because many students took the new version of the MCAS test last year, while others took the old one. At Watertown Middle School, the scores dropped in English Language Arts (ELA) in sixth, seventh and eighth grades, but remained ahead of state average in seventh and eighth grade, said Watertown Middle School principal Donna Martin. In math, the WMS scores were down from 2017.

Schools

Watertown High School Robotics Team Receives a $5,000 Grant

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The Watertown High School Robotics Team sent out the following information:
Students at Watertown High School have found external support as they utilize robots to improve skills in science and engineering. The Monsanto Fund, a philanthropic arm of Bayer, recently awarded a one-time $5,000 grant to Watertown High Robotics Team 2423 to support their FIRST Robotics activities and encourage local students who participate in the program. Watertown High Robotics Team 2423 will use support from the Monsanto Fund grant to participate in FIRST Robotics and its educational programs and competitions. FIRST enables teams of students to compete with others in building, designing and programming their own robots to perform preassigned tasks– giving young students a chance to get involved with real-world engineering. “Allowing today’s students to learn STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) skills through hands-on experiences is crucial to preparing our next generation to drive innovation and overcome challenges,” said Michelle Insco, Monsanto Fund program officer.

Schools

Two Watertown High School Students Named National Merit Commended Students

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Two Watertown High School seniors received recognition from National Merit Program for being among the top scorers on the PSAT. Nathan Follett and Robert Leonard were named Commended Students in the 2019 National Merit Program, based on their scores on the 2017 PSAT (Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test), Superintendent Dede Galdston announced at this week’s School Committee meeting. Approximately 1.6 million students took the PSAT in 2017, and the top 50,000 were identified by the National Merit Program. “They are approximately in the top 3 percent of students in the nation,” Galdston said. School Committee Chairman John Portz added, “Congratulations to both of you.

Schools

Town Council Approves Funding for Study & Schematic Design for New High School

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A significant hurdle was cleared on the path to building a new, or renovating the current, Watertown High School when the Town Council approved $1.6 million in funding for the project’s feasibility study and schematic design. 

Last week, the Town Council unanimously approved the funding for what is the end of the first of eight modules required by the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA), said Superintendent Dede Galdston. The high school project was accepted into the MSBA’s process in December 2017. Since that time school officials have been taking the necessary steps, including creating a school building committee (the same one as for the 3 elementary school projects), documenting maintenance practices, and setting an enrollment. Galdston said, when completed, the high school will be able to accommodate 720 students. Currently the high school has about 660 students.

Schools

Minuteman High School Receives National Blue Ribbon School Award

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Representatives from Minuteman High School in Lexington accepted the school’s 2018 National Blue Ribbon School award at a ceremony held at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 8. An audience of 1,300 people looked on in the hotel’s ballroom as dozens of outstanding schools nationwide were presented with the National Blue Ribbon School award by the Director of the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program, Aba S. Kumi. “At no other time in Minuteman’s history that I can think of has our school had such a great stretch of news going on,” said Principal Jack Dillon, who has worked at Minuteman for the past 13 years. “This is a really proud moment to represent Minuteman.”

He attended the Washington event along with Lead Mathematics Teacher John Fusco and Lead English Teacher Greg Donovan.

Arts

Perkins School for the Blind Hosting Two Holiday Concerts, RSVP Now

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Celebrate the Season with a pair of concerts at Perkins School for the Blind in early December. 

Perkins sent out the following information:

You are invited to Perkins School for the Blind for a festive Holiday Concert. Join us:
Sunday, December 2, at 3:00 PM and/or
Tuesday, December 4, at 7:30 PM. Or watch a livestream of the concert to be broadcast at 7:30pm on December 4. View the Events page for details

The Perkins Student Chorus, Chamber Singers, Music Makers, Handbell Ensemble, Instrumental Ensemble and Vocal Soloists celebrate the season with a selection of beautifully arranged choral and instrumental works originating from around the world! The concerts are free and wheelchair accessible in Dwight Hall.