Gun Control

Watertown Middle School Students Call for End of School Violence During Walkout

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While thousands of high schools around the United States joined the National Walkout movement to raise awareness of school safety in the wake of the deadly shootings in Parkland, Fla., few middle schools joined in. On Thursday morning, Watertown Middle School held its own walk out, which hundreds of students attended. 

The organizers, most of whom were eighth-graders, gathered on the steps of the old West Junior High School building on Bemis Street and addressed the students who joined the walk out. The group spoke about trying to stop the violence and read the names of all of those killed in Parkland, adding some details about each of their lives. Eighth-grader Alex Thuene, who co-founded Watertown Middle School’s Stop Gun Violence Committee with eighth-grader Adham Hussein, addressed the students during the Watertown Middle School Walkout. “Seventeen lives were lost.

Letters

GUEST POST: School Committee Member’s Q&A With a WHS Senior

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(The following Q&A was submitted by Watertown School Committee Vice Chair Kendra Foley)

I always feel so proud of Watertown High School after hearing from our two School Committee high school advisors, Emily Koufos and Lauren Petrillo. Each month at our School Committee meetings, they give an update on the happenings at the high school, from sports to theater productions, AP tests to college acceptances. I recently had the opportunity to ask Emily Koufos a few questions about her experience at Watertown High School. KF: Have you had a favorite class? EK: My favorite class has definitely been AP Psychology.

Schools

SEPAC Awards Will Honor Those Who Work, Volunteer with Students with Special Needs

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The Watertown Special Education Parents Advisory Council (SEPAC) will once again honor those who have dedicated their time to help students with special needs in the Watertown Schools at the annual SEPAC Awards. The group formed in the late 1990s as a requirement of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), but it was always a challenge to get parents to come out to meetings, said Michelle Fallon, Hosmer Elementary School Evaluation Team Chair and parent of a student who received special education services from the Watertown Public Schools. The SEPAC awards began as a way to bring more attention to the people who dedicate their time to help students with special needs in Watertown, as well as to get more participation in SEPAC events, said Fallon, who had created a similar awards program when she was a member of the Watertown Historical Commission. “We came up with the idea to give some awareness for some of these wonderful people  working with kids,” Fallon said. The awards go to people who work in the district’s special education program, but they also are given to parents of students with special needs and even students who have volunteered to work with students in the special ed program.

Around Town

Deadline Approaching to Sign Up for the 2018 Town Wide Yard Sale

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The annual Town Wide Yard Sale will be held on Saturday, May 19, 2018, but the deadline to register is Thursday, April 19th. The money raised from registration fees benefits Watertown Community Education. The group sent out the following information:

Join us for the annual Town Wide Yard Sale. Schedule your yard sale on Saturday, May 19. For a fee of $10, we’ll do the advertising, provide a list of addresses to buyers and make it a community event for all to enjoy!!!

Schools

Proposed School Budget Adds Some New Positions, Saves by Eliminating Others

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Superintendent Dede Galdston presented a $48 million budget to the School Committee that would include a $2.2 million (4.9 percent) increase over the current school year and would add some positions but also eliminate some positions on the book without any layoffs. The Fiscal 2019 (2018-19 School Year) increase fits within the 5 percent funding increase that Town Manager Michael Driscoll has put in the overall Town Budget for education. “Watertown is very generous with it schools,” Galdston said. “A 5 percent increase is phenomenal.” The School Budget would need an increase of 4.1 percent would provide “level services” for the Watertown Public Schools, leaving $414,500 for new initiatives, but Galdston rearranged and restructure items in the budget to make another $734,000 available for new initiatives.

Schools

School Committee Decides on Busing Changes for Fall 2018

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The School Committee voted to approve having four school buses next year, one more than this year, in hopes of serving as many Watertown students as possible despite the change in start time at the middle school. The bus the fees will also change for some. The later start time for Watertown Middle School meant that it would be harder to make runs both there and to Hosmer Elementary School using the same bus. When the School Committee last met they considered keeping three buses but cutting down the number of students who would be able to ride the bus. Town Council President and School Committee member Mark Sideris said he and other got a “significant number of phone calls on the subject.

Around Town

Find Out About the Well-Being of Watertown’s Youth at a Town Hall Meeting

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The Watertown Youth Coalition will host its 2018 Town Hall Meeting on “The Well-Being of Watertown Youth” on April 11, 2018 from 6-8 p.m. at the Watertown Free Public Library. 

The WYC provided the following information:

How well are Watertown youth doing with regard to their health and well-being? COME JOIN US for a presentation and discussion of the most recent Watertown Youth Risk Behavior Survey results. Hear the perspectives of youth and other experts in the field, and contribute to the discussion about how to sustain and increase what’s positive for youth and families in Watertown. Light refreshments will be served. Register here to confirm your attendance and to be entered to win a raffle prize.

Entertainment

Musicians Wanted for Annual Friends of Watertown Music’s MusicFest

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The Friends of Watertown Music will host its annual fundraiser, MusicFest, in early April and the group seeks performers to take part. The event will be from 5:30-9:30 p.m. on April 6, 2018, at Watertown Middle School, 68 Waverley Ave., Watertown. Suggested donations are $8 per person or $25 for a family. There will also be pizza, refreshments and a bake sale. The event has raised more than $20,000 to support the music program in the Watertown Public Schools.for more information go to Watertownmusic.org.