Schools

Watertown Schools Moving Toward Starting High School, Middle School Later

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Students at Watertown High School and Watertown Middle School will likely have more time to sleep in beginning the fall of 2018, and that’s a good thing, school officials say. This week, the School Committee heard a presentation from a committee asked to look at the mechanisms for starting school early and what problems could arise from changing the start time at Watertown’s secondary schools. Last year the school’s Wellness Committee recommended that the district move to an 8:30 a.m. start time for middle and high school based on research about teens sleep habits and circadian rhythms, also known as the body clock. “Teen circadian rhythms shift later with the onset of puberty and causes them to stay alert until about 10:30 to 10:45 (at night),” said Watertown MiddleWatertown Middle School Principal Kimo Carter, who chaired the School Start Time Implementation Task Force. “The change happens as the get older, it just happens – they can’t control it.”

Schools

Watertown Middle School Classroom Kitchen Gets An Overhaul

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A kitchen used by students in the special education program at Watertown Middle School got a partial upgrade and improvement recently, bringing it into the current century. The kitchen is left over from a now defunct program at the Middle School, said Principal Kimo Carter. “Fifteen years ago we had a home economics program that got discontinued,” Carter said. “This room and the one beside it were the home ec rooms.” The room has counters, cabinets, a stove, refrigerator and microwave.

Government

School Subcommittee Recommends Adding Another Artificial Turf Field

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The demand for artificial turf field space has grown for Watertown High School’s athletic squads, and a School Committee subcommittee has recommended that the town install a second artificial turf field with lights somewhere in town. 

With football/baseball area of Victory Field covered in artificial turf it has allowed the area to be used for more hours and in more inclement weather, said WHS Athletic Director Michael Lahiff. However, there is a lot of demand for that space. In the fall, for instance, it is used by the football, field hockey, and boys soccer teams. However, the football team has priority because they cannot practice or play on the nearby Victory Field Track Oval because players would tear up the grass, Lahiff said. They are not the only team that wants to use the turf. “Field hockey wants to be on the turf, it’s a different game now (on artificial turf), and boys soccer prefers it,” Lahiff said.

Mascot

Committee Narrows Down Possible Mascots/Logos for Watertown High School

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Knights, Colonists, American Indians, foxes, bobcats, and many more – these are some of the choices that the Watertown High School Mascot Screening Committee has to choose from for the school’s new logo. 

The group of students, alumni, parents and school staff met Tuesday night to review the 17 submissions for the new WHS mascot/logo, and shortened the list for the graphic designer working with the group to have some ideas. The submissions came from students and others in town, said School Committee Vice Chair Kendra Foley, who is chairing the Mascot Screening Committee. One even came from a fifth grader. The group was asked what characteristics they wanted the mascot to have. One of the students on the committee, Abbie Peterson, said she wanted to show that Watertown is “a strong community, we don’t let anything hold us back and we strive to be the best.”

Election 2017

Decision Made on How to Fill Vacant School Committee Seat

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The School Committee will have an open seat when one of its members moves out of town, and the seat will be filled by a special election that will be on the ballot during this fall’s Town Election. 

In May, School Committee member Candace Miller announced she would be stepping down from her seat because she and her family are moving. She told her colleagues on June 5, and submitted her letter of resignation to the Town Clerk that week saying she will officially step down on Aug. 5. The decision of how the remaining 2 years and two months is made by the Town Council. Tuesday night Council President Mark Sideris recommended that a special election be called.

Schools

WHS Mascot Committee to Discuss Submissions for New Logo

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The group that will help select a new mascot/logo for Watertown High School will discuss the proposals for the new logo at a meeting next week. 

On Tuesday, June 13 at 7 p.m. the Mascot Screening Committee will review the submissions for the new symbol of Watertown High School, said School Committee Vice Chair Kendra Foley, who chairs the Mascot Committee. The school will keep the Raiders name and the red, black and white colors. “We have received 15 submissions,” Foley said at this week’s School Committee meeting. “We will review the proposals on June 13.” The Mascot Screening Committee will meet again on June 20 when the final selection may be made to send to the full School Committee to consider, Foley said.

Drug Prevention

Watertown High School Students Pledge to be Alcohol & Drug Free

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More than 70 Watertown High School students have pledged to be drug and alcohol free, and in return they will be part of a new group at the school which has special events and they will get discounts at local businesses. 

The kickoff meeting Raiders Against Drugs Society, or RADS, took place in late May with an assembly lead by student leaders at Watertown High School. The students discussed the goal of RADS, and the benefits – including discounts at stores, meetings with raffles and door prizes, special trips and more. To be a part of RADS, students must sign a pledge saying they will be alcohol and drug free. At the end of the school-wide assembly, the organizers asked for a show of hands of people who would take the pledge and join RADS. “Close to 80 students signed up on the first day,” said Donna Ruseckas, the Watertown Public School’s director of Wellness & Extended Services.

Government

Board of Health Considering Making New Tobacco Rules After Hearing from WHS Students

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After hearing about research collected by some Watertown High School students, the Watertown Board of Health will look at possible changes to the town’s tobacco regulations. The students are Watertown Youth Coalition Peer Leaders – a program of the Wayside Multi-Service Center – and also take part in a statewide movement of youth fighting tobacco in their communities, said Dawn Graham, media and prevention specialist with Wayside. As part of the statewide anti-tobacco effort, called The 84 Movement, the students mapped where tobacco retailers are in town, and their proximity to schools, parks and places where teens hang out. “They found that there are more tobacco retailers in Watertown than there are schools, parks, and other teen hangouts combined,” Graham said. “They were concerned to see that most places teens spend time – including Watertown High School – are less than a 5 minute walk away from a retailer and that there is currently no cap on the number of retailers that can be in Watertown.”