Schools

See How Much Athletic Fees Might Go Up Next Year

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Parents of Watertown middle and high school athletes may be shelling out more for their children to play sports in the fall. The increase has been proposed by Superintendent Jean Fitzgerald to cover a shortfall of $90,000 in the athletic budget. The Watertown School Committee will debate whether to increase the athletic fees and by how much at their meeting on Aug. 5. The recommended increase is $125 at the high school, which would make it $325.

Government

Schools Looking for New Ways to Fund Middle School Sports Program

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Parents of middle school athletes could soon face higher fees if the school system can’t find outside help to plug almost $100,000 in cuts to athletic programs in the Fiscal 2015 school budget. The school committee unanimously approved the proposed Fiscal 2015 cost center budget on Wednesday. The $39,232,000 budget is an increase of $2,557,000 from the Fiscal 2014 budget, but includes $92,000 in cuts to the middle school athletic program at the high school and middle school. While the school budget for Fiscal 2015 budget is an increase of $2,557,000 from the FY 2014 budget, it is still below the $6,186,507 increase the committee requested from the Town Council. According to the budget passed Wednesday, the School Committee allocated $598,057 for athletic programs throughout the school system.

Schools

Watertown High School Honors Athletes Who Played Sports Every “Season”

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When Watertown Athletic Director Michael Lahiff took over he saw that some WHS teams lacked numbers so he created an award for people who played sports in all three seasons in each of their four years at the high school. 

The numbers have fluctuated through the years. Two years ago there were 17, last year 12 got the award and this year 11 seniors were honored at a recent School Committee meeting. The Athletic Director’s Award winners this year are:

Matt Donnell

Greg Dorian

James Garbier

TJ Hairston

Casey Halle

Joe Kelland

Jessica Lamposano

Eliza Portz

Jessica Rodriguez

Marrisa Russo

Daniel Shin

Schools

School Committee to Discuss Raising Athletic Fees

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The Watertown High School athletics budget could be well in the negative next year, so the School Committee will discuss increasing the athletic fee on June 25. The athletics budget for the middle and high schools combined is over $890,000, but the shortfall could be in the $100,000s. The School Committee will discuss athletic fees at the meeting on Wednesday, June 25 at 7 p.m. in the Watertown High School Lecture Hall. The agenda also includes reviews of the Fiscal 2104 and 2015 budgets, and a discussion of having the school budget reviewed by an independent auditor. To see the whole agenda, click here.

Sports

See How the Watertown Runners Fared at the Track Nationals

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Watertown’s track team ended the season with a trip to North Carolina to compete with the nation’s top track and field athletes. The Raiders sent both a boys and a girls sprint distance relay team to the meet at North Carolina A&T University in Greensboro, N.C. The sprint distance medley relay features two runners running 200 meters, one running 400 meters and one running 800 meters. The boys team of junior Brian DellaCosta, junior Nick Soares, sophomore Austin Lin and senior James Garbierran a time of 3:34.75 to finish 30th in the Championship competition (the upper division). The Raiders finished second in their heat. In the girls race junior Sahar Khan, junior Keegan Duguay, sophomore Katherine Tolman and senior Lea Strangio finished third in their heat and 32nd overall in the Emerging Elite competition (the lower division) with a time of 4:28.18.

Sports

Watertown Enjoys Success at All State Track Meet

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The Raiders continued a successful track season at the All State Meet at Bridgewater State on Saturday. Junior Brian DallaCosta followed up his win in the pentathlon at the Div. 4 Meet with a fifth place at the All State Meet. He scored 2,634 points

Senior James Garbier finished seventh in the 800 meter run with a time of 1:55.13. Sophomore Austin Lin got 14th in the 400 meter run and the boys 4 x 400 relay finished 18th.

Government

State Rep. Hecht Hopeful About Getting More Special Ed Funds

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Watertown’s state representatives have been working to add more money to help the Watertown Public Schools deal with spiking special education costs, and State Rep. Jonathan Hecht said he is hopeful of getting some additional money. The cost came in more than $650,000 above the budgeted level, and funds had to be diverted from those intended for the regular education budget. The School Committee has requested extra funds from the town for Fiscal 2015 to bring the base up to the level of the current year (Fiscal 2014). The House budget includes a bill that would create a fund of $250,000 for school districts that have higher than average high-cost, out-of-district special education costs. Those programs are for students who have special needs that cannot be served in the Watertown schools, and in some cases cost $100,000, $200,000 or more, according to Superintendent Jean Fitzgerald.

Sports

WHS Sports: See How the Raiders Fared in State Competitions

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The Raiders’ spring sports squads took on  some of the best in the state this week in state tournaments and state meets. 

Track & Field

Several Raiders track and field athletes competed in the Eastern Div. 4 Outdoor Championships at Dufree High School in Fall River. The Raiders’ boys team won a relay and the pentathlon, and got a pair of second places in individual events. Junior Brian DallaCosta won the pentathlon event with 2609 points. The 4 x 400 meter relay got first place with a time of 3:33.73.