Schools

Ready for the Start of School – Here’s Some Important Info

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The Watertown Public Schools open on Thursday, Sept. 4, and here are some announcements from school officials. Superintendent Jean Fitzgerald sent out the following information:

STUDENT REGISTRATION

For registration at the appropriate school, new students should bring their birth certificate, school records or report cards (if records from their previous school were not already transferred), proof of residency (e.g. lease or utility bill) and complete health records indicating all required immunizations were received. These immunizations are a requirement of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and must be received before the student may attend school or be enrolled. A parent or guardian should accompany the child to school.

Government

Extra $1 Million Could Mean Reducing Class Sizes in Watertown Schools

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The School Committee will request an additional $1 million in funding from the town to cover special education costs and hire teachers to reduce class sizes. Superintendent Jean Fitzgerald said the schools need $653,000 to raise the funds for special education in Fiscal 2015 up to the amount spent this year in Fiscal 2014. The money is needed along with the $750,000 the Town Council has approved for the Special Education Stabilization Fund. “We need the additional $653,000 to get to the base, and then if we go above that we can go to the stabilization fund because we will be in extraordinary times,” Fitzgerald said. “If we don’t do that, then we are already in extraordinary times.”

Schools

Watertown Schools Hire New Business Manager

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After enduring a difficult – and still ongoing – budget year without a director of business services, the Watertown Public Schools hired one on Monday night. The School Committee approved the hiring of Charlie Kellner, and he will begin work after July 1, 2014. Kellner last worked as the school business director for the Medfield Public Schools. He said the Watertown job appealed to him. “I am familiar with some of the staff and I grew up not far away in Newton,” Kellner said.

Government

Watertown School Budget on Tap This Week

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On Tuesday, Watertown school officials will make their case to the Town Council for their Fiscal 2015 budget request. The School Committee and school administrators will present their budget at the Budget Hearing on Tuesday at 6 p.m. at Town Hall. Their budget will be heard after the Water/Sewer Enterprise. There is a significant gap between the request from the Schools, which asked for a $6 million, 16 percent increase. While the Town Manager’s budget includes a $2.26 million, 6 percent increase.

Letters

LETTER: Final Push for the Watertown School Budget

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Dear Editor,

I am the mom of a current and soon-to-be WPS student, as well as a public policy researcher who has worked for two decades across four continents with colleagues in government, business, and academia. I became focused on WPS when I realized that across the fifth grade, students were receiving minimal feedback, spending more time memorizing worksheets than engaged in project-based learning, and experiencing increased behavioral problems. Examining MCAS results, I noted that 20% of WPS students who were proficient in math in third grade, no longer met minimal standards by fourth grade, despite the fact that statewide, students perform better from year to year. As a mom, I am deeply concerned to see Watertown children falling behind, disengaged, and exposed to growing behavioral issues. Watertown Strong Schools formed as parents came together, sharing concerns about increasing class sizes, overburdened teachers, and a decline in student wellbeing. WSS focused on understanding the situation at WPS, the budget process, and school and town dynamics. We analyzed data, examined budgets, met with leaders, attended town meetings, held community meetings, interviewed administrators, and surveyed teachers.

Government

School Committee Chair Hears Parents Loud and Clear

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The message at Tuesday’s Town Council meeting where the budget was revealed was clear from Watertown parents, said School Committee Chairwoman Eileen Hsu-Balzer. The budget presented by Town Manager Michael Driscoll which included $38.9 million for education is a $2.267 million or 6.18 percent increase over Fiscal 2014. But it came in below the $6 million, 16 percent increase requested from the School Committee. Parents were upset and let the Town Council know they wanted the full request from the School Committee. Hsu-Balzer said that the budget is not done yet, and will not be voted until June 10.

Around Town

Town Budget Includes Increase for Schools, See How Much

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The Watertown Public Schools will be getting an increase next year, but parents at Tuesday’s Town Council meeting said it is not enough. Town Manger Michael Driscoll presented the Fiscal 2015 budget, but the item of interest for most in the standing room only Council Chamber was the education budget. The budget of $38.94 million is a $2.267 million increase – 6.18 percent – more than the Fiscal 2014 figure. This is more than the 3 percent projected in the draft budget Driscoll presented in October, but below the 16.81 percent requested by the School Committee and school staff. Several parents spoke during a public forum period expressing disappointment about the budget figure.

Letters

Education Foundation Opposes Creation of New Fundraising Group

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A Town Council subcommittee has floated the idea of creating a new non-profit group to raise money for the Watertown Schools, but members of the Watertown Education Foundation say they fill that role. Education Foundation President Amy Donohue made an appeal at Tuesday’s Town Council meeting to let her group continue what it has been doing, and asked for the help of the Council, the School Committee and other officials in town. After she spoke, Councilor Tony Palomba, who brought up the idea of creating a new group at the Education and School System Matters subcommittee meeting, said the proposal was just a draft designed to start discussions aimed at finding new ways to add funding to the Watertown Public Schools. (Click here to see more on the proposal for the new group and other strategies to get more school funding). He suggested inviting the Education Foundation and other groups that raise money for the school (including the Watertown Community Foundation and the Friends of Watertown Music) to discuss fundraising strategies.