Melissa L. Centracchio

The agenda included an Executive Session to discuss employee job performance for the Superintendent and several school principals, which was followed by a resumption of the Open Session. Key discussion and potential action items in the Open Session included the Superintendent's Report covering blizzard updates, revised meeting dates, district updates, the revised SY 2025-26 Calendar, and the January 2026 Monthly Budget Projection Report and Personnel Report. Action items scheduled for discussion and possible action covered the approval of job descriptions for Elementary, Middle, and High School Principals, approval of Administrator Contract Templates for various principal positions, approval of Erate Consulting Services, approval for an EGHS Model UN Overnight Field Trip to Boston, approval of a Homeschool Request, and the approval of community members for the Curriculum Subcommittee.

The meeting agenda included an initial executive session to discuss employee job performance for several principal positions and the Superintendent. Following the open session resumption, the agenda included approval of minutes from previous meetings (Executive Session, Joint School-Town Meeting, and Budget Hearing) held in January 2026. Key discussion and potential action items for the open session involved the School Committee approving job descriptions for Elementary, Middle, and High School Principals, approving Administrator Contracts for those positions, approving Erate Consulting Services, approving an overnight Model UN Field Trip to Boston for EGHS, and approving a Homeschool Request. The agenda also called for the approval of new community members for the Curriculum Subcommittee.

The Policy Subcommittee reviewed several policy items. The committee agreed to eliminate the appeals process sections from New Policy #8600, Attendance, and forward the revised draft for a First Read to the School Committee. For Revised Policy #10310, Social Media, the committee added a section on demonstrable harms to adolescents and itemized prohibited uses for students and teachers, agreeing to address the edge case of YouTube before the next review. A complete re-write of Revised Policy #1135, Strategic Plan, was reviewed to align with the 2019 Education Accountability Act and focus on continuous implementation, which was forwarded as a First Read. Finally, New Policy #2114, Administration in the Absence of Policy, was reviewed to clarify the Superintendent's ability to make emergency decisions when no policy exists, and it was also forwarded as a First Read.

The Policy Subcommittee reviewed the Fourth Read of New Policy #8600, Attendance, making revisions to clarify building principals' discretion regarding tardiness and absences, and noting that missing 10% of school days triggers principal intervention. The Committee reviewed the Third Read of Revised Policy #1210, Title I Parent and Family Engagement, and agreed to forward it to the School Committee for approval. The Committee reviewed the First Read of Revised Policy #3210, Purchasing and Bidding, agreeing to increase emphasis on "best overall value" as a key criterion, and forwarded the draft to the School Committee. Finally, the Committee reviewed the First Read of New Policy #2730, Audio-Video Recording and Monitoring, which synthesizes two prior policies and adds a section on security cameras, agreeing to forward it to the School Committee.

The Curriculum Subcommittee received an update regarding the recommended Curriculum Initiatives from September 2025, noting that the incoming Assistant Superintendent and Director of Teaching and Learning will manage implementation. The Committee reviewed the HQIM Budget for 2025-26 and discussed the introduction of new Science HQIM in the High School, which has no immediate cost impact. Discussions also focused on the prototypical contents for the first Annual Curriculum Report to the School Committee, reviewing examples from high-performing districts such as Lexington, MA, Princeton, NJ, Scarsdale, NY, and Weston, MA. Future agenda items noted include the trajectory of the CTE program, updates on educator and student experiences with AI tools like Khanmigo, and ongoing lessons learned in HQIM selection and adoption.