LETTER: Family of Former WHS Head Master Seeks to Keep Gym Dedicated in His Name

(The following letter was originally written to Watertown School Committee Chair Kendra Foley)

Dear Ms. Foley,

Thank you for this opportunity to share our recommendation for the naming of the Gymnasium or the Auditorium at the new Watertown High School. We would like for Dr. John J Kelley, former principal of Watertown High School, to continue to be honored by the school.

As you know, the gym at Watertown High School was dedicated to Dr. Kelley in the early 1990s. The decision to name the gym after him was based on not just his many years of service to the school and the community, but also on the positive and long-lasting impact he had on individual students throughout his career. While time has passed since the dedication of the gym, nothing about Dr. Kelley’s impact has changed.

For some context, Dr. Kelley devoted his entire life to education and spent more than 30 years at Watertown High School. He started his career as a Chemistry teacher and became the Sub-Master at WHS for three years. In 1951 he was removed from the position of Sub-Master and sent to teach at a junior high school. This act resulted in an unprecedented community outrage. The entire student body of Watertown High School walked out of school in protest of Dr. Kelley’s removal. Dr. Kelley appealed the move, and ultimately the courts recognized that Dr. Kelley’s demotion was an unfair political act. He was reinstated as the Headmaster of Watertown High School where he continued to serve for 20 more years. The students’ actions show the respect Dr. Kelley commanded in the community and from the students. He created relationships with students as a leader, not as their friend.

The support of the entire student body walking out on behalf of their principal is remarkable enough. What is even more extraordinary is that in our family it is ordinary to hear stories from Watertown High graduates about Doc Kelley’s intervention or support for students facing all sorts of challenges while at school. When people hear that we are Doctor Kelley’s children or grandchildren or even great-grandchildren, they have stories about how he gave them a second chance, or helped them find a path towards success. We are talking about people sharing these stories many years after they graduated from high school. It happened to me most recently less than a year ago in San Diego, California. People would not go out of their way to share these stories unless the impact was deeply felt.

I recently came across a statement Dr. Kelley wrote to the senior class of Watertown HS in the yearbook. He said, “The aim of secondary education is to lead the student to discover, to develop, and to apply his talents to the highest possible self-realization and to the greatest service of his fellow man.”

This was his mantra if you will. You can see how he lived this idea through his legacy within our own family. Many of his children and grandchildren are also teachers or work in the school system. Besides his children who worked in the Watertown schools, he has other children and grandchildren who worked in the Boston Public Schools, Belmont schools and the Boston city jails. They worked with special education students, focusing on the importance of making classrooms more inclusive, they helped inmates get their diplomas or develop job skills, they helped low-income families and non-English speakers navigate the schools to help their children succeed. Dr. Kelley truly lived the message of education for all.

Finally, Dr. Kelley’s roots in Watertown run deep. He started teaching at Watertown High School in 1939. Over the years, his family grew to eight children. He was an active member of the Rotary Club for years. He was a charter member of the Watertown Boys and Girls Club Board. All of this is to say that the decision to recognize Dr. Kelley’s significance to the town in the 1990s was meaningful.

In closing, I believe that it would be an oversight to open the new Watertown High School without continuing the recognition of Dr. Kelley to the school and community. There are many people who contribute to the success of a school system. It is possible that the gym is no longer the best spot for memorializing Dr. Kelley. We would like to see him continue to be honored in a meaningful way. We have not seen the new building, but understand you are considering naming the auditorium. That would be a fitting memorial as a community wide venue accessible by all.

Margaux Kelley-Portillo (one of Dr. Kelley’s Grand daughters) and Dr. John Kelley’s Family