Around Town

40th Annual Run of the Charles Coming in April, Register to Participate or Volunteer

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The Charles River Watershed Association announced that the Run of the Charles, Boston’s Premier Paddling Event, will be held Saturday, April 27, 2024. The CRWA provided the following information. Race Information

The Run of the Charles: Boston’s Premier Paddling Race is the biggest paddling race in New England, celebrating its 40th race anniversary and the Charles River Watershed Association’s 50+ years of improvements to the health, beauty and enjoyment of the Charles River and its tributaries. Over 500 paddlers throughout the U.S., ages 12 and up, compete in the 3-, 6-, 9-mile and 14-Mile Relay Race. Races start in Newton and Brighton and finish at DCR’s Artesani Park on Soldiers Field Road in Brighton. The Finish Line Festival will offer a range of entertainment for spectators and participants of all ages, free of charge.

Schools

Familiar Face Returning to Watertown to Lead Effort to Create Universal PreK Program

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Theresa McGuinness has been appointed as Principal of Watertown’s Early Steps School. (Contributed Photo)

The following announcement was provided by the Watertown Public Schools:

Watertown Public Schools is pleased to announce that Dr. Theresa McGuinness will become the principal of the Early Steps School, starting this summer. Dr. McGuinness returns to the district as the City of Watertown and Watertown Public Schools open a free Pre-K program for 4-year-olds in the fall of 2024. Watertown will become one of the only municipalities in Massachusetts to offer no-cost Pre-K education when the program launches. “I’m very excited at this opportunity to return to WPS as Principal of Early Steps and to work closely with the fine educators and support staff there – particularly given the plan to provide free universal PreKindergarten beginning in the fall of 2024,” said Dr. McGuinness.

Entertainment

Small Saves Faces Some Quick Competition in This Week’s Comic

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James DeMarco grew up in Watertown and became a goaltender at age 5. It’s his life’s passion to stand between the pipes and keep the puck out of the net. Combining this with the love of cartooning Small Saves emerged in 1991 and took on a life of his own. “To play goal – then come home and draw Small Saves — is my ideal definition of a good day.”

Around Town

OP-ED: When Bad Ideas Happen to Good Neighbors – The False Promise of Trickle-Down Rent Reduction

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By Linda ScottWatertown Resident

STOP! If you think that those living in Watertown who are low or middle class are just a drag on our community, this is not the letter for you. But if you are committed to a diverse and thriving Watertown community, complete with small businesses and diversity of age, income, race, religion, language, etc., please read on. First, I’d like to take us to California, where this madness seems to have begun in this country, with a serious housing crunch. Then came the “solution,” building as many “market rate” (aka very expensive) apartments as possible.

Schools

German International School Expanding into Watertown

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The following information was provided by the German International School Boston:

German International School Boston (GISB) is excited to announce the signing of long-term leases for two campuses, signaling a momentous leap forward in the school’s expansion and development trajectory. The first campus is the current 57 Holton Street location in Allston, a cornerstone of GISB’s educational history. The second location is situated at 46 Belmont Street in Watertown and represents an exciting new chapter for the educational institution. These lease agreements signify a crucial milestone for GISB, providing the much-needed space to accommodate its growing student body and enhance its educational offerings. The Belmont Street campus will serve as the future hub for GISB’s preschool, kindergarten, and elementary school programs. This strategic move consolidates younger students into a single campus.

Around Town

City Surveying Bicyclists About Vehicles Parking in Bike Lanes

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The following announcement was provided by the City of Watertown:

We’re partnering with the Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) to recommend strategies to prevent vehicles from parking in bike lanes. The study will also review best practices in other regions and identify interventions that cities and towns in the Boston area could pilot. As part of the study, we’re asking the cycling community and advocates to respond to a survey. It will take approximately five minutes to complete and is available in English, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, and Chinese (Simplified and Traditional). 

For more information about this study, please contact MPO Transportation Planner Kyle Casiglio at kcasiglio@ctps.org. 

Take the Survey.

Government

City Seeks Residents to Serve on Blue Ribbon Committee on City Council Salaries

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Watertown City Hall

The following announcement was provided by the City of Watertown:

The City Council is seeking individuals who live in, work in, or own property in Watertown to apply to serve on the Blue Ribbon Committee to examine the salaries of City Councilors. The Blue Ribbon Committee’s duties will be to study the salary received by City Councilors and the Council President for their service and make recommendations on a methodology and process for salaries to be set going forward, including a recommendation for the 2026-2027 Council salary. The committee will receive staff support from Municipal Policy Analyst Doug Newton. The committee’s final recommendations will be presented to the City Council no later than at the December 10, 2024 City Council meeting. The committee’s recommendations must be decided on by the Council by June 2025.

Around Town

Art Exhibit and Performances to Celebrate Women’s Voices at Mosesian Center for the Arts

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“Woman’s Work” by Stephanie Todhunter is part of an exhibition at the Mosesian Center for the Arts. (Contributed Photo)

The following announcement was provided by the Mosesian Center for the Arts:

The Mosesian Center for the Arts at the Arsenal in Watertown has programmed a collection of events celebrating the talents and voices of women in both visual and performing arts. Feminist Art: Contemporary Perspectives opens as a gallery exhibition on March 22 and runs through May 3. SheGrooves: Using Our Voices for Positive Change (March 27), Lil Bit of (Almost) Everything Comedy Showcase (April 12), and Melodies of Ukraine with the Women’s Bandura Ensemble of North America (April 14) are three related events taking the Mosesian Arts stages during the exhibition dates. Feminist Art: Contemporary Perspectives

There is a long line of artists who have created feminist art — Judy Chicago, Faith Wildling, Ana Mendieta, Louise Bourgeois, Barbara Kruger, Betye Saar, Lorna Simpson, and many more. Their work continues to be relevant today as women and other marginalized genders are facing the same issues of oppressive body politics. 

Restriction and lack of reproductive rights were some of the issues addressed by feminist artists in the 1970’s, and reproductive justice issues have had a particularly devastating impact on Black and Indigenous communities. Artists in this exhibition are grappling with the same issues and injustices because of conservative and oppressive polices created in recent years. 

The present-day resurgence in feminist art, as well as an interest in its history and connection to current intersectional feminist political and art activism, has opened a re-examination of themes of the body, particularly the bodies of women and trans individuals, and how it is viewed.