Around Town

SPEAK Week Returns to Watertown High School, 2022’s Theme: Strive to Thrive

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Watertown Youth Coalition Peer Leaders and Wayside staff with Wes from Minding Your Mind. The 12th annual SPEAK Week was back at Watertown High School (WHS) March 14-18 !! SPEAK(Sharing Personal Experiences and Knowledge) Week is organized by Wayside Multi Service Center’s Watertown Youth Coalition (WYC) Peer Leaders from WHS. Every year, in collaboration with Watertown High School, WYC Peer Leaders organize a fun-filled and educational week with special guest speakers, activities, and knowledge building that relate to helping youth make positive healthy choices. For this year’s SPEAK Week; themed “Strive to Thrive,” students engaged in assemblies, workshops, and activities throughout the week that addressed Mental Health and Wellness, LGBTQIA Safe Spaces, Mindfulness and Stress Reduction, Therapeutic Music, Speak Up Art Sessions and a visit from Lydia the Comfort Dog.

Government

Funding to Renovate, Expand Lowell School Approved by Council

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Ai3 ArchitectsA view of what the renovation to the Lowell School, including the addition seen on the right, which has tall windows, including on the corners. The funds for Watertown’s third elementary school project got approval from the City Council Tuesday night. The Lowell Elementary School project, unlike the first two, will not be a brand new school. Instead the historic building will undergo a major renovation and will have some additions. The approval for borrowing $48.895 million for the Lowell project on Tuesday came on the same night that the Council approved borrowing $198 million to construct the new Watertown High School.

Government

Council Approves Borrowing $198 Million for State of the Art, Green Watertown High School

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Ai3 ArchtiectsA rendering of what the new Watertown High School will look like (note the colors have not been settled). The City Council approved borrowing $198 million to construct the new school. School and City officials hailed the City Council’s approval of funding to build the new Watertown High School as an important step not just for the students of Watertown, but the community as a whole. Tuesday night’s approval of the borrowing of $198.8 million opens the way for the final planning and construction of a state-of-the-art, and energy efficient building to be constructed on the site of the current school. The figure covers the cost of construction, plus the creation of temporary swing space at Moxley Field.

Around Town

Registration for Pequossette & Kindergarten Summer Programs Opens Wednesday

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The Watertown Recreation Department provided the following information:

The Watertown Recreation Department Pequossette Summer Program Packet is now available for viewing. Online registration will begin Wednesday, March 23 at 12:00pm by selecting the Online Registration link on the Recreation website. The website is: https://recreation.watertown-ma.gov and then select Online Registration at the top. In addition to registering online, you must fill out all the forms completely which are now fillable. Remember to use your child’s grade that he/she will in the fall of 2022.

Schools

Scholarships Available from Rotary Club of Watertown

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The following information was provided by the Rotary Club of Watertown:

All residents of Watertown who are high school seniors and applying to college are eligible for Watertown Rotary Scholarships. The amount of each award and the number of scholarships granted are determined on a yearly basis. 

All eligible residents must submit completed applications, postmarked no later than April 15, 2022, to:

SCHOLARSHIP COMMITTEEROTARY CLUB OF WATERTOWNc/o Anthony Donato

42 Arden RoadWATERTOWN, MA 02472

The form must be completed in full and accompanied by a transcript and letter of recommendation to be considered a valid application. Incomplete or late applications will not be reviewed by the Scholarship Committee. All information supplied on this form will be kept strictly confidential. Only one application need be submitted to be eligible for consideration for all scholarships available through the Rotary Club of Watertown.

Basketball

STATE FINAL: Watertown Boys Basketball Loses, Lead at Half

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Charlie BreitroseWatertown senior Adam Patterson is introduced before the Raiders face St. Mary’s in the MIAA DIv. 3 State Final on Friday night in Lowell. The Raiders need one more win to reach the pinnacle of high school basketball, but in their way is a powerful St. Mary’s team that has steamrolled its opponents on the way to the Final.

Entertainment

Watertown High School Presenting Musical Take on Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales

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Watertown High School will present “Into the Woods,” this weekend. The production is a modern, musical twist on the Brothers Grimm Fairy tales. There will be three performances in the Watertown High School Centennial Auditorium, 50 Columbia St., Watertown. The musical includes the classic tales of Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack and the Beanstalk, and Rapunzel. These tales are tied together by an original story involving a baker and his wife on whom a witch has placed a curse.

Schools

School Committee Approves Making Masks Optional in Watertown Schools

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Almost two years to the day after schools shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Watertown students will be able to go to class without wearing a face mask. Monday night, the School Committee approved Superintendent Dede Galdston’s plan to make masks optional and a set of metrics to decide if they will be required in the future. Galston noted that March 13, 2020 was the date that school in Massachusetts closed in the beginning of the Pandemic, and two years later students will be able to choose not to wear a mask. She also stressed that teachers and staff will emphasize that students will be respected and accepted regardless of whether or not they choose to wear a face mask. The change in mask rules will be finalized this week, Galdston said, after the latest student and staff testing results are received.