Schools

School Committee Member Rachel Kay Hosting Office Hours at Filippello Park

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Watertown School Committee member Rachel Kay announced she will be available to meet with the public during office hours on Friday, June 7 from 4-5 p.m. She also moved the location of the office hours, see info below. A quick update on Friday’s office hour. I discovered that Filippello Park’s Splash Pad is re-opening at the same time! Thus I’m moving my office hour this week to the picnic tables near the spray park. Look for me sitting with a clipboard (and hopefully enjoying some Ben and Jerry’s!).

Schools

Watertown Students Graduate from Three Colleges

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Clipartpanda.com

Students from Watertown graduated from Regis College, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and University of the Cumberlands. The following information was provided by the colleges and universities:

Regis College

Regis College celebrated it’s 94th Commencement Ceremony on May 11, 2024 at the Leader Bank Pavilion in Boston, where more than 1,100 students received degrees ranging from associate to doctorate. Members of the Class of 2024 celebrated their accomplishments with an inspirational commencement ceremony at the Leader Bank Pavilion in Boston featuring humanitarian and nurse Alix Dorsainvil, ’14, who delivered the commencement address and received an honorary degree. Social justice advocates Dr. Alix Cantave and Charlotte Cramer Wagner received honorary degrees. “Not only are you college graduates, you are Regis College graduates,” said President Antoinette Hays, PhD, RN in her message to the graduates.

Schools

Watertown Students Earn Honors at SNHU & Regis College

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Several students hailing from Watertown earned academic honors at Regis College and Southern New Hampshire University. The following information was provided by the colleges:

Southern New Hampshire University

It is with great pleasure that Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) congratulates the following students on being named to the Winter 2024 President’s List. The winter terms run from January to May. Full-time undergraduate students who have earned a minimum grade-point average of 3.700 and above for the reporting term are named to the President’s List. Full-time status is achieved by earning 12 credits over each 16-week term or paired 8-week terms grouped in fall, winter/spring, and summer.

Schools

WHS Students, Local Life Science Professionals CoLAB-orate in After School Club

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Photo by Charlie BreitroseStudents at Watertown High School got to run hands-on lab analyses during the CoLAB Club. One of volunteers from life science companies, Bridget Kreger of C4 Therapeutics, second from left, and WHS chemistry teacher Liz Mundy look on as the students fill vials with samples. While most of the school was dark and quiet, students were busy in one science classroom at Watertown High School well after the final bell working on a science experiment. The students worked with volunteers from local life science companies as part of the CoLAB Club. The group meets once a month, and conducts simulations of real-world lab work using equipment similar to what the professionals use.

Schools

School Officials & Police Believe Bomb Threats on 4 Schools Are Linked to Recent Publicity of Middle School Hit List

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Watertown Middle School

School officials and Police believe the bomb threats on four Watertown schools on Tuesday were the result of recent publicity of an incident at Watertown Middle School in January when a student’s hit list was found. In a statement from the Watertown Schools and WPD, they said the schools are committed to “ensuring the safety and well-being of all of our students,” that “Watertown is a kind and caring community,” and they “stand together against these hateful actions.” The hit list was discovered in January, and Watertown School officials and Watertown Police determined that there was not threat. At the time, some parents expressed concern about their children’s safety and questioned the response by School officials. On Jan.

Schools

Security Measures Increased at Watertown Schools Following Bomb Threat

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Watertown Middle School (Courtesy of Watertown Public Schools)

Superintendent Dede Galdston announced that the Watertown Police and the School personnel increased security measures after an bomb threat was sent by email. Police and school officials do not believe the threat to be credible and the schools will remain open, she added in the statement sent to the community. See the full statement below:

Dear Watertown Public Schools Community, 

This letter is to inform you about a bomb threat that we just received. Our schools are committed to the safety and education of all our students at all times, every day. We also want to clearly communicate with parents about safety issues when they arise. The email with the threat contained erroneous information from an unknown source that led us, in conjunction with the Watertown Police Department, to determine that the threat was not credible. 

With the help of the police department and district personnel, we have added the following layers of safety to our school day:

There will be an increased police presence at schools today and in the coming day

Reviewing information from the email to determine its source

Our schools entrances are controlled, and there is no reason to believe that any device is in our schools

Out of an abundance of caution, we are conducting a perimeter sweep with canine support

The Watertown Police Department has collaborated with other local, state, and federal law enforcement partners to investigate the matter

All entrances and exits to our schools are being redundantly monitored

The police department is actively investigating the threat to determine its origin with the goal of determining the source of the threat.

Schools

2 Watertown Students Make Honor Society, College Dean’s Lists

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College students from Watertown made the Phi Kappa Phi honor society, as well as the dean’s list at Simmons University, Endicott College, and Dickinson College. See information provided by Phi Kappa Phi and from the three colleges, below:

Phi Kappa Phi

The following people recently were initiated into The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation’s oldest and most selective collegiate honor society for all academic disciplines. Coleman OBrien of Watertown (02472) at Framingham State University. Emma Grady of Watertown (02472) at Sacred Heart University. They are among approximately 25,000 students, faculty, professional staff and alumni to be initiated into Phi Kappa Phi each year.

Schools

School Committee Wraps Up FY25 Budget, Approves 2024-25 School Calendar

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By Kendra FoleyChair, Watertown School Committee

It has been a busy month for the Watertown School Committee as we wrap up the FY25 budget process. In the last three meetings, our board has heard a number of important presentations, voted on policy changes, and celebrated major accomplishments. We have come to an agreement with Superintendent Galdston on a 4-year contract extension through 2028. Dr. Galdston has been an excellent leader for Watertown, bringing expertise, commitment and stability. We are thrilled to have her leading the Watertown Public Schools for another four years.