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Watertown Schools Opening In-Person, With Mask & Testing Requirements

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The opening of school in Watertown comes at a time when the cases of the Coronavirus are on the rise. In response, the School Committee voted to approve COVID-19 protocols for the 2021-22 school year on Monday night that includes requirements for regular testing of students and for masks to be worn when indoors. Some of the rules are the same as those that had been in place when school ended in June, said Watertown Superintendent Dede Galdston, while others have been changed. There will also be a shift in early October. School Committee Chair John Portz thanked the Watertown Public Schools staff and others who put together the COVID protocols.

Schools

Residents Appointed to New Architecture Committee, Will Advise on New High School

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Ai3 ArchitectsA rendering of what the new Watertown High School could look like. The view is from Common Street. A group of Watertown residents has been appointed to advise designers of the new Watertown High School. Town Council President Mark Sideris announced the creation of the new Architecture Committee of the School Building Committee, which will be chaired by Leo Patterson, an architect and member of the School Building Committee. Sideris, who chairs the School Building Committee, sent out the following announcement:

I am pleased to say that we had a number of residents apply to be on this committee.

Schools

Find Out the Latest About the Watertown High School Project at Upcoming Community Forum

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Ai3 ArchitectsA view from Columbia Street of what the new Watertown High School could look like. The progress of the Watertown High School project will be updated during a Community Forum on Aug. 25, 2021. The School Building Committee, which is overseeing the project design and construction, will host the virtual meeting, which begins at 6 p.m on Wednesday. The presentation will include design updates, the latest about the swing space at Moxley Field, and progress toward making the school zero net energy.

Around Town

Construction at Cunniff School Nearing Completion, See Photos Inside New Building

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Charlie BreitroseLight pours into the cafetorium at the new Cunniff Elementary School. The room has a stage as well as a full kitchen to prepare lunch for students. Watertown officials who got an inside look at the new Cunniff Elementary School gazed around in amazement at the nearly completed school building on Tuesday afternoon. Watertown Public School officials broke ground on the school on Warren Street on June 24, 2020, and the school is expected to open in mid-October 2021. Charlie BreitroseA view of the length of the new Cunniff Elementary School, with the cafetorium/gym entrance extending out at the end.

Letters

LETTER: Parent Urges School Committee to Mandate COVID Vaccinations

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Dear School Committee,

As far as I’m aware, Watertown has not yet announced a policy for COVID vaccination in schools. I’m writing today to urge you to adopt a mandate as many other jurisdictions are now doing. COVID vaccines are safe and effective, and are by far the most effective way to prevent COVID outbreaks in our schools and keep our teachers and students safe. I got vaccinated at the first opportunity and will get my children vaccinated as soon as they are eligible. 

Masks, ventilation, social distancing, and testing can help, but there is a limit to what ventilation can do, and in many ways masks, social distancing, and testing are far more burdensome than getting a vaccine because the vaccine is two doses at single points in time, whereas masks and social distancing restrict what people can do every single day. It seems incongruous to mandate the less effective, more burdensome intervention, while leaving the more effective, less burdensome intervention up to the individual.

Schools

Watertown Superintendent Gets High Marks from School Committee in Annual Evaluation

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Watertown Superintendent Dede Galdston. Superintendent Dede Galdston received high marks from the School Committee, especially for handling the return of students to school in the pandemic, during her annual performance evaluation. The School Committee announced the results of the annual performance review for the head of the Watertown Public Schools on Aug. 2. Six of the seven members of the School Committee gave Galdston the highest rating in overall performance, and all seven gave her top marks on the reopening of schools after being closed for the COVID-19 pandemic.

Schools

Art of Problem Solving Academy Hosting Open House at Nearby Center

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The following announcement was provided by AoPS Academy Lexington:

Is your advanced student looking to get ahead this year? AoPS Academy Lexington is opening the doors for in-person learning for the first time! AoPS Academy trains the innovative thinkers of tomorrow, combining a world-class math and language arts curriculum with small class sizes to help advanced students build critical problem-solving skills early. After successfully running online classes for a year, we can’t wait to meet our problem-solving community.  

To show off our learning center, we’re holding an open house event on Tuesday, August 31st from 9:00 am to 7:00 pm at 1088 Lexington Street, Waltham, MA 02451. During the event, families can meet the Director team, discuss our courses, and more! We require that all attendees please wear a mask and practice social distancing while indoors, as children under the age of 12 are still not able to be vaccinated at this time.   

Visit lexington.aopsacademy.org to see our course catalog and learn more. You can contact us with questions at 781-472-1200 or lexington@aopsacademy.org. 

Art

Minuteman Student from Watertown Wins Award in MWRA Poster Design Contest

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The poster designed by Watertown’s Ava Martin, which got an award in the MWRA Poster Contest. Two students from Minuteman High School, including one from Watertown, won awards in the Massachusetts Water Resource Authority (MWRA) poster contest. The annual poster contest asked for posters that publicize the work being done by the MWRA work. “Congratulations to first-place winner Damien Dolan, a rising sophomore from Stow, and third-place winner Ava Martin, a rising junior from Watertown,” said the announcement from Minuteman High School. Both Martin and Dolan are students in Minuteman’s Design and Visual Communications major.