Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Parents at the Heath School have offered to raise $1.8 million to expand the existing auditorium. The Brookline School Committee debates.
Some parents in town are putting bricks and concrete on their Back-to-school lists. A group of parents with kids at the Heath School offered to raise $1.8 million to pay for a larger auditorium, the Globe reports. As a result of plans to expand the school, add new classrooms and make it more accessible, the auditorium is slated to lose a few seats. By the Globe's calculations, only about 36 percent of students enrolled in the school would have a seat in the auditorium--which is why the parents want to expand it. However, the school committee says they need to run this plan by the policy subcommittee. They plan to examine this issue before the end of the school year, and revisit the proposal then. See the Globe for the full story. What do…
Friday, February 3, 2012
The school budget for fiscal year 2012 is projected to be about $150,000 over.
There may be a deficit, and it’s a bit on the heavy side. That was the news learned during the School Committee meeting Thursday as the Public Schools of Brookline second quarter report for the fiscal year 2012 was released showing a projected budget deficit of about $150,000. The strains on the school system continue to be the growth of spending in special education programs and the ever-expanding enrollment numbers, which has caused pressures on staffing. For example, there are currently 602 kindergarten students compared with 546 the previous year. School Committee member Elizabeth Childs noted that given the circumstances, the numbers could have been worse. “I think overall it’s pretty good news given the pressures we are dealing …
Friday, January 20, 2012
“This report shows some incredible happenings in the system,” said Superintendent Bill Lupini.
Since 2009, the number of English Language Learner (ELL) students in the Brookline school system has increased by 121 pupils, to 617 in total, Superintendent Bill Lupini told the School Committee Tuesday. “This report shows some incredible happenings in the system,” he said. ELL students currently represent 9.3 percent of the school district population, including 11.7 percent at the K-8 grade levels. This spans 36 languages, up from 32 in 2010. The six primary languages are Japanese (123 students), Korean (110 students), Hebrew (90 students), Chinese (90 students), Spanish (59 students), and Russian (36 students). “The headline is the numbers are up,” said Lupini. “We are increasing staff. This is a good picture of what is happening.” In …
Friday, January 6, 2012
“This is going to be an extremely difficult budget to put together suggestions for you,” said Superintendent Bill Lupini.
Every year the budget becomes harder and harder to construct, Superintendent Bill Lupini noted during the School Committee meeting Thursday night. This year is no exception. “This is going to be an extremely difficult budget to put together suggestions for you,” said Lupini during his presentation on the fiscal 2013 budget issues. And the main problem continues to be the ever-increasing enrollment in the Brookline school system. There will be a need for six new elementary classroom sections next year under the current assumption of an enrollment of 600 kindergartners. But as the superintendent pointed out, this is most likely to change--and more sections will have to be added. “Obviously, the main issue for us is enrollment,” said Lupini…
Friday, December 16, 2011
Heating and ventilation units on top of the school are proving to be a nuisance.
The Runkle School renovation completion date of Aug. 15 is looking a bit precarious these days. The project has already been beset by delays, and now a controversy regarding heating and ventilation units on top of the school threaten to extend a completion date that Superintendent Bill Lupini noted would making moving in an arduous task to begin with. “It would be very difficult,” he said during the School Committee meeting Thursday night. “That would be very tight. But we can do it. I’ve had experience doing it in other places and I know we can do it.” Lupini commented that if the project misses the Aug. 15 date, it does not mean they will automatically push moving into the building until December. “The complicated factor is the plan B…
Friday, May 20, 2011
Devotion Principal Gerardo Martinez is leaving for a job in the Wellesley school system.
And the search begins. It was announced Thursday night during the Brookline School Committee meeting that Gerardo Martinez is leaving Devotion School to become the principal of the Schofield Elementary School in Wellesley. Martinez, who has been the Devotion principal since 2006, stirred controversy last December when he sent home what some parents deemed a permission slip for reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. That prompted the School Committee to revise the district’s policy on reciting the pledge. Deputy Superintendent Jennifer Fischer-Mueller read a prepared statement from Superintendent Bill Lupini, who was unable to attend the meeting because of a prior commitment. “Everyone who has had the opportunity to work closely with him will …
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
The full results from last night's Town Election
Town elections were last night, and had a fairly slim response from Brookline's voting population. Of the over 35,000 voters in Brookline, only about 2,800 voters turned out to the polls–this adds up to less than 8% of the voting public. Both incumbent Selectmen, Nancy Daly and Dick Benka, defeated competitor Andrew Ghobrial by over 1500 votes each. The re-elected selectmen took 45% and 43% of the votes respectively. Only three candidates were running for the three School committee seats, thus newcomer Amy Kershaw was elected alongside incumbents Alan Morse and Rebecca Stone. Candidates for the Library Board of Trustees, and Housing Authority were all running unopposed as well. [Correction: Did the math wrong on the initial report. "Less…
42.3334
-71.12018
Town Clerk's Office
333 Washington St, Brookline, MA
/articles/town-election-full-results
232682
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Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Essential daily information
Town elections are today. Don't forget to cast a vote for the numerous Town Meeting Members, or the Library Trustees, School Committee members, a Housing Authority position, and the Three Selectman Candidates Check back later today for more information. The green-minded may want to check into the Weston Library, 87 School Street in Weston, Mass. There, Land's Sake, will talk about the benefits of Ecological Lawn Care. For example, using nematodes to control grubs, letting beneficial bacteria and insects roam free, and seeding versus sodding to give your lawn a gorgeous and chemical-free look. The class begins at 7 p.m. and–while donations are welcome–is free. The New Moms Support Group meets every Tuesday, at 10:30 a.m. at Temple Ohabei …
42.363094
-71.293791
/articles/five-things-you-need-to-know-may-3-3
/locations/4205855
42.34256
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Brookline Booksmith
279 Harvard St, Brookline, MA
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191270
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42.37332
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212 Hampshire St, Cambridge, MA
/articles/five-things-you-need-to-know-may-3-3
/locations/4205857
42.3334
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Brookline Town Hall
333 Washington St, Brookline, MA
/articles/five-things-you-need-to-know-may-3-3
192654
/locations/4205858
42.34394
-71.11437
Temple Ohabei Shalom
1187 Beacon St, Brookline, MA
/articles/five-things-you-need-to-know-may-3-3
191868
/locations/4205859
Friday, April 29, 2011
The committee votes 5-0 with two members abstaining in favor of a controversial pledge policy.
The Brookline School Committee passed a revised version of the Flag Protocol and Pledge of Allegiance policy Thursday night as the subject continued to stoke strong sentiments from the public. The vote was 5-0 with Judy Meyers and Helen Charlupski abstaining. Barbara Scotto and Susan Ditkoff were unable to attend the meeting. “There has been such strong pro and against recitation of the pledge. There are many, many—not only parents and children who want to recite the pledge—there are many members of our staff that want to recite the pledge,” said Meyers. “What this policy is trying to do is give people an opportunity to do that.” The controversy first arose during the winter when Devotion School families were sent a form that some saw as a…
Friday, April 8, 2011
School Committee retains director of professional development position, but in a reduced role.
[Clarified/Updated: The article intially sounded like Gene Thompson-Grove took the job. Thompson-Grove has since declined the reduced role position.] During the last Brookline School Committee meeting, numerous teachers pleaded for the job of Gene Thompson-Grove, director of professional development and special initiatives, to be saved from the 2012 fiscal school budget cuts. Those calls were partially answered Thursday as the committee approved Superintendent Bill Lupini’s $78.2 million budget proposal, which retained the director of professional development as a 0.6 full-time equivalent position. “This will enable the system to better provide the level of desire support for our teaching staff—something we heard clearly at the budget …
Bill Davidson
1:55 pm on Thursday, March 29, 2012
Pam, I respectfully disagree with your claim that the School Committee is entitled to more authority than Brookline parents. We elect public officials to serve our community, not to rule over it. We live in a democracy, not a dictatorship. I reiterate my opinion that it is refreshing to see parents so invested, literally and figuratively, to the improvement of the Heath School. This project would… more ›