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Students ponder walkout

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If WHRHS students take part in a symbolic 17-minute national student walkout centering on the gun control issues on Wednesday, March 14 they will not face suspensions.

School officials have been discussing with students what form their action may take in efforts to support expression of First Amendment freedoms while keeping them safe and ensuring no instructional time is lost.

The walkout, organized by students of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., is one of two upcoming national actions sponsored by the Never Again MSD group. The other is a series of March for Our Lives protests in Washington, D.C., and cities around the country – including Boston – on Saturday, March 24.

A previous student walkout observed nationally took place a week after the Feb. 14 Parkland mass shooting, and fell during school vacation week in the Bay State.

W-H Principal Jeffrey Szymaniak discussed his approach during an update on school safety and security at the Wednesday, Feb, 28 School Committee meeting.

“This really seems to be right now a high school issue,” he said. “Kids are buzzing around – ‘What are we going to do? Are we going to do anything? Are you going to take a stand against us if we walk out of school?’”

He invited students and faculty to a meeting Thursday, March 1 to talk about what the students may have in mind for the observation between 10 and 10:17 a.m., March 14, and has already designated a school-wide study period around that time to ensure no instructional time is lost.

“If they want to take the lead, I’m super-happy that we have some vocal kids in this school … we have some really good community members as well and they’re interested in what’s going on in this country,” Szymaniak said. “Right or wrong, left or right, I’d like to hear what they have to say.”

While he is not sure if the students plan to do a walkout, stay in class and write their congressmen, or go to theygym for a period of quiet reflection to honor the 17 lives lost on Feb. 14, Szymaniak said he has talked to teachers to make sure they are supervised and both police departments to make sure they are safe.

“If we’re going to do anything, there has to be some communication with our legislators about how we feel at Whitman-Hanson,” he said, noting the students are concerned about mental health and how the “system didn’t work this time, but it can in the future” and perhaps students can help lead that change.

If television crews show up, however, they will not be allowed to enter school grounds during school hours and students have been advised to avoid social media debates with adults on sites such as Whitman Pride or Hanson Connect. Community members who have questions should contact him directly, Szymaniak said, a position echoed by Committee Chairman Bob Hayes, who also welcomes questions from the community.

At South Shore Vo-Tech, Superintendent-Director Dr. Thomas J. Hickey said students are thoughtfully organizing a remembrance activity on March 14 during the 17-minute window in memory of the lives lost in Florida.

“They are coordinating ideas with administrators,” he said. “Students who do not wish to participate will not be required to.”

W-H School Committee member Robert Trotta applauded the students’ wish to express their opinions.

“I think there’s a lot of strength in what has been going on for the youth,” he said. “Hopefully that will be the root of a new generation taking care of this particular problem.”

The school district has made safety and security one of its three operational pillars in recent years.

“We were all horrified by the shootings on Feb. 14 in Parkland, Fla., just as we were horrified by Sandy Hook in December 2012, this also brought home to us two weeks ago how critically important the safety and security of our students, our staff, our schools, our communities is to all of us,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Ruth Gilbert-Whitner. “In our response to this we communicated with families, our building principals have also communicated as well.”

The district’s Safety and Security Committee met Monday, Feb. 26 with chiefs and their deputies from both towns to review what is currently being done to ensure it.

“We would have had that meeting anyway, we meet with them regularly, but clearly the focus on this was what happens when there is an active intruder or active shooter,” Gilbert-Whitner said. “A big comfort to everyone is we do have very strong partnerships with our police and fire departments.” The district’s committee is also bolstered by representation of all grade levels by principals from Duval, Hanson Middle and the high school.

A meeting was also planned Thursday, March 1with teacher union representatives Kevin Kavka and Beth Stafford to discuss staff involvement in school safety and security as well as a parent information night on Tuesday, March 6.

There are things people can do, the meetings were intended to stress.

“If something doesn’t look right, doesn’t sound right, doesn’t seem right — report it,” Gilbert-Whitner said. “I think we’ve found that, since Sandy Hook, people are better at that. We’re finding that here at the high school if students hear something, they’ll report it.”

People have been instructed not to prop doors open, to go through security and to wear ID badges to help ensure student safety.

Teachers and administrators had also taken part in a tabletop emergency drill using a fire scenario as recently as Feb. 8.

Hanson Library looks ahead

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HANSON — Job applicants are frequently asked, “Where do you see yourself in five years?” The Hanson Public Library is asking patrons some similar questions about its next 20 years, and is encouraged by the public’s feedback so far.

A survey, now being circulated on the town website and via email to regular patrons as well as on paper at the circulation desk, will soon be mailed out to gather data through March 9 on the library’s future program offerings and expansion needs.

One need not be a Hanson resident, as library patrons from other communities are encouraged to take part in the study.

So far, the online survey has garnered more than 200 responses, according to Library Director Karen Stolfer of the project being conducted concurrently with the state-required strategic plan, which helps the library apply for grants. The aim is to finish both planning efforts by the fall.

“It’s kind of the first step toward expansion,” Stolfer said last week. “Before you can apply for a construction grant, the state requires you to have a building program on file with them.”

The library has contracted with Boston-based independent consultant Ruth Kowal to conduct the online and mailed survey.

“She’s helping us with this first stage in the process,” Stolfer said. “She is [also] looking at our collection, what our statistics show, measurements of the building. … You have to project out for 20 years growth.”

Kowal would be available to help make a presentation to a town meeting either this fall or next spring.

“We’re going to use input I get from the building program to help me write the strategic plan,” said Stolfer, who was aware of a state planning and design grant approved several years ago — as well as the Trustee’s wish to move forward with it — when she came on board as director. “I’ve worked here for 13 years, so I know what some of the deficits of the current facility are. … I just want to compare it to what people say.”

Patrons have also been taking Sharpie in hand to provide some off-the-cuff feedback to a series of four questions on flip charts in the library.

The first question asked patrons to share their favorite things about the library — with responses including kids’ programs, painting classes, story times, the helpful staff and being able to borrow from other libraries through the SAILS network. Follow-up questions involve what the library does for the community; what new services, programs or equipment would prompt greater use of the library; and are there physical changes that would enhance the library’s mission.

Demographic data will be part of the study, and focus groups will also be a part of that research with the Library Trustees slated to take part in one with Kowal on Tuesday, Feb. 27, with later focus groups to include the Library Foundation as well as members of the public to follow in early March. Discussions will also be conducted with town leaders, including Town Administrator Michael McCue — who has already begun doing that — and the Board of Selectmen as well as the School Committee.

“We’re trying to get input from different groups in the community,” she said.

The next steps would include a feasibility study, focusing on possible forms of expansion — adding on to the existing building, new construction and, if the latter, the proper location.

“This first documents helps you with that,” said Stolfer, adding the state requires that three potential locations be submitted for consideration in the case of new construction. She said, if that is the direction sought, the current location, Maquan School or the Plymouth County Hospital site are among the possibilities.

The survey also asks residents and patrons from outside Hanson for their feedback on some possible new directions for the library, such as making workspace available to start-up or home-based businesses as well as small meeting rooms for community groups to use.

“We’re trying to see what people want from the library, compared to what we have currently,” Stolfer said.

Regional contract reviews continue

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The School Committee’s Regional Agreement Amendment Committee took another step toward completing its work Monday, Feb. 25 as its members reviewed the assessment formula and voted to remove a section of the regional pact.

The committee voted unanimously to delete Section X, which outlined steps for withdrawing elementary grades pre-kindergarten through grade eight from the district as fiscally unworkable. Originally included as a “carrot” to gain passage of the regional agreement, members and Mass. Association of Regional Schools (MARS) consultants agreed.

The next committee meeting will be held at 6 p.m., Monday, March 19 in the high school library with another to follow “if necessary” in April, according to School Committee Chairman Bob Hayes who also chairs the Regional Agreement Amendment Committee. After the committee approves final draft, it goes to the towns for approval at town meetings.

“The burden of that cost would probably never see that happen,” Hayes said. “The discussion has come up, but it’s been, ‘Let’s just do this, it’s easy.’ Nobody has ever spelled out what the initial cost would be. Some people actually thought that would be cost-saving.”

Changes requested by Department of Elementary and Secondary Education representative Chris Lynch to sections IV, V, and VI, pertaining to the budget process were also discussed. Lynch is the “person who must approve this before it goes to legal,” said consultant Malcolm Reid.

He said Lynch had a particular concern over present language that dissolves the district automatically if one town votes to leave.

“She believes that it shouldn’t happen automatically,” Reid said. “If one town votes to get out it should go through the regular withdrawal process that is spelled out earlier in your agreement.”

That would require another revision of the agreement being approved by both towns and ratified by the commissioner of education.

“Why do we have this language in here at all?” asked committee member James Egan of Hanson. “That was put in there sort of as a carrot because people weren’t confident that they wanted to stay in the region over the long haul. I think we’re beyond that at this point and don’t see why we need this language.”

“You have the curveball that this high school is owned by two towns, basically,” agreed member Fred Small of Whitman.

“You’re going to be back where you were with a high school and two K-8s, each with their own school committee, their own superintendent and share of central office area and everything else,” said MARS Assistant Executive Director Stephen Hemman.

He said division of assets and liabilities between two K-8 districts would be difficult at best, with millions of dollars in other post-employment benefits (OPEB) among the most expensive liabilities.

“Something like [withdrawal] should be difficult,” said committee member Christopher George of Whitman. “Difficult and costly.”

Reid, Steve Donovan and Hemman, also reviewed the funding formula for calculations of the foundation budget, minimum required local contribution, Chapter 70 aid, total district budget, net school spending and statutory assessment.

“There is a minimum required local contribution based on the property values and the town’s income of its residents,” Hemman said in the assessment PowerPoint presentation, aimed at setting the stage for discussion of the agreement’s budget sections. “They’re usually two years behind on that, but they calculate that based on [a town’s] wealth.”

Chapter 70 aid is based on the district foundation budget — not including transportation, debt and capital expense based on enrollment and number of economically disadvantaged students — minus the minimum required local contribution.

The minimum local contribution is increased incrementally each year by the Department of Revenue and DESE, according to Hemman.

Net school spending is based on the required local contribution plus Chapter 70 aid.

Statutory assessment formula starts with the foundation budget minus Chapter 70 aid, minimum local contribution and any other local funds.

“That amount, whatever it is, is then assessed to the member towns,” based on enrollment, Hemman said. “All this needs to be in the agreement so the towns know exactly what they’re going to be voting.”

Non-mandated busing language was unchanged due to its impact on bus service contracts.

Budgets would require passage at both town meetings by a simple majority. If a budget fails, the committee must issue a new budget, Hemman said. If that fails, a super town meeting is required.

“If that fails, you’re required to do it again,” he said. “If you don’t have a budget by Dec. 31, the Dept. of Education will set a budget for you and then it is also going to take fiscal control.”

Whitman seeks LED streetlights

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WHITMAN — The town’s planned purchase of LED streetlights is aimed at shedding light on safety while saving the town money down the road.

Assistant Town Administrator Lisa Green presented the proposal, which the board supported 5-0, to Selectmen at the Tuesday, Feb. 20 meeting. The purchase will next go before voters at the annual Town Meeting on Monday, May 7.

The town’s roads are illuminated by 856 streetlights, each currently powered by high-pressure sodium technology, Green noted.

“Over the last few years, many Massachusetts cities and towns have been purchasing their streetlights from National Grid and converting [them] to LED (light-emitting diode) technology,” she said.

The streetlights now cost Whitman an average of $152,600 per year to power them. LED lights cost less and use less power to operate, and National Grid has provided the town with a quote for purchasing the streetlights.

“That quote is zero,” she said. “It’s going to cost us zero dollars to purchase the streetlights from National Grid.”

There is also a $49,263 grant available, and National Grid is also providing a reimbursable utility incentive of around $70,000. Total construction cost for converting the lights to LED technology would cost an estimated $278,364.

The grants will bring the cost to the town to $158,309.

The LED lights would save Whitman an estimated $51,396 annually in operating costs.

“As you know, Whitman is a Green Community and converting streetlights to LED is an energy-saving measure, so you are able to include that number [$158,309] on our next Green Communities grant application,” she said. “If we were awarded the next Green Communities money, this project could be funded 100 percent [through grants]. … That is an incredibly huge benefit to the town of Whitman.”

“There is a possibility that we will not receive that grant,” Town Administrator Frank Lynam said. “The way I’ve recommended structuring this program is that we will seek permission to borrow $280,000 at the annual Town Meeting.”

He is looking into Statehouse Notes for the possibility of subsidized borrowing for the funds. The Metropolitan Planning Council may also be an alternative funding source but the expectation is that by moving ahead with the project even without grant funding, the cost could be recovered within four years through the savings in the streetlight account.

“It’s a win-win,” he said.

Selectman Dan Salvucci asked if the change to LED streetlights would be brighter than the current ones.

“LEDs can be purchased in different illuminations,” Green said. “They do tend to be brighter, but not you-need-sunglasses-type brighter.”

Salvucci also asked if residents of a street with no streetlight can purchase one and pay operating costs, as is done in Hanson on some private roadways.

Lynam said there are two lights being privately built right now. He also stressed that the Green Communities grant is a competitive process.

Green said the project was ready to start Wednesday, Feb. 21 by entering into an agreement with the Metropolitan Planning Council to begin an audit and the process of reconstruction of the lights. To fund by Green Communities, the town would have to wait for that grant approval, sometime in July.

“The whole project has to be completed by Dec. 31, 2018 and right now everything is falling into place for us to meet that deadline,” Green said.

The town would have to contract for a maintenance plan for the streetlights.

In other business, Selectmen voted to decline its right of first refusal for an affordable housing unit at 100 Franklin St., which was a 40-B project containing five affordable units in the facility, according to Lynam.

“When an affordable unit is sold, the town reserves the right of first refusal,” he said. “Certainly we have no desire to own this property.”

Lynam contacted the Housing Authority, which did not wish to commit the funds to purchase it, so he asked the board to vote to decline the right of first refusal.

Selectman Scott Lambiase questioned the terms of sale, which indicated if a buyer is not found through a lottery sale – which would not be unusual – a sale at market rate would be allowed with any profits going to the town of North Andover.

“Whoever typed that [the letter outlining sale terms] got a few things wrong.” Lynam said. “But the money, if it’s sold in open market conditions, any profit over the acquisition would come to the town to be used for affordable housing [in Whitman].”

Whitman does not have an affordable housing trust, so the sale proceeds, “after consideration, probably would be turned over to the Housing Authority to use to supplement affordable housing,” according to Lynam.

“This isn’t how I typically see it done,” Lambiase said.

Another procedural error with the sale is that the right of first refusal notice had been sent to the Board of Appeals a week and a half earlier, instead of Selectmen, Lynam noted.

“North Andover is an error all the way around,” he said in response to Lambiase’s concern that that community had taken over the lottery sale process. “Obviously this is a form letter they use in surveys.”

Lynam will note that the town of Whitman has voted to decline its right of first refusal and point out that any proceeds, should it go in the public market are to go to the town of Whitman.

Kiwanee review completed

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HANSON — Selectmen have requested a facilities assessment at Camp Kiwanee be boiled down to a spreadsheet matrix ranking the urgency of work remaining to be done at the facility.

The Recreation Commission presented its facilities assessment and audit to the Board of Selectmen Tuesday, Feb. 27. That report outlined work already done and a ranking of work remaining. Selectmen also voted to support a letter from the Recreation Commission to the Community Preservation Commission seeking funding to replace the dock at the Cranberry Cove beach.

“What I liked about the report itself in general was that you gave an indication of how long it would last and the timeframe in which it needed to be replaced or upgraded,” Selectmen Chairman James McGahan said of the projects reviewed.

Selectman Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett asked for an overview of how the assessment was conducted and what projects might need to be done immediately.

“We look for things that we consider need to be done right away,” said Lee Chizek of AEI, the independent contractor hired to conduct the assessment. “Then we look at what you would need to allocate for continuing to have [a] building function forever and ever.”

The quality of original materials factor into that consideration, he said. The projects are ranked one through five regarding urgency, with one a high priority, cost recommendations and a year suggesting when work should be done, McGahan said.

“What we found is that you have a number of buildings that have been reasonably well maintained,” Chizek said. “Some of the buildings … we thought you would really want to allocate money for routine maintenance. We didn’t find anything alarming.”

McGahan advocated for a more user-friendly, spreadsheet matrix organized by priority. FitzGerald-Kemmett said she would like such a matrix to be sorted by priority, price or length of life.

Selectmen Jim Hickey, meanwhile, argued that work should be completed at each building before a high-priority ranking moved attention to another building.

“I wouldn’t want to do the priority one items and … move on to work on something else,” he said. “Let’s [for example] finish the chalet first so we at least know something is done.”

“If you are fixing one thing, it can lead to another,” McGahan agreed. But he stressed some repairs would be separate and a spreadsheet could help identify the differeces.

“The point is, right now we can’t sort it by anything because it’s all these separate [priorities], which is helpful, but when you’re trying to look at it from a global, large-scale perspective you really need to have all that information in one place,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said.

Chizek said he could get back to the board on the spreadsheet idea, but had not done such a plan before.

“We want to share these findings with the townspeople,” said Recreation Commission Chairman Annemarie Bouzan of the assessment paid for with funds approved at the October Town Meeting. “The reason the Rec Commission wants to present tonight is two-fold, one is for the townspeople to have an in-depth look at the facility and [to] understand the ongoing problems, but also to understand that — while it’s the desire of the entire commission to bring recreation back to this wonderful facility, based on our mission statement for our policies and procedures … recreational programs are organized to encourage participation and enjoyment and should be held at a safe and well-equipped facility.”

The Commission’s hiring of Joshua Wolfe as its new director, and the town’s planned hiring of a facilities manager are part of the plan to see to it that the work is done so those recreational programs can be offered again. Wolfe will be meeting with Selectmen at their March 6 meeting.

Bouzan also presented a list of projects already completed over the last 12 months as well as a list of permits for work done between 2003-2016, prior to the current commission’s involvement with the camp.

“These items were either an urgent repair or due to damages, or repair work that was needed in order to provide a safe environment for our renters,” she said.

Chizek produced “a number of reports” centering on Needles Lodge as “the most critical of the properties because it’s used for a number of functions” including the main income-generator — weddings.

Other facilities reviewed included the Frontier Cabin, the north and south end cabins, the caretaker’s building, the so-called electric cabins, the two bath houses and the bridal cottage.

Some electrical work has been redone at the lodge with some remaining that is original to the building constructed in the 1930s, Chizek said, adding that work on a water connection to the building was not done to code.

“That doesn’t pose a danger, but it’s something that should be addressed if you’re going to be using the facility,” he said of the old wiring. “When you go through the report, you’ll see other things. It will tell you that you have to replace your fire alarm system.”

Selectman Don Howard, who also serves as a Water Commissioner said he was under the impression that the water connection was done correctly. Town Administrator Michael McCue said the Water Department did what it needed to do, but a plumber was required to complete internal work.

“I applaud your effort,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said of the assessment. “As we go forward and [you’re] asking for funding … we don’t need to second-guess what needs to be done. We’ve got a report that has been professionally put together.”

She advocated doing such an assessment for all town buildings.

Bouzan said CPC funding is being sought for replacing the docks, not on the report, and will be before the CPC March 6. FitzGerald-Kemmett, a former CPC chairman, said water-based recreation is one of the areas for which the CPC grants funding.

“I’m not going to step into the shoes of the CPC, but think it’s an excellent and very creative way to use the funds and something a lot of people in town could benefit from,” she said.

Bouzan said she has discussed fundraising with McCue as an additional funding source the CPC likes to see being considered.

Hanson board backs naming Winter Street bridge for Mann

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HANSON – The Board of Selectmen have agreed to work with Hanson and Hanover state representatives toward naming the Winter Street bridge connecting the two towns in honor of the late Charles Mann – a past state representative and a House Minority Whip, Hanson town moderator and member of the town’s school committee, Mann also served as a Plymouth County deputy sheriff and many other town and regional boards and committees. He was a graduate of Hanover High School and an Army veteran.

Selectmen also agreed, during the Tuesday, Feb. 13 meeting to agree to a net metering agreement to purchase power for municipal buildings from Blue Wave solar power in Westport, pending contract approval by town counsel.

Hanson’s state Rep. Josh Cutler, D-Duxbury, briefed the board on the bridge-naming effort.

“He actually campaigned against me when I first ran for this [office], but I grew to admire and appreciate him because he had a civility about him,” Cutler said. “When the election was over he moved on and we worked together.”

Cutler, state Rep. David DeCoste, R-Hanover and state Sen. Mike Brady, D-Brockton, filed the pending legislation for naming the bridge, which is located near Mann’s family home.

The bridge, unnamed according to MassDOT, was built in 2010 near the site of the historic area where the Teague foundry – said to have possibly forged the anchor for the USS Constitution – was located. In recognition of that, a plaque or historic marker is being considered as part of the bridge-naming, on or near the span.

“This would be paid for by the state, by MassDOT,” Cutler said. “We’d love to have your support for this legislation. The board voted 5-0 to grant that support. His next stop is to the Hanover Board of Selectmen to obtain their backing.

Any Teague historic marker would be handled by the towns. Selectman Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett, a former chairman of the Community Preservation Commission (CPC), said that as an historic site, the placement of a Teague marker might be eligible for CPC funding.

Cutler also announced a $20,000 earmark had been released by the governor to fund water quality study of Wampatuck Pond.

“It’s a modest amount of money, but everything helps in this environment,” he said offering to support similar “smaller-dollar items” during Ways & Means Committee hearings.

Energy costs

Blue Wave Senior Director Elizabeth Glynn presented the proposal.

“By participating in our solar farm, the town of Hanson can save significantly on its energy costs,” she said. “Our mission is to make solar energy available to everyone everywhere so communities can take control of their energy production and consumers can choose local, low-cost power.”

A “B” corporation, the company operates on a mission for societal change although it is a profit-seeking enterprise. Hanson was offered net metering credits at a 22-percent discount, which could provide the town 405,000 kilowatt hours of its annual municipal electrical consumption for an estimated saving of $14,700 a year and $294,000 (possibly $323,000) over 20 years. The company would provide the first 100, kilowatt hours – valued at about $16,500 – free during the first year.

At this point, residential customers are not included and the program would not place solar panels in town. Several area towns and four housing authorities have signed onto the program.

“It would not preclude us from moving forward … should we choose to put something [solar panels] up at the hospital or at other sites,” Town Administrator Michael McCue said. “We will continue to pursue our own projects.”

The deadline for a purchasing agreement is Wednesday, Feb. 28 because the state’s incentive program is changing later this year .

The board supported the program, but wanted town counsel to review the contract so any concerns could be acted on at the Tuesday, Feb. 27 meeting.

SSVT builds bridges … with housing

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HANOVER — The South Shore Regional School District Committee on Wednesday, Feb. 14 voted to support an out-of-state field trip aimed at showing some love — in the form of still much-needed home repairs — to New Jersey victims of the 2012 Superstorm Sandy during part of April vacation week.

“This is a pioneering effort on the part of the school to participate in a service/learning project,” said Superintendent-Director Dr. Thomas J. Hickey.

Science teacher and Student Council advisor Matthew Fallano said the project comes after frequent requests for a student trip.

“But it’s not in our nature to go on a pleasure cruise with our students,” he said. “We were looking for something a little more co-curricular — something that went along with our own mission statement.”

Students taking part in the trip will be putting their skills to work to benefit a community, an effort Fallano said has been in the planning stages for about four years.

“Even though it sounds a little bit strange, they’re still rebuilding after Sandy,” Fallano said. “Our students will be spending part of their vacation building a home.”

The school will be working with a company that coordinates with AmeriCorps, with 20 students and four faculty members will be leaving the Friday before April vacation starts and return mid-week with an original cost of $300 per student.  School transportation and food is helping control the cost, bringing it down to $250 each — and the Parent’s Association has donated $1,500, so the trip will be even more affordable. Another parent is working to organize a meat raffle on either March 2 or March 9 to help with costs.

“It’s a wonderful project that [lets] students really get a feel for what they are doing and kind of get an idea for how things come together in the field,” said Cohassett representative George Cooney, whose church does similar volunteer work with an Appalachian service project in Kentucky. “It’s a real eye-opener for the students. It’s certainly a help to the community down there.”

He said the project would provide a sense of satisfaction in helping others while providing a chance for practical application of their skills and that the difficulty in rounding up 20 volunteers this time will not be a problem going forward.

“I think it’s going to feed on itself,” Cooney said. “I think it’s going to be limited seating in the future.”

Whitman representative Dan Salvucci also suggested that the 20 who have volunteered be publicly thanked.

“When we have our graduation it might be nice to have those students who do go there stand up to get applause for donating their time and their vacation to help people in another community,” he said.

The committee also discussed the potential for students to assist with school renovations as part of its discussion of a recently completed master facilities audit. Hickey said he would be referring to the audit frequently as he integrates it with the existing capital plan.

“I want to identify those recommendations that … could be stand-alone projects that maybe we could fund on our own, pluck off this list, do and be done with,” he said. “I also wanted to note any of these items that they would recommend we don’t try to attack piecemeal, but instead look at as part of a larger project.”

The latter would include items best sought-after as part of an MSBA project.

“In some of these smaller projects, is there a possibility that our students could do it?” Salvucci asked. “It would be a learning experience. … Not only would it save the  school money, but just think how they would feel saying to themselves, ‘I helped build — or renovated — that school.’”

Hickey said in most cases the answer would likely be no due to licensing requirements, but there is at least one — the repainting of exterior steel columns they could do. Installation of ADA-accessible sinks in some shops could be another. In others, students would at least be able to observe work where a professional license is required.

The committee voted to approve submission of a statement of interest letter to the MSBA to address severe overcrowding; prevention of severe overcrowding expected from increased enrollment; replacement, renovation or modernization of facilities to increase energy conservation and decrease costs and for replacement of, or addition to, obsolete buildings to provide a full range of programs.

In other business, the committee honored Adjustment Counselor Michelle Craig as the SSVT Staff Member of the Month.

“As an adjustment counselor, Michelle deals with many of our students in some of the worst moments of their lives,” said Assistant Principal Mark Aubrey. “It could be the breakup of a first love — it was Valentine’s Day, she was very busy today — an issue on the home front, including the death of a family member or friend, or a traumatizing event in the student’s personal life.”

Craig has worked at SSVT since September 2016 and has been an integral part of the school’s focus on the social-emotional wellbeing of students.

“Mrs. Craig is always upbeat,” one student said. “Sometimes that’s enough.”

“She actually helps with your problem — I appreciate that,” said another.

“She is always there when I need her, even if it’s a simple e-mail to acknowledge that I’m here,” still another wrote in nominating Craig.

“She has the smallest office, but she has the biggest heart,” another student said.

A new leader for W-H: Szymaniak is offered region superintendent position

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WHRHS Principal Jeffrey Szymaniak was the School Committee’s unanimous choice to become the school district’s new superintendent after final interviews were conducted in a special meeting Thursday, Feb. 15.

“The search committee put a tremendous amount of time into winnowing down what started out as a 19-candidate pool of people,” said by School Committee Chairman Bob Hayes in thanking them for their work to kick-off the interviews. “We had a great mix of teachers, union people, principals, a student, School Committee members, parents at-large and they put a lot of time in.”

The next step is negotiating a contract with Szymaniak, which will be voted on at a Wednesday, Feb. 28 meeting. If the committee and Szymaniak fail to reach agreement on a contract, it could then be offered to the panel’s second choice, Sharon Schools Assistant Superintendent for Information Systems and Administration John M. Marcus. If he should be unavailable or fail to reach agreement with the committee, the committee would meet to consider re-posting the position.

The committee decided the job would not be offered to the third candidate, Lincoln (R.I.) High School Principal Kevin J. McNamara. Differences in Rhode Island and Massachusetts school systems, uncertainly over whether he would be interested in a superintendent job opening up in his current district since he applied at W-H, and a less impressive interview than he gave in the first round, were among the committee’s concerns.

Marcus was visibly disappointed when Hayes gave him news of the vote after the meeting in the main office where Marcus was waiting. An Easton resident, he had expressed a keen desire for the position during his 55-minute interview, noting that he and his wife had spent a weekend touring Whitman and Hanson — eating breakfast at the Olde Hitching Post and sampling the coffee at Mary Lou’s in Whitman center while chatting with residents.

“A year ago, when I wasn’t made the superintendent in Sharon, people told me, ‘Oh, well, things happen for a reason,’” Marcus said in his opening remarks. “But, then, last week I came here. … I have never seen a school so vibrant, a community feeling so alive. … The people I met are good, honest, hard-working people who really just want the best for their kids and that’s what I’m all about.”

Szymaniak’s opening remarks stressed his accomplishments in the district including a reduction in the drop-out rate while increasing the number of advanced-placement courses, the addition of a transition room for students returning to school after extended absences and positive changes to school culture and climate.

QUESTION TIME

Questions all three candidates faced centered on curriculum needs and how changes would be made, their vision for central office staff, priorities for programs not currently funded in the budget, how they would conduct a campaign for passage of a general budget, experience with budget cuts, and how they would supervise the district’s custodial contract.

Both Szymaniak and Marcus gave nearly equal weight to trying to fund elementary school social workers and no-cost, all-day kindergarten.

“Prioritizing is a challenging question, but … right now, given the state of where we’re at, I think elementary social workers in health is huge,” Szymaniak said. “Social-emotional learning right now is elevated to a point that we’re at a critical stage. You see what happened in Florida [Feb. 14].”

He said identifying and instituting support systems for kids who have social-emotional needs can benefit everyone. He lost an assistant principal due to budget cuts a few years ago, but when the funding was returned he put it into adjustment counselors for that reason.

“I also like the idea of full-day K,” Szymaniak said. “I think, if we establish full-day K in this district, we’ll reduce [the number of] our charter school students.”

There are currently 45 W-H children who attend charter school and have “never set foot in this district,” he noted. “I don’t know but if we offered that full-day K if parents would give us an opportunity to educate their kids.”

He also advocates an incremental build-up of middle school foreign language programs with an eye to adding either Chinese or Arabic at the high school later on.

“That’s a tough one to pick just one,” Marcus agreed, noting he would look to input from the community and staff to support kids as much as possible. “Personally, especially in light of [the Feb. 14] awful events, our mission of supporting students, in their mental health and their social-emotional strength and well-being, has got to be paramount for us these days.”

But he stressed he also feels one of the most important curricular changes he’s seen in his 25-year career is full-day kindergarten.

“How you get there is really tricky,” Marcus said. When he worked in Stoughton, that district obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants to help get its program started about 15 years ago.

Szymaniak also impressed the committee by voicing his wish to hire an assistant superintendent — to fill the current vacancy from Patrick Dillon’s departure in the fall — with someone who is “opposite my skill set” who is also a multi-talented team player.

“That person has to be a communicator,” he said. “That person has to be an ally and a confidant of myself as superintendent.”

He also advocated an evaluation of central office staff to determine if it is efficient and effective before considering if changes would be made.

He sees a “definite need for improvement of curriculum at the elementary level,” affording teachers more buy-in to what is being done with literacy and numeracy.

“I think teachers have to play an active role in developing the curriculum,” he said. “They’re the masters of what they’re doing in their classroom — I think our curriculum directors are supplemental,” Szymaniak said.

He pledged to take an active role in campaigning for budget support.

“I have no problem getting out in the community and talking to people. I think that’s the job of the superintendent,” Szymaniak said. “It’s a priority of the superintendent to market and talk about the district. … I’m going to be honest with [the public] and I’m going to tell you hard facts.”

He is an advocate of face-to-face talks with town officials as well as social media to communicate with district parents.

Szymaniak also scored points with his knowledge of the current custodial contractor and the ways in which he has dealt with problems in the past.

All three candidates, when given a chance to question the committee asked what its vision of the ideal candidate is. They mentioned qualities such as bringing passion to the job, communication with staff, encouraging use of independent judgment of what’s best for kids, public relations about curriculum and budget needs and the social-emotional needs of  students.

Committee member Fred Small used a football analogy.

“I want to see the GOAT — the greatest of all time,” he said. “Someone that can take our team, be collaborative, and inspire and lift everybody to the next level and once you get to that level, inspire them to climb higher.”

SITE VISITS

Site visits were conducted at all three schools last week as well, with W-H ready to go first.

“Everybody loved all three of these candidates, site visit-wise,” Hayes said.

School Committee member Robert O’Brien Jr., was impressed that one of the students they spoke with had initially circulated a petition against Szymaniak’s change from trimester to semester schedule.

“He and Mr. Szymaniak actually had a sit-down about it and discussed it and, come to find out, that student and a lot of others actually liked it,” O’Brien said. “Their enthusiasm about all the positive things going on at the high school was something nice to hear. Usually, we don’t get to hear nice things in our position.”

He also said district principals voiced a wish to have a superintendent who can hit the ground running.

School Committee member Fred Small said Szymaniak was also strong on school safety.

“In light of the tragic events [in Florida Feb. 14], that’s probably in our minds as well,” he said. “Also that he’s open-minded and willing to listen.”

In fact, the reports from all three site visits were universally positive of administrators who put the interests of students first.

O’Brien said the sentiment in Sharon was that “they absolutely loved [Marcus]. They’d hate to see him go.”

They were also impressed with his technology acumen and how Marcus instituted a program through which high school students were dispatched to elderly housing and senior centers to tutor seniors on computers and use of social media. Small, however, was surprised that Marcus was not afforded the opportunity to interview as a finalist when Sharon hired a new superintendent a few months ago.

“They wanted a change is the way it was told to us by someone who was on their search committee,” Small said.

“It was a really positive environment there,” which was attributed to Marcus School Committee member Kevin Lynam said. “He really seems to work wherever he’s needed.”

School Committee member Robert Trotta, who taught in Stoughton when Marcus worked there validated those reports.

“He transformed the school that he was at,” Trotta said. “I saw that myself.”

McNamara was credited with improving the culture of his high school to compete with both charter and private schools. The school’s wood and auto shops as well as robotic programs also puts the Lincoln, R.I., high school on a level playing field with some vo-tech  programs, Small said.

“The guy’s there every day, even Saturdays and Sundays,” School Committee member Dan Cullity said.

Commitment to serve: Whitman swears in three new firefighters

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WHITMAN — For the first time in more than 50 years, the Whitman Fire Department has officially added personnel to its ranks with the swearing-in ceremony of firefighter-paramedics Zachary Baldwin, Russell Lucas and Jerry Thompson.

They now wear badge numbers 18, 19 and 20 respectively.

The Board of Selectmen convened in the Town Hall Auditorium to start the Tuesday, Feb. 20 meeting with the swearing-in ceremony, accommodating a large gathering of the new firefighters’ proud families and new colleagues.

Town Clerk Dawn Varley administered the oath of service for each of the three before a family member pinned on their new badge — Baldwin’s by his mother Cindy, Lucas’ by his grandmother, Mary, and Thompson’s by his father Hanson Fire Chief Jerome Thompson Jr.

Whitman Fire Chief Timothy Grenno, who presided over the ceremony, later presented each firefighter with a congratulatory General Court Citation sponsored by state Rep. Geoffrey Diehl, R-Whitman.

“We celebrate not only three new members to the ranks of our great profession, but are making history in our great community, Whitman,” Grenno said. “Tonight, we mark history by increasing our shift strength to six members per shift through the generosity of our citizens — after hearing our plea, understanding the department’s staffing needs, and voting in favor of a safer community — firefighters who were approved by our taxpayers [through] last year’s Proposition 2 ½ override and graduated Mass. Fire Academy are here tonight to be sworn in.”

Grenno said the hiring process was meticulous. All three were hired off the state Civil Service List and passed background and criminal offender record information (CORI) checks before interviews before a committee of shift officers, local union representatives and Grenno — rising to the top of a field of about 12 candidates.

“Those top three are here tonight,” he said. “What you’ll see about these three candidates is [that] their work ethic and their commitment is second to none.”

Baldwin, a 2012 graduate of WHRHS is also an entrepreneur, founding his own business while still in high school — Lawns by Zach — that now employs about a half-dozen people.

“This is a guy who, in high school, decided that he was going to start his own business and his work ethic brought him down that road,” Grenno said of the Whitman native. “His success shows us his determination and his commitment to getting the job done.”

He joined Whitman Fire as an EMT and was in the process of completing his paramedic license, when he applied for the firefighter job. He has since become a licensed paramedic.

Lucas, a 2011graduate of WHRHS, grew up in Whitman before moving to Hanson, where he served as a call firefighter and worked as a paramedic for South Shore Hospital. He participated in the high school’s internship program at Whitman Fire/Rescue.

“Russ graduated high school knowing what path he would take,” Grenno said. “[He] was employed by South Shore Hospital as a patient transporter and that’s what got him involved in EMS.”

Lucas went from there to attend EMT school and becoming a basic EMT before moving to the hospital’s ambulance division and putting himself through paramedic school.

“Then he came to us,” Grenno said.

Thompson, a 2013 graduate of WHRHS and native of Hanson, took part in the high school’s internship program with Hanson Fire Department.

“That internship solidified his desire to work in the fire service,” said Grenno who graduated W-H in the same class as Hanson Chief Thompson. “Jerry became a member of the Hanson Fire Department as a call firefighter and put himself through EMT school while he was working for the school district in the maintenance division.”

After attaining EMT certification, he enrolled in the paramedic program, during which he was hired by Whitman Fire/Rescue and, like Lucas, completed the paramedic course during his probationary year.

“That just shows they wanted to get the job done,” Grenno said.

The new firefighters and their families and friends then went to Venus III in Hanson for a celebratory reception.

Hanson repairs panel revived

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HANSON — The Board of Selectmen is asking the Hanson School Repair Committee to resume regular meetings after recently being alerted by a member of the Finance Committee that the Indian Head School playground had been closed. The board, by consensus, supports a new playground project at Indian Head.

The former Maquan and Indian Head Priority Repairs Committee had been renamed and charged to encompass Hanson Middle School in May after votes by Selectmen and the School Department to close Maquan School.

“Due to the age and safety concerns [at] the Indian Head School Playground, it is my recommendation to remove all structures immediately,” Schools Facilities Director Ernest Sandland wrote in a Jan. 23 a letter to Superintendent of Schools Dr. Ruth Gilbert-Whitner. A copy of the letter had been emailed from to Selectmen Chairman James McGahan and School Committee member Michael Jones on Monday.

“Ernie would like to start the removal of the Indian Head playground structures as soon as possible,” Gilbert-Whitner wrote in her email, asking the board to “Please let us know what we need to do in order to proceed.” Selectmen indicated they needed more information about cost.

Jones and Christopher Howard were members of the repair committee before both were elected to the School Committee.

“I know for a fact that I saw good things come out of that committee,” McGahan. “I’m hoping that we have some parents out there willing to step up — certainly if you have some mechanical or electrical experience, you’d be a valued member on that [repair] board.”

Sandland’s letter advised Gilbert-Whitner that a survey conducted by independent consultant Playground Inspections of New England LLC had determined last November that 70 percent of the playground’s structures do not comply with safety standards. Replacement costs for the playground — estimated at about $96,000 for the structures alone — have been included on the School Department’s capital projects matrix.

A fence would cost an additional $15,000 and rubberized ground cover, if it is desired, would cost about $67,000 more.

The town is not being asked to act on removal, according to Town Administrator Michael McCue, who said he has included a placeholder article for the May Town Meeting to address the new playground.

“My understanding is, this conversation centers on whether or not the Board of Selectmen wishes to be the sounding board for this particular article and supporting this article, vs. the repair committee, which basically hasn’t been meeting,” he said.

He said the School Committee is only asking for the funding to build a new playground.

“I believe they feel that they can facilitate the removal on their own,” McCue said. “I don’t think they’re looking for funding, they’re not looking for approval. I think they have the means, and I don’t think it’s going to cost very much to remove it.”

Safety is the main concern of the survey, which included photos of deteriorating conditions at the structure.

Selectman Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett suggested the board could vote to support removal, but needed more information on that cost.

“During the inspection/evaluation, it was evident that the structures are old and worn and there were many hazards that would prohibit this structure from being retrofitted,” Sandland wrote. “Temporarily we have placed saw horses and caution tape in this area until the structure is removed.”

Moving the Maquan playground to Indian Head has been ruled out as it would cost about the same as a new one and presents liability issues.

“As far as I’m concerned, we don’t have any choice,” Selectman Kenny Mitchell said. “We have to replace that playground … but I’m not in favor of discontinuing the repair committee.”

Selectman Jim Hickey asked how such issues were addressed before the Priority Repair Committee was formed after the proposed new elementary school was voted down in 2014. Hickey, who now chairs the repair committee, said he would act to get that panel back to meeting.

“Part of the problem was things weren’t being done that we felt should have been,” said McGahan, citing a window at Maquan that had leaked for 10 years. “Before then, I don’t think we were happy with what had been going on.”

Planning Board member John Kemmett suggested the Community Development Commission could be asked for funding to support the project.

“We should have caught this thing well before this happened,” McGahan said of the repair committee. “If we’re closing a school and moving grades to [Indian Head], then goddammit, we should have had the playground ready in advance.”

FitzGerald-Kemmett and Hickey both countered that he has only been working with the repair committee since June and the playground conditions were not surveyed until November.

In other business, Selectmen are seeking one more member for the Maquan Reuse Committee, which currently meets every other week for about an hour, to resolve logistical issues that sometimes surface for current members.

FitzGerald-Kemmett, who chairs the committee, said people with an open mind are being sought because “we’re really going to lay everything out on the table and make a recommendation … on how we should proceed and move forward.”

McGahan said timely completion of that work is needed because insurance costs for an empty building will be more expensive than the $15,000 per month the school district now pays, for the town to insure it until another use is found or it is sold.