The School Committee at Wednesday’s meeting ratified three-year contracts for the teachers and custodians unions and a one-year contract for the school physician. Superintendent Carol Cavanaugh said that using an interest-based model for negotiations proved successful...
Education
HHS limits access to boys locker room after multiple ‘issues’
Hopkinton High School Principal Evan Bishop emailed the HHS community on Friday to announce that the boys locker room will be locked after school due to repeated behavioral problems occurring there. "I am disappointed to report that there continue to be issues in our...
Gifted learners, COVID numbers discussed at School Committee meeting
A presentation about the efforts being made to address the needs of high-achieving learners in the district dominated Thursday's School Committee meeting. Superintendent Carol Cavanaugh noted that knowing each child as an individual learner is a priority in the...
Schools Notebook: Student musicians hit high notes; Science Fair winners announced
March has been a busy month for the Hopkinton Public Schools Music Department. It’s only fitting, as the National Association for Music Education officially designates March as Music in Our Schools Month, a time for educators to raise awareness of the benefits of...
School Committee vacancies to be placed on this year’s ballot
At a special meeting Saturday morning, the Select Board voted unanimously to have the two new School Committee vacancies placed on the ballot for the May 16 Annual Town Election. Joe Markey and Meg Tyler submitted letters of resignation to the town clerk on Tuesday,...
School Committee officially announces vacancies in special meeting: ‘We will continue with the business of the schools’
The School Committee held a special meeting Friday to officially announce the two vacancies created when Joe Markey and Meg Tyler announced their resignations earlier this week. Chair Nancy Cavanaugh said she was notified by Town Clerk Connor Degan on Tuesday at about...
Markey, Tyler resign from School Committee, which calls special meeting
Editor's note: Updated March 10 with the Select Board calling a meeting for Saturday. Joe Markey and Meg Tyler filed paperwork this week with the town clerk to immediately resign from the School Committee, and the committee called a special meeting for Friday to...
Hopkinton Public Schools March music concerts start Monday
The Hopkinton Public Schools March concerts begin Monday (March 14) with the Grade 6 concert at the Hopkinton Middle School auditorium. It starts at 6:30 p.m. The Grade 7 concert is at the HMS auditorium on Tuesday (March 15) at 6:30 p.m. Grade 8 takes the stage at...
Schools Notebook: HHS student wins Brain Bee; HHS Drama Ensemble’s ‘Twelve Angry Jurors’ this week; local collegians honored
Hopkinton High School freshman Ananya Kumar won the 16th annual Central Massachusetts Brain Bee on Feb. 5 with a near-perfect score. She now is eligible to compete in the National Brain Bee in April. The Brain Bee, created by the Society for Neuroscience, is designed...
HMS administration emails families with plan to combat ‘discriminatory behaviors’ in school
Following the recent revelation that students at Hopkinton Middle School have made “racist comments to one another,” Hopkinton Public Schools Superintendent Carol Cavanaugh and HMS Principal Alan Keller reached out to the community to share their plan to combat the...
School Committee roundup: Members seek to ‘strengthen the dialogue’ with help from consultant; security camera policy debated
Following recent issues of divisiveness, the School Committee had a midyear check-in of its norms and beliefs, part of its protocols and best practices for effective meetings. While at recent meetings some members expressed frustration with how meetings were run and a...
Masks now optional on Hopkinton school buses
Superintendent Carol Cavanaugh announced Monday that the Hopkinton Public Schools will no longer require masking on school buses starting Tuesday. Windows will be kept open on the buses. "As always, any individual who wishes to continue to mask will be supported in...
Elmwood school-wide art project focuses on Black history
Elmwood School is celebrating Black History Month with an art project conceived by a substitute teacher and adopted by the entire school of 600 students. Keri Patterson, a third-grade long-term substitute teacher, said she was thinking about a class project that would...
Schools Notebook: Local students win state-level awards for writing, arts; college honors pour in
Hopkinton High School students captured 31 state-level awards in the 2022 Scholastic Writing Awards competition. Senior Kevin Gu led the way with 10 awards, including an American Voices Nominee, an honor bestowed on the top five writing submissions in the state, for...
HMS principal: Students have made ‘inappropriate, unkind, racist comments’ to each other
There have been multiple issues at Hopkinton Middle School where students have made “racist comments to one another” this school year, Principal Alan Keller said Thursday during an appearance before the School Committee. Keller was appearing before the committee to...
School Committee votes 4-1 to drop mask mandate on Feb. 28
The School Committee at its Thursday night meeting voted to discontinue the school mask mandate policy on Feb. 28 by a 4-1 vote. Because of a federal mandate, masks still will be required on school buses. The decision was in line with an announcement earlier this...
Tensions high at School Committee meeting despite calls for unity
Editor's note: This story was updated Feb. 19 with a comment from Meg Tyler regarding criticism from the Hopkinton Teachers Association. There were some tense moments at Thursday night’s School Committee meeting — even before the vote to lift the mask mandate starting...
School Committee duo cleared after open meeting law complaint
In a special meeting of the School Committee on Tuesday night, members Joe Markey and Meg Tyler were cleared of an allegation brought forth at the Feb. 3 meeting that they violated open meeting law by holding a Zoom meeting on Jan. 30 regarding the district’s mask...
Schools Notebook: Local collegians honored
Northeastern University announced its dean’s list for the fall semester, and a number of Hopkinton residents are on it. The list includes Sebastian Toledo (majoring in game design), Tyler Gorman (economics/business administration), Mihika Abraham (business...
Older students with disabilities develop business skills via Niche Hop Shop
Older students with disabilities in the Hopkinton Public Schools are finding their niche in the community by participating in an innovative business selling T-shirts and other items through the district’s 18-22 program. The Niche Hop Shop store grew out of the 18-22...