Nine hundred Hopkinton Middle School students and 1,028 students from the high school responded to the Metrowest Adolescent Health Survey in the fall of 2023, providing insights on social media and substance use, feelings of depression and anxiety and suicidality.

Superintendent Carol Cavanaugh noted at the School Committee meeting on Thursday that the kids would be surveyed during the fall of 2025 as well.

She outlined several results, including that 12% of middle school students and 16% of high school students had reported depressive symptoms over the previous 12 months.

Further, 9% at both age groups said they experienced serious suicidal thoughts. The high school students were referring to the past 12 months while the middle school students were giving perspective over their lifetimes.

Cavanaugh noted middle school girls were twice as likely to have depressive symptoms and 2.1 times more likely to report suicidal thoughts than boys.

The rates for LGBTQ youth were higher — 2.7 times and 3.8 times more likely to report those experiences.

To deal with these issues, 39% in middle school and 38% in high school said they talked to a school counselor. The rates seeking help from a counselor outside of school were 31% and 43%.

Students vaped, drank and used marijuana at a higher rate if they had depressive symptoms than those who did not.

Other results showed:

Thirty-three percent of middle school students and 45% of high school students responded that they used smartphones for more than three hours per day.

High social media use was reported by 22% in middle school and 24% in high school , with more girls likely to spend a lot of time online. Frequent social media use was tied to higher anxiety symptoms in the survey.

In addition, 41% of middle school kids and 51% of high school students felt that social media impacted their sleep.

A quarter of the middle school respondents said it negatively affected their attention in school and 38% reported that effect in high school.

Some of the positives listed with social media use included connection and support with peers and interaction with others having similar interests.

Finally, the rates reported for the previous 30 days for vaping (6.2%), alcohol use (16.3%), marijuana use (7.2%) and misuse of prescription drugs (1.1%) all showed a decline from previous years.

The superintendent pointed out the amount of alcohol use since 2006 declined by half, and vaping also has been declining since 2014.

In an interview Friday with the Independent, the superintendent said she did not find the results particularly surprising. She reiterated that the substance use rates are lower than the national average, crediting the “hard work being done in the schools and in the community” for the declines.

The superintendent said the responses about social media and cell phone use are “pretty typical.”

“I will be eager to see what the data says in the fall of 2025,” she added.

Evaluation process shortened

Cavanaugh is retiring June 30. The School Committee decided Thursday to dispense with a lengthy evaluation process, opting to submit a proficient rating to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and leave it at that.

Chair Nancy Cavanaugh spoke about the time-consuming nature of reviewing and scoring all the superintendent’s goals and objectives and evaluating the action steps to achieve them.

Nancy Cavanaugh noted she reached out to the superintendent to ask if an extensive evaluation would be “meaningful to take with her” into retirement and was assured it is not.

The superintendent confirmed that the decision was fine with her.

“The superintendent evaluation process is designed to think about what the superintendent is doing well and what areas there might be for improvement in terms of running the district and also moving the district forward,” Carol Cavanaugh explained.

The superintendent said she is proud of her record of excellent evaluations over the years and said she agreed “it did not make a lot of sense,” for the School Committee to proceed with a formal, lengthy process.

“The evaluation process is super time-consuming, and I believe this time could be given back to the committee for other important work,” she said.

School Committee member Kyla McSweeney pointed out that members would begin the process for incoming superintendent Evan Bishop, and it would be more useful to concentrate on that.

Cafeteria workers reach agreement

In other business, the School Committee ratified the cafeteria workers’ contract for 2025-28.

On Friday, the superintendent noted the Food Services Department is a self-sustaining entity, meaning the proceeds from the cafeteria are used to pay the employees, among other costs.

Any raises offered to the workers do not impact the school’s operating budget, she said.

She noted that for the first year in the new contract, the district adjusted the salary grid, and there is no reflected consistent percentage increase for the workers. In the second and third years, the increases are at 3%.

The superintendent and committee thanked the negotiating team, which included School Committee member Chris Masters.

The committee delayed naming a representative to the negotiations with school nurses until a full committee is present. Masters and Susan Stephenson were absent from Thursday’s meeting.