High School monitors to enforce good behavior at Stoneham High School
Published on June 19th, 2002
STONEHAM, MA - Any students who smoke might want to consider kicking the habit this summer since the School Committee approved the hiring of corridor monitors at Stoneham High School for next year.
The monitors will have the responsibilities of enforcing proper behavior in corridors and restrooms. This position fell victim to budget cuts a few years back and while there is still no budget money available to fund it, High School principal Tom Ryan, School Superintendent Dr. Joseph Connelly, and the School Committee have decided that this is an important enough position to find the money elsewhere. Revenue from the after-school childcare program will cover the cost.
The right person will work from approximately 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. five days a week. Salary will range from $10 to $12 per hour. Job sharing between two people will be considered.
According to School Committee Chairman Dan Moynihan, most people appear to be in favor of the position. Ryan and Connelly back the idea and even students voiced support recently through the high school newspaper.
Committee member David Sheils added that parents have also expressed displeasure at some of the behaviors happening in school.
“Hopefully, students will pick up on the fact that their parents and fellow students want it.”
“We think the presence of this person will help the level of culpability,” Connelly said.
Other positions are in need of filling as well. There are currently 17 staff openings for the coming academic year and by the next School Committee meeting scheduled for June 27, the majority of these should be filled according to Assistant Superintendent Joseph Casey. An update of the situation will be presented in detail then.
Director of Pupil Personnel Bob McArdle presented to the School Committee on Thursday his spring report on the Special Education Department.
Several new programs have been or are in the process of being implemented, McArdle said. Among those programs is the continued collaboration with Lynnfield and Wilmington Public Schools regarding review of categorical definitions the federal government has given to the terms “learning disability” and “emotional disturbance.”
Massachusetts has recently become a categorical state which means it must comply with federal categorical definitions. Those are drastically different than state definitions have been and under which Stoneham has operated its SPED department.
The biggest impact the change to federal interpretation will have is that some children currently served by SPED IEPs (independent education plans) will no longer be eligible for IEPs. Instead, they will likely be categorized as slow learners rather than learning disabled and will be integrated into regular classrooms.
The challenge for school systems will then be how to service those children who are no longer considered learning disabled. As teachers are likely to take on more of these children, the need for smaller classrooms will become increasingly important. This is a long-range project and McArdle assured the committee that nothing would happen over-night.
Other initiatives underway include development of new staff and teaching assistant handbooks. In addition, McArdle reported that the strategic plan goal of providing each school building with one full time nurse is currently about one and half positions short of this goal.
Continued focus on MCAS time lines and demands is also a priority as MCAS “continues to take on a life of its own,” McArdle said. MCAS is no longer just for grades 4, 8, and 10, as it is now being presented in some form to grades 3 through 10.
To go or not to go. That is a dilemma which could again present itself next year and what Connelly asked the School Committee to think about over the next few weeks.
This year, the Stoneham High School band was scheduled to perform at Disney World. In the wake of September 11, heightened security concerns, and the safety of students of utmost priority, Connelly cancelled the trip.
The band wants to try again for next year and plans on applying to Disney for reconsideration.
Connelly requested input and opinion from School Committee members.
Finally, Citation Road resident Jeff Pisani asked the School Committee to consider redesigning the proposed ballfields at the renovated Colonial Park School. Pisani is concerned about foul balls hitting his property or anybody on it. The School Building Committee plans to meet with representatives from Stoneham Baseball, Softball, and Soccer, as well as residents, on July 10 to discuss the issue.
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