Superintendent's Weekly Updates
January 9, 2026
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🎉 Scroll to read information and news from the school district, our individual schools, and information from our community partners! 🎉
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In this issue ...
- District Updates
- Athletic Department Updates
- Early Learning Center Updates
- Berkowitz School Updates
- Hooks School Updates
- Sokolowski School Updates
- Wright Science & Technology Academy Updates
- Chelsea High School Updates
- Chelsea Opportunity Academy Updates
DISTRICT UPDATES
Students and Staff Recognized at January School Committee Meeting
Congratulations to Chelsea High School students in the Interact Club as well as staff members Bryan Pinales from the Hooks School and Isari Ramos from the Wright Science & Technology Academy for being honored at the January meeting of the Chelsea School Committee.
The students in Interact Club received Outstanding Service Recognitions for their great work dedicating time to serving the community. These students volunteered throughout the fall and winter at Chelsea Reads at the Chelsea Public Library, with the Salvation Army outside Market Basket during the holiday season and more!
Both Bryan Pinales and Isari Ramos received Name, Strength and Story awards for all they do to support the students, staff and families and the Hooks and WSTA, respectively. Congratulations to all!
CHS Student Reads Original Poetry at School Committee Meeting
Inauguration Ceremony
On Monday, our newly elected School Committee members were sworn in at Chelsea City Hall as part of a special Inauguration Ceremony that also included two CHS students singing the National Anthem!
Congratulations to our School Committee members:
Ana Hernandez, Chair
Katherine Cabral, Vice-Chair
Claryangeliz Covas Caraballo, Delegate to the City Council
Mayra Balderas, Delegate to the Shore Collaborative
Lucia Henriquez
Jonathan Gomez-Pereira
Dr. Sarah Neville
Shawn O’Regan
JAKE Small
Thank you for continuing to serve the students, families, staff and entire CPS community!
📸 | Darlene DeVita Photography
📹 | Chelsea Community Cable
Special Education Educators Professional Development
We were fortunate to partner with Sharon Jones, who has worked with Chelsea Public Schools since 2017 and brings more than 35 years of experience in public education. Her career spans general and special education, school and district leadership roles including Assistant Principal, Principal, Special Education Director, and Inclusion Specialist. Sharon is also a Professor at UMass Amherst and serves as a consultant to public school districts across Massachusetts. In addition, she has led School Leadership Institutes through the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), supporting districts in strengthening inclusive practices and instructional leadership.
MTEL Winter 2026 Session
On January 8th, 2026 the second session of CPS' MTEL Prep courses launched at the BMS/WSTA library. We are looking forward to working with the group for the next 6 weeks, which will include in-person/Zoom meetings, and homework assignments. Led by Ayelia Ali and Sarae Ramos, the course aims to build confidence in teachers' ability to take their respective MTEL exams, in addition to building content knowledge as it pertains to their teaching assignment. Thanks to all of our teachers who showed up, and their commitment to learning, serving our students every single day!
2026-27 Pre-K Lottery Applications
Applications for the annual CPS Pre-K Lottery for the 2026-27 school year will be available until Friday, January 16, at the Chelsea Public Schools Parent Information Center.
Families of children who will be 3 or 4 by August 31, 2026 can enter the lottery for consideration for a spot in one of the district's Pre-K programs (half-day or extended day). Limited spots at the John Silber Early Learning Center are available for next school.
For more information about the lottery, visit our website or see the images below.
ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT UPDATES
Chelsea High Boys Basketball Team recognized in the Boston Globe
Powerful perspective from Chelsea Red Devils boys basketball student-athletes and head coach Cesar Castro as the team is getting well-deserved recognition after a 6-0 (5-0 in the GBL) start to the season!
"Being from Chelsea, that’s something to be proud of and we’re playing for the community." - Senior Jonathan “JJ” Williams.
“It’s always bigger than basketball for me. I want to see these guys win at life." - Head Coach Cesar Castro
Winter Sports Schedule
Check out upcoming games for next week.
Chelsea Athletes of the Week
Genesis Serrano-Girls Basketball
Brouk Ephrem-Boys Basketball
Zeinab Iman-Girls Basketball
David Ponce-Indoor Track
Kimberly Funetes-Indoor Track
EARLY LEARNING CENTER UPDATES
Friends in room 307 participating in Everything But A Backpack Day!
BERKOWITZ SCHOOL UPDATES
Light Waves Unit
Our first graders have begun their Light Waves unit. They explored why people cannot see in the dark, why darkness appears black, and how different materials change the way light travels. Throughout this week, students practiced their questioning, teamwork, and investigation skills.
Playdough Making Process Unit
Second graders are working on their EiE: Playdough Making Process unit. This week, students learned how chemical engineers solve problems by testing how different chemicals react until they find the right amounts. Our second graders explored this idea by experimenting with the ingredients they will use to make playdough, observing how they mix together. During the investigation, students practiced measuring skills, teamwork, and lab safety.
HOOKS SCHOOL UPDATES
Habitat Survival
Our second graders spent the morning visiting the habitats we have been learning about. Forest, rainforest, water, and desert. They learned about how plants and animals depend on their habitats for survival. To show what they have learned, each student wrote an informational text and shared them with their friends and family.
Math Success
Students in H101 have been working hard on division and relating it to multiplication!
Students in Grade 1 have been working hard on adding and subtracting multiples of 10. They started off this unit by counting a collection of a random number of items and using multiples of 10 to easily count them all!
SOKOLOWSKI SCHOOL UPDATES
Second Grade Habitat Publishing Party
On Thursday students in second grade celebrated the end of their habitat unit with a Publishing Party! Students created a book about all of the habitats we learned about and invited their families and younger students to teach others all about what they learned. Thank you to all the families who came to this amazing experience!
Red Triangle Recognition
There was a great sense of excitement as we came together with parents to celebrate the Red Triangle, the first one of 2026. We were proud to recognize the students who earned their Red Triangle through their hard work and dedication. It was a special moment to share their achievements and celebrate their success as a school community.
WRIGHT SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY ACADEMY UPDATES
ACCESS Pep Rally
Our WSTA MLE coach Ms. Lopez led an ACCESS pep rally to get students pumped for their upcoming test! With popcorn and a visit from Wolfie the Wolf, students were full of excitement and school spirit. We're proud of them and wish them the best on the ACCESS test!
CHELSEA HIGH SCHOOL UPDATES
School Resource Officers Engage CHS students
CPS SROs visited student lunches to engage with students for extracurricular programming. More than 10 students have signed up to participate in fitness and wellness program over the February break.
On the spot admissions - Salem State University
Today, the School Counselors hosted an on the spot admissions event with Salem State University. 57 seniors in the Class of 2026 participated and many of them were accepted. We are extremely proud of our students and look forward to some of them being Vikings next year!
CHS School Counselor Sessions
For upcoming events with the CHS counselors, please see the attached flier!
CHELSEA OPPORTUNITY ACADEMY UPDATES
COA Happenings
To kick off the new year, COA students are back in the building and getting work done in classes. We are excited for 2026 and what it has in store for the COA community!