Cohasset High School Newsletter

February 13, 2026

Dear Families,

If you've watched recent School Committee and Select Board meetings, you know our community faces a significant financial challenge. Like our neighbors in Marshfield, Rockland, and Norwell, we're grappling with a structural deficit where expenses are outpacing revenue. An explanation of these issues can be found in the School Committee Meeting Notes.

This affects our ability to align our values around education, public safety, and governance with the services our community deserves.

This is my 13th year in the district, and I am impressed by the transparency and collaboration with which the School Committee, Select Board, the interim Town Manager, and Superintendent have approached this challenge and are continually finding ways to minimize the impact that our schools face.

We have made considerable progress since the initial needs were presented to the Select Board, but we still have a gap to close. As School Committee chair Jen Lesky said at the February 4th meeting, “the time for public engagement and problem-solving is now, not when we’re taking the vote on the budget”. So I write to encourage both the awareness and engagement of the public in collaborative problem solving.

Here's how you can engage:

Review the School Committee Meeting Notes to understand the details
Reach out to the School Committee or Superintendent with questions or input.
Attend the budget presentation on February 25 at 6:00 PM (Middle-High School Learning Commons, in-person or virtual)

In March of 1778, abolitionist John Newton published "Waiting for Spring", a reflection on the promise of hope and renewal despite the metaphorical winters of life that challenge us, where dormant trees "Yet having life within their root/The welcome spring's reviving beam/

Draws forth their blossoms, leaves, and fruit."

There is life within the roots of our community, but renewal won't happen through hope alone—it requires the collective talents, values, and efforts of all of us. Your input on both our priorities and potential solutions for generating revenue and reducing costs is critical to our path forward.

Sincerely,

Brian T. Scott

Principal

CHS Report Card

Every year, each public school and school district in Massachusetts receives a report card. Just as your child’s report card shows how they are doing in different subjects; the school’s report card is designed to show families how our school is doing in different areas. A link to our school’s report card is available at Cohasset High School 2025 School Report Card.

The report card includes multiple measures of a school’s performance – more than just MCAS scores. It represents a new way of looking at school performance, by providing information on student achievement, teacher qualifications, student learning opportunities, and more.

Report cards are designed to be useful tools for everyone connected to our school. Families can use the information to have meaningful conversations with us about what the school is doing well and where there is room for improvement. Community and education leaders can use the information to better understand how to support students and our school.

We encourage you to become involved in helping us improve our school. We see parents as critical partners in the success of our students and school, and we are grateful for your continued support.

If you have questions about our school’s report card or would like to become involved in school improvement activities, please contact Principal Brian Scott at bscott@cohassetk12.org . To see our district’s report card or to search for other schools’ report cards, visit reportcards.doe.mass.edu.

Comprehensive School Climate Inventory

We recently administered the Comprehensive School Climate Inventory (CSCI), a nationally-recognized school climate survey from the National School Climate Center that provides an in-depth profile of our school's strengths, as well as highlighting areas for improvement.

The CSCI measures the National School Climate Center’s 14 Dimensions of a healthy school climate in five broad categories:

Safety
Teaching and Learning
Interpersonal Relationships
Institutional Environment
Leadership & Efficacy

There are several areas of improvement over the past five years, which are outlined below. Most notably, we have made significant cultural improvements in the way our students experience belonging. School connectedness had positive responses from 100% of students, teacher-student and peer relationships have improved, respect for diversity and social inclusion (specifically students with disabilities) were both overwhelmingly positive.

Correlating with that are improvements in social-emotional learning, academic support, and feelings of safety. Specific selected statistics are listed below.

Senior Class Fundraiser

To help support Senior Week activities and prom, the Class of 2026 is excited to offer CHS Skipper T-shirts for purchase. These shirts are fully customizable and are available for $25 each, with all proceeds directly benefiting the senior class.

Payments can be submitted via Venmo at @skips2026. Once orders are placed, shirts are expected to arrive within two weeks. Students will distribute the shirts to their parents/guardians once they are delivered to the school. If you are interested in purchasing more than one shirt, please be sure to complete a separate order form for each shirt.

We sincerely appreciate your continued support of the senior class and the events that make this year so special for our students.

Please use the link below for ordering!

Yearbooks!!

We need to pre-purchase yearbooks. To ensure that you get one, please order one as soon as possible. As of today, 39 seniors have not purchased yearbooks.

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Successful Coh-LAB-oration

On Thursday, February 5th, students from grades K-12 gathered to collaborate on district-wide art projects that will proudly be displayed across all of the schools. Special thanks to Ms. Berkowitz, all of the art teachers across the district, our volunteer community artists, and food services.

The Cohasset French Exchange Program has been renewed with a new school! Frederique Zelaznik, English teacher and Melanie Launaire, Assistant Principal at the Lycee Sainte Clothilde in Strasbourg, France paid Cohasset High School a visit with 16 juniors and seniors on Tuesday. They were welcomed with some of Massachusett's own finest Dunkin' Donuts and then spent the day with their American partners.

Students went into classrooms, participated in some activities, spoke on Sari Reyes' podcast for The Anchor, shared their views about French and American culture, attended the Senior night for boys basketball, and had a pizza party at the Jewell household. So far we have three students signed up to continue our partnership with a full exchange in December.

Registration is still open so please see Mr. Grasmann if you have interest. High School credit is available and for our first year we will have a hybrid experience where students taking Spanish courses are also welcome to join us for this enriching experience.

Making Waves

Congratulations to our swimmers, who continue to makes waves throughout the South Shore. Last weekend, the Girls finished 2nd and Boys 4th overall in the Patriot League Meets.

Cohasset had strong contributions with podium finishes in all of their individual events by Johnny Appleton (1st 200 Free, 1st 500 Free), Sam DeMello (3rd 50 Free, 4th 100 Breast), Wilson Nussbaum (1st 50 free, 1st 100 Fly) and Ashley Wagner (1st in 50 Free, 1st 100 Free). Freshman Will DeMello also made the podium in the 200 Fr. Relay (3rd).

At Sectionals this weekend, the Boys' finished 8th out of more than 40 teams across both divisions. Some highlights:

Medley relay placed 6th, .5 seconds off the school record.
Johnny Appleton placed 3rd in the 200 free and 4th in the 100 fly, breaking the school record in both.
Wilson Nussbaum placed 6th in the 100 fly and 11 in the 50m free.
Sam DeMello qualified for the states in the 50m free, and
The 400 relay placed 6th overall.

Good luck to all of our swimmers this Sunday at States.

King of the Hill

Congratulations to Robert Blanchard on his 4th consecutive League Ski Championship!

Learning Commons Unveils New Kiosk

Thanks to a generous donation from the PSO, the new library kiosk is up and running. Thank you to Ms. Cerruti and all who supported the effort.

Originally known as Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America, CADCA has evolved into an innovative leader in the prevention field, empowering more than 7,000 coalitions in the U.S. and over 28 countries to build healthier, safer, and stronger communities. We unite diverse sectors including schools, law enforcement, youth, parents, healthcare, media, and tribal communities to champion prevention strategies that address substance misuse and the broader factors shaping community health.

Thank you to Mr. Sears, Mr. Grasmann Safe Harbor, and the following students who attended this year's 2026 National Conference in Washington DC.

Ava Joyce

Sari Reyes

Gabby Madden

Jacob Tam

Dylan Jewell

Faisal Al Rashid

Dominique Vecchiolla