District Digest
June 2026 | Monthly newsletter for WPS families and staff
📝 Message from the Superintendent
Last week, the district celebrated staff members who are celebrating milestone years of service with WPS, as well as soon-to-be retirees. As the school year ends, we would like to give another big congratulations to the following staff retiring from Westwood and thank them for their dedication to our students:
- Kristen Evans*, Principal, Sheehan - 18 years
- David Frederickson*, Guidance Counselor, WHS - 15 years
- Paul Grenham, Grade 2 Teacher, Sheehan - 27 years
- Ellen Hanley Nadeau, Nurse, Downey - 17 years
- Donna Harris, Extended Day Site Coordinator, Downey - 26 years
- Shannon Holbrook, Literacy Paraprofessional, Sheehan - 15 years
- Sandra Mack*, Administrative Assistant, Food Service - 11 years
- Kate Merten, Instructional Technology Coach - 2 years
- Emily Miller, Science Teacher, WHS - 15 years
- Beth Stebbins, Grade 5 Teacher, Sheehan - 14 years
- Bianca Terrenzi, Accounts Payable - 51 years
- Donna Tobin, SEL Director/Interim Sheehan Principal - 14 years
- Sidney Worthen, Literacy Specialist, Pine Hill - 25 years
To all of our staff and students heading off into summer, we hope you have a fantastic break and enjoy time with family and friends. We'll be ready to welcome students back on September 2nd!
- Tim
2026 Grads
The Class of 2026 graduated on May 31 in a wonderful ceremony out on Flahive Field, where the rain mostly held off and families, staff and students were able to celebrate this milestone accomplishment. Congratulations to all of our 2026 graduates!
Peers & Partners
Jeanne Bylsma, Westwood Integrated Preschool
Go Sox ⚾
Going Green ✅
Pine Hill students watched as Principal Jones got slimed on Field Day.
Festival Fun 🎉
Sheehan families enjoyed food, music and games at the annual Cultural Festival.
Young Artists 🎨
Memory Lane 🚌
WHS grads toured each elementary to wave goodbye to former teachers (📸 Here: Mr. K at MJ).
PK Last Day 🍕
Preschool Director/OOD Coordinator: Katy Dearborn
We are happy to announce that Katy Dearborn will be our new preschool director and out-of-district coordinator! For the last year, Ms. Dearborn has been the Student Services Department Head at Westwood High School, and prior to that she was the Assistant Director of Elementary Special Education in the Newton Public Schools. We are excited that Ms. Dearborn has agreed to take on this new role and for the leadership stability that she will bring to the preschool.
New Website Coming Soon!
We are excited to share that the Westwood Public Schools is launching a new website in the coming months. The new site will feature all of the same, important information you need as parents/caregivers and staff, while offering improvements to navigation, user friendliness, and the overall look and feel.
As part of this launch, WPS will also offer a mobile app, where community members can access calendar events, real-time updates, district communications and more right at their fingertips. Finally, you may notice that emails you receive from the district and schools will look slightly different due to our new back-end platform. We look forward to having the new website, app and messaging platform provide a seamless, intuitive and engaging experience for our families, students and staff.
- Steve Ouellette, Director of Technology
1. Last Day of School 😎
Early Dismissal times for the last day of school on June 22nd are:
- Middle School – 11:00 AM
- High School – 11:35 AM
- Elementary Schools – 12:10 PM (Extended Day closes at 3:00 PM)
