SPS Weekly Newsletter

This week's header photo features Stoughton High's two winter guard teams, Amber and Onyx, pictured together. Both teams gave a preview of their show during a friends and family performance at SHS on Thursday. Best of luck to both teams as they have a competition in Dartmouth, MA this weekend!

I hope everyone had a nice week back to school following February break.

This week I want to give an overview of what our summer programming will look like. Facing the realities of additional strains on the budget and no longer having ESSER COVID relief funds available, summer programming isn’t able to be as robust as it has been in recent years, but we will still provide a number of academic and enrichment based opportunities.

All summer programming will take place from July 7, 2025 - August 1, 2025 from 8:30am to 1:30pm. Meals will be available through our Food Services department.

We will be able to fund our Extended School Year (ESY) program for students needing additional academic support and English Learner (EL) summer program through grant funding. Additionally, we plan to offer a preschool to kindergarten and kindergarten to first grade transition program.

We are also going to offer some fee-based programs such as credit recovery for high school and middle school students, high school athletics strength and conditioning, a summer theatre program, and instrumental lessons.

My office will also publish other fee-based programs in the coming days.

Summer programs will be held at Stoughton High School and the Dawe Elementary School this year. The O’Donnell Middle School has been the hub of summer programming for the past several years and not having programming at OMS allows our custodial and maintenance staff additional time for more intricate repair and upkeep type of projects.

Further updates will be provided as registration opens to sign up for these programs.

Have a great weekend.

Sincerely,

Joseph F. Baeta, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools

Stoughton Public Schools

The 2025-2026 school calendar was recently approved by the School Committee. All of the key dates for next school year, including the first day of school, early release dates, and vacation days/days off from school are included. Take a look at it by clicking on the image below:

At its meeting on February 25, 2025, the School Committee conducted a public interview with Juliette Miller for the position of Superintendent of the Stoughton Public Schools, effective July 1, 2026, following the retirement of Dr. Joseph Baeta, current Superintendent of Schools.

School Committee members had a productive back-and-forth discussion with Ms. Miller, Stoughton High Principal since 2012, as she talked about her qualifications, leadership style, and vision for the district over the course of the interview.

Further updates about the Superintendent succession planning process will be provided at the next School Committee meeting.

Happy retirement to Joe Morais, custodian at the Jones Early Childhood Center and District Office! Friday, February 28 is the last official day for Mr. Morais, or as he is affectionately known at the Jones ECC, Mr. Joe.

Mr. Morais has been a custodian for the Stoughton Public Schools for the past 23.5 years, working at most of our schools over this time. The last half of his career at SPS has been spent at the Jones and the South School. He has been the custodian at the Jones/District Office for the past five years and prior to that split time between the South and Jones.

Jones students and staff, joined by district office staff, had a clap out for Mr. Morais before February vacation (watch the video clip embedded below or by clicking here).

Congratulations and enjoy retirement!

The cast and crew of the Stoughton High School Theatre Program's production of Anon(ymous) are pictured above. This show is Stoughton High's entry to the Massachusetts Educational Theatre Guild's High School Drama Festival. SHS is a preliminary round host site for the METG's Drama Festival. Eight high schools, including Stoughton, will be performing at SHS on Saturday, March 1, 2025.

You can see a preview of Stoughton's entry this Friday, February 28, 2025 at 6pm in the SHS Auditorium.

For more information, see the flyers below:

The Wilkins Student Council, under the direction of advisor Mrs. Pearl, recently organized a penny drive to support victims of the California wildfires through the American Red Cross. The Wilkins Community raised more than $1,000 during this drive! Student Council members are pictured below with some of the donations collected.

We also want to spotlight one incredibly generous donation from a Wilkins third grade student.

About a week after the student council began the fundraiser, Matheus Ramos, a student in Mrs. Bohn's class, came up to Mrs. Bohn first thing in the morning with a heavy bag filled with bills and coins. He told Mrs. Bohn that he and his mother went around to friends and family at home and asked them to donate. He collected more than $106!

Matheus, pictured below, said he felt proud after making the donation and that he felt like he wanted to help because not everyone is fortunate enough to have what he has.

Dawe School 4th grader Connor Isabelle continued the tradition of using the 100th day of school as a way to make a difference in the community. He challenged his fellow students at the Dawe School to gather as many non-perishable food items to be donated to the food pantry in Stoughton! The goal was for each grade, kindergarten through grade 5, to contribute at least 100 items. The Dawe community responded and Connor surpassed his goal, collecting more than 700 items for the food pantry!

The idea for the 100th day of school food drive came from Connor's older sister, Savannah, who organized this challenge when she was at the Dawe. Now that she is in middle school, Connor has taken over this effort.

Connor is pictured below with his parents and Dawe School Principal Rob Cancellieri, who helped Connor deliver the donations before the start of February vacation.

Earlier this month, the O'Donnell Middle School Student Council organized a school-wide door decorating contest to celebrate Black History Month and honor the individuals, groups, and organizations who have helped pave the way for equality and diversity in America. Each homeroom was assigned an individual/group and given a brief summary of their accomplishments/achievements and then designed/decorated doors around the school.

The three doors pictured here are the winning doors from grades 6, 7, and 8, respectively (left to right). To see photos of more of the doors, click here.

The pre-registration process for preschool is now open. Preschool students must be 3 or 4 years of age by August 31, 2025 and be toilet trained. Please be advised that pre-registration does not guarantee a spot in the preschool program as there are limited spots available. More information and the link to the pre-registration form can be found by clicking here.

The pre-registration process for grades K-12 will start on Monday, March 3, 2025. The online portal will open at noon. Links to the pre-registration form will be posted here.

For kindergarten, children must be 5 years old by August 31, 2025. Any student currently attending the Jones Early Childhood Center for preschool that will be entering kindergarten in the fall must still register for kindergarten.

Students only need to register for grades 1-12 if they do not currently attend the Stoughton Public Schools.

Stoughton Public Schools and Curry College are partnering to offer an exciting three-day immersive experience over April Vacation (April 22-24, 2025) where 5th graders will explore math, science, humanities, and social-emotional learning in a college setting! Led by Curry College faculty and students, this program offers hands-on activities, engaging experiments, and a unique glimpse into college life. Stoughton Public Schools will also have staff members present as group leaders. There is no cost for students to participate in this program.

Key Program Details:

• When: April 22, 2025 - April 24, 2025 (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday)
• Location: Curry College, Milton, MA
• Transportation: Provided by SPS (drop-off/pick-up at Dawe Elementary)
• Lunch: Students bring their own lunch/snacks
• Capacity: 40 students
• Registration Deadline: March 3, 2025 (students notified by March 7)
• Selection Criteria: Student interest, commitment to attendance, school behavior, teacher recommendations, and ensuring diverse representation.

• Cost: There is no cost for students to participate in this program.

Click on the buttons below to learn more about the 5th Grade Explorers Academy at Curry College and to submit your application:

March breakfast and lunch menus have been posted on the website. Click on the button below to view the menus.

Attention Stoughton High student-athletes and parents/guardians: Please join the Athletics Department for a Spring Sports Meet the Coaches Night at SHS on Thursday, March 6, 2025 at 6pm.

Registration is also open for the spring sports season. Click here to register.

The Stoughton OASIS Coalition is offering a series of parent workshops, including one for elementary school families on Wednesday, March 5 from 5-7pm at the Hansen School (1800 Central St.). The topic for this workshop is healthy bedtime routines. Families from all of our elementary schools are welcome to attend, but please note that registration is required (click here to register). Light dinner and childcare will be provided. Translation services are available with advanced notice.

The Stoughton SEPAC (Special Education Parent Advisory Council) is co-hosting a Community Resource Fair with the Canton SEPAC. It takes place Thursday, March 6, 2025 from 6-8pm at Canton High School, located at 900 Washington St. in Canton. See the flyer below for more details, including a list of vendors attending the fair:

Save the date for the annual Evening of Jazz on Wednesday, March 19 at 5:30pm at Stoughton High. The event will feature performances by the SHS jazz bands, Oliver Ames jazz band, and O'Donnell Middle School jazz band. Special guest Bijon Watson, a Grammy Award-winning trumpet player, will also perform with SHS students!

Tickets are $12 in advance and $14 at the door and can be purchased by clicking here.

Attention Parents/Guardians/Community Members: Recruiting any professionals in the trades, healthcare, STEM, business, information technology, law/government, transportation, and marketing (not limited to these) industries willing to discuss their careers and answer questions for the event above please contact SHS College and Career Counselor, Ashley Guba: a_guba@stoughtonschools.org.

We will be one of the school districts at the MPDE Educator Diversity Career Fair on Saturday, March 1, 2025. The fair takes place from 10am-2pm at Brookline High School. If you are looking for a career in education, or know someone who is, check out the flyer for more information. Click here for the registration form.

The Stoughton School Committee will be meeting on Tuesday, March 4, 2025 at 7pm in the conference room at the SPS District Office, 31 Pierce St. An agenda for the meeting can be found here.

Did you know that Stoughton Public Schools has partnered with Care Solace to support the well-being of students, staff, and their family members? Care Solace is a complimentary and confidential care coordination service that can help you quickly find mental health, social services, or substance use treatment options matched to your needs, regardless of circumstance.

• Call: 888-515-0595 (available 24/7/365 with multilingual support)
• Visit: caresolace.com/stoughtonschools to search or click “Book Appointment”.

For updates throughout the week, be sure to follow Stoughton Public Schools on social media: