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Marlborough Public Schools enrollment continues to increase

By Maureen Sullivan Senior Reporter MARLBOROUGH – The enrollment numbers continue to rise for Marlborough Public Schools.

During the School Committee meeting on Sept. 27, Superintendent Mary Murphy presented an update on enrollment at the elementary schools.

For the fifth year in a row, the number of students enrolled in kindergarten has exceeded 400. For fiscal 2023, there are 413 students in the program.

“We expected this to happen,” she said.

In total, there are 2,505 students enrolled in kindergarten through fifth grade.

Enrollment was on the rise at all of the elementary schools. The largest increase occurred at Goodnow Brothers Elementary School where Murphy was reporting an enrollment of 802 students. That’s an increase from 738 total last year. Murphy reported that the average class size at Goodnow is 21.7. In total, there are 131 students enrolled in kindergarten, 134 in first grade, 149 in second, 126 in third, 128 in fourth and 134 in fifth.

According to Murphy’s presentation, there are a total of 668 students enrolled at Jaworek Elementary School, which is an increase from 637 last year.

Last year, there were 494 students enrolled at Kane Elementary School. Murphy is reporting 502 in the school this year. At Richer Elementary School, there are 533 students enrolled, which is up from 525 last year.

Murphy said the district is keeping an eye on the enrollment numbers.

COVID-19 procedures

In other School Committee news, Marlborough Public Schools recently hired Christine Harrington as the new supervisor of health services.

One of her first tasks was to develop COVID-19 procedures for the 2022-23 school year. This year, Marlborough school nurses will not be conducting COVID-19 testing. Symptomatic students will be sent home along with information on actions that parents should take depending on the individual circumstances.

If COVID-19 testing is recommended, the student will be sent home with an at-home self-test kit.

Additionally, school districts will not be reporting COVID-19 cases to the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education or the Board of Health.

Complete guidelines are available at https://www.mpsedu.org/Domain/1008.

Marlborough Boy Scout organizing music fundraiser

MARLBOROUGH – A Boy Scout working toward his Eagle Scout rank is planning a special fundraiser.

Jack Brzenk, who is a resident of Marlborough and a member of Troop 12 in Framingham, will stage “Tunes for Toiletries” on Thursday, Oct. 20, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Assabet Valley Regional Technical High School.

Brzenk got interested in scouting while attending St. Bridget’s School in Framingham. Currently, he’s a junior at Assabet.

The event will feature local musicians.

“Music has always been my passion, and I wanted to find a way to incorporate it into my Eagle project,” said Brzenk. “I believe that music helps bring people together, and after the pandemic forced so many musicians to perform online or not at all, I thought that this would be a great way to get people back on stage while supporting a

Jack Brzenk

good cause.”

The troop will be collecting toiletries at the door to benefit the Marlborough Community Cupboard. Items to donate include shampoos, conditioners, soaps, toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorants, razors and feminine products.

“Marlborough Community Cupboard did not request anything specific; however, I chose hygiene products because I learned that many teens miss school because of their lack of being able to afford these products,” said Brzenk.

For information, email TunesforToiletries@gmail.com.

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Assabet programs seeking votes for Saint-Gobain contest

By Cindy Zomar Education Coordinator

MARLBOROUGH – Not one but two technical programs at Assabet Valley Regional Technical High have made it to the final rounds of competition in a new grant program offered by SaintGobain North America.

The biotechnology program is one of four Massachusetts schools competing at the silver level, while the metal fabrication program is competing for bronze.

The contest is called “Sustaining Futures, Raising Communities,” and the program is focused on enhancing spaces in the communities where Saint-Gobain’s employees live, work and raise their families using both Saint-Gobain materials and other donations. This is the first year this particular grant program has been available, and the company is very pleased with the interest from the local schools.

Senior VP of Human Resources and Communications at Saint-Gobain North America Magda Dexter said their products and solutions enable SaintGobain customers to build safer, stronger and more sustainable communities.

“Our 2022 Sustaining Futures, Raising Communities program will help the educators and students of those communities create something of their own – better learning environments where they can collectively thrive and grow,” Dexter said. “We feel so inspired by the response we’ve received to this program.”

Maria Bennes shows her students a photo of how cells look when peering through a fluorescence microscope, hoping that they will be getting one through a SaintGobain grant.

What the Assabet programs are requesting

The biotechnology program is requesting a fluorescence microscope.

Biotechnology instructor Maria Bennes said the tool will help Assabet students gain skills to research new drugs and diagnose diseases. These are skills the students will use in their future job and education, she said.

“The scientists that will change the world are here at Assabet Valley,” Bennes said.

Meanwhile, the metal fabrication program is in need of raw materials.

Metal fabrication instructor Chris Wittmier said the rising costs of raw materials are a stumbling block for the curriculum for budding welders and iron workers.

“Some of our raw materials have jumped 80% in price over the last couple of years,” Wittmier said. “That is not sustainable on a school budget, but we certainly don’t want to reduce the number of hands-on projects for our students.”

Wittmier said Assabet hopes it can continue to create the future workforce with the help of companies like Saint-Gobain that are willing to donate materials.

Voting goes through Oct. 18

Both programs are asking students, families, and the local public to vote daily for their silver and bronze levels.

The public is invited to vote for one school at each level in their state every day through Oct.18. The winners will be announced on Oct. 27. Multiple votes are permitted.

Vote online at https://tinyurl. com/2jym28ue.

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Shrewsbury seeks members for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Committee

By Caroline Gordon Reporter SHREWSBURY - The newly established Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) Committee is looking for new members.

The committee, which was approved by the Select Board during a meeting on Aug. 23, aims to foster an environment that embraces diversity.

According to Select Board member Beth Casavant, who also served on the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Task Force, the committee must have seven members, including one high school junior or senior.

However, there were initially not enough applicants. “Of course, I was expecting more interest given the topic and because this is a new committee, but people are busy and may just need additional time to express their interest,” Casavant said.

In response to the initial lack of interest from residents, the board extended their application deadline until Oct. 18 and so far, has received interest from four applicants, according to Principal Department Assistant Taylor Galusha.

Difference between task force, committee

Following the death of George Floyd in 2020, the Select Board established the task force.

The task force ran for one year, and it later wrote and presented a final report to the Select Board last fall. Among their suggestions, the task force recommended forming a permanent committee.

As Casavant described it, the task force was made up of 25 members, who primarily focused on issues regarding race. The committee has a broader focus and diversity of all kinds can be supported, she said.

Throughout the development of the committee, the task force worked with Visions Inc., a nonprofit organization aimed at educating people through innovative training tools, public advocacy and consulting models, so they can create environments where differences are embraced and utilized to benefit their community.

“The place that we started from was a task force. The task force actually did many of the things that these more traditional diversity and inclusion committees are doing,” Casavant said.

Unlike the task force, the committee will have fewer members and will exclude members who already serve on town boards and committees.

However, the committee will not have to go through this process or base its work on the recommendations of the task force, according to Casavant.

“The DEIB Committee has its own charge, which is separate from the original task force,” Casavant said.

Town officials weighed in

Town Manager Kevin Mizikar said that the committee will help the town government “excel” by ensuring that the board is composed of diverse members and that the policies and practices of the committee enables a “strong sense of belonging for all employees.”

School Committee Chair Lynsey Heffernan, who also served on the task force, said she believes that enough residents will apply to fill the vacant spots.

“This is important work. I still feel very optimistic that as a community Shrewsbury is going to step up,” she said.

If you are interested in applying to serve on the DEIB Committee, you must be a Shrewsbury resident and must submit a letter of interest and qualifications to the Office of the Select Board, or by email to selectmen@shrewsburyma.gov no later than October 18, 2022 at 4:30 p.m.

For more information https:// shrewsburyma.gov/CivicAlerts. aspx?AID=6972