Students begin arriving at elementary schools at 8:15 a.m. prior to the start of the day at 8:30 a.m. Elementary principals have found it challenging to provide supervision during this window, as by contract teachers cannot be assigned a duty period from 8:05 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.
To benefit the safety and well-being of students, the Committee proposes that educators who do not receive students at 8:30 a.m. help provide supervision from 8:15-8:30 a.m.
The School Committee proposal would allow for literacy and math specialists, as well as elementary specialist teachers (art, music, library, Spanish, and health and fitness) to be assigned morning supervision duty as needed, provided their teaching responsibilities do not begin before 8:40 a.m.
On May 8, upon request from the WEA, the School Committee agreed to try to limit morning specialists’ duties at the elementary level to two days a week, with a maximum of three per week, subject to approval of the final package.