Dear Colleagues,
I hope you each had a productive week. On Tuesday night, the School Committee voted to approve the district’s FY’26 Budget. This budget will now go forward to Advisory and, finally, to Town Meeting to be formally approved for next year. Thanks to everyone who participated in this process and provided feedback for the School Committee’s consideration. It’s never an easy process to balance the realities of our fiscal constraints with the always-evolving needs of our work across the district.
This week, I’ve been attending a three-day course at Harvard for superintendents entitled, “Leading During Turbulent Times” (to say that this is a timely topic would be an understatement!). Not surprisingly, we discussed the extremely polarized environment in which our work occurs right now. Almost on cue, a new federal executive order was signed on Wednesday, entitled, “Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling.” Included in the written rationale for this order is that, “Parents trust America’s schools to provide their children with a rigorous education and to instill a patriotic admiration for our incredible Nation and the values for which we stand. In recent years, however, parents have witnessed schools indoctrinate their children in radical, anti-American ideologies while deliberately blocking parental oversight.”
I have never subscribed to the belief that honestly assessing our country’s imperfect history, questioning current policies, or lifting up fundamental inequities that continue to exist, is somehow un-American. In fact, I’ve always believed that this is precisely the type of critical analysis and informed citizenship that our democracy requires as we strive to live up to the lofty ideals framed in our country’s founding. Anything less than this orientation, which I believe is captured in our Profile of a Graduate, would, ironically, reinforce another portion of the executive order, which states: “Such an environment operates as an echo chamber, in which students are forced to accept these ideologies without question or critical examination.”
Along with superintendents from around the country, I have been trying to process both the aggregated impact of the executive orders from the past two weeks—with more likely to come—while considering what this means for our road ahead. What provides me with hope is that, amid all of this noise, there is actually a great deal of common ground in how Americans view public education. Looking at related data this week, most Americans believe that education should be above politics, that schools should teach kids what they need, and that teaching about government and civics is vital.
With all of this in mind, I ask for your continued support and focus in ensuring that our district remains a community of learning and belonging for students, staff, and families. Education has always had the potential to be the great equalizer of this country and ALL of our students deserve the opportunity to learn and grow, regardless of who they are and where they come from. That’s an idea and aspiration that I believe everyone can support.
Thanks for what you do each day across our district and have a great weekend.
Best, David
Calendar
February 11 – School Committee Meeting
February 17-21 – February Break (Schools Closed)
February 25 – School Committee Meeting
COVID-19 Tests
Order your 4 free at-home COVID-19 tests by clicking this link.
Opportunities from the Town of Wellesley
Get your event featured!: The Town of Wellesley has a new Community Events Calendar on its website. Schools or departments hosting events are welcome to submit an event for inclusion on the town-wide calendar. Send details via the event submission form.
Human Relation Services
The Human Relation Services (HRS) can help. Wellesley Public Schools has contracted with HRS to provide up to ten free counseling visits for you and/or your family members. This program is designed to help you deal with stresses of life and work –including personal and family issues, drug or alcohol problems, and job related tension. It offers prevention and intervention to reduce these stresses and improve coping skills.
HRS is located at 11 Chapel Place in Wellesley and can be reached at 781-235-4950. This is a confidential service. Wellesley Public Schools is not aware of the names of employees or their family members who utilize this service.
Do you have a question for the WPS Human Resources Department?
Email AskHR@Wellesleyps.org. The Human Resources Department is happy to assist you.
WPS Internal Job Postings on District Website
For all Internal Job Postings, please go to “Internal Job Postings” under the Faculty tab of the District’s website. How to Apply for WPS Internal Job Postings as a New Internal Applicant