Thursday, March 21, 2013
The Barrington School Committee meets at 7:30 pm in Town Hall.
The much-anticipated tribute to the late John Gray, principal at Barrington High School for 29 years, is back on the agenda for tonight's Barrington School Committee meeting. The meeting starts at 7:30 pm in the School Committee Meeting Room in the Town Hall. The high school auditorium is the focus of the tribute to Gray, who passed away last fall. It was to have been revealed at the meeting two weeks ago, but a snow storm canceled the session. The auditorium at the high school was selected as the spot to keep Gray's memory alive after BHS Principal Joseph Hurley reported that it generated "the most interest" among staff at the high school and for Gray's wife. The auditorium is the place where most students and parents met Gray for the …
Friday, March 15, 2013
All-day kindergarten could be had for around $141,000 in Barrington, but is it necessary? And will the number of teachers drop as students disappear?
All-day kindergarten could be started for about $141,000 in Barrington right now, but is it necessary? With enrollment dropping in Barrington, what is the right number of teachers needed in the schools? What is the right technology for Barrington’s students? Those three subject areas dominated the annual joint session of the School Committee and the Committee on Appropriations (COA) Thursday night. The proposed school budget for next fiscal year of $46.18 million actually got scant attention. Rosetta Narvaez, a COA member, questioned the actual value of all-day kindergarten in Barrington – no matter what the cost. She also questioned whether the subcommittee set up to look at all-day K will be objective given the School Committee’s …
Thursday, March 14, 2013
The Barrington School Committee and the Committee on Appropriations meet in Town Hall to review the proposed school operating budget for next year, which makes up 70 percent of all spending.
The School Committee meets in its annual joint session with the Committee on Appropriations tonight to discuss the proposed 2013-14 operating budget for the Barrington schools. The joint meeting starts at 7 pm in the School Committee Meeting Room in Town Hall. The proposed school budget for next year is $46.18 million or 3.7 percent more in spending than this year -- about $1.46 million. The spending plan creates a $1.05 million impact on Barrington taxpayers or a 2.37 percent boost in local contribution. State aid for next year is estimated at $984,000. The budget, of course, is still a work in progress because of contract negotiations with the teachers’ union – although an estimated amount for salaries and benefits is already built into …
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
The Barrington School Committee plans to create a tribute to the longtime principal at the high school that involves the auditorium.
The tribute to John Gray, the late principal at Barrington High School for 29 years, is on the agenda for the Barrington School Committee meeting on Thursday evening, March 7. The auditorium at the high school was selected for some type of tribute to Gray, who passed away last fall. The School Committee voted unanimously to pursue recommendations on how the auditorium can best keep Gray's memory alive at the high school. The vote came after BHS Principal Joseph Hurley reported that the auditorium generated "the most interest" among staff at the high school and for Gray's wife. The auditorium is the place where most students and parents met Gray for the first time when they were freshmen entering the school, Hurley said. And "John loved the…
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
The Barrington School Committee is seeking members to serve on four subcommittees being set up to help implement the 2012-2017 Strategic Plan.
The Barrington School Committee invites you to serve on one of its new subcommittees. Four subcommittees -- all-day kindergarten, policy, strategic communication, and technology -- are being set up to help implement the new 2012-2017 Strategic Plan. All members of the community -- including students -- with strong skills in team collaboration, creative thinking, and an interest in strategic planning are invited to apply to serve, said Superintendent Michael Messore. “The subcommittees, through simultaneous work relative to key district issues as identified in the Strategic Plan, will conduct research and provide recommendations to the School Committee to facilitate its decision making process in its quest to move the district forward on …
Friday, February 22, 2013
The Barrington School Committee sends a proposed budget to the Committee on Appropriations that shows a new 2.37 percent or $1.05 million impact on taxpayers.
A proposed school spending plan for next year was sent to Barrington’s number crunchers Thursday night. The Barrington School Committee approved unanimously a $46.18 million operating budget for next year that shows a 2.37 percent boost or $1.05 million impact on taxpayers. The proposed budget goes now to the Committee on Appropriations next Tuesday, Feb. 26, for that board’s first look at the spending plan for FY 2013-2014. The proposed budget is $1.46 million higher than this year. Or a 3.7 percent boost in spending. The budget, of course, is still a work in progress because of contract negotiations with the teachers’ union – although an estimated amount for salaries and benefits is already built into the budget. The budget also …
Thursday, February 21, 2013
The Barrington School Committee meets again tonight; an analysis of students' most recent achievement test scores and the proposed operating budget for next year top the agenda.
A presentation on Barrington students' most recent New England Common Assessment Program (NECAP) scores tops the agenda for the School Committee meeting tonight, Feb. 21. But a proposed budget of $46.128 million or about $1.45 million more than the current budget also is back on the agenda. Superintendent Michael Messore and Curriculum Director Paula Dillon will provide an assessment of the scores, which again put Barrington at the top of the list for schools in the state. But the scores are lower than a year ago and quite a bit lower than five years ago. Of specific concern are drops in reading and math scores at three of the elementary schools: Nayatt, Primrose Hill and Sowams. Messore did not want to comment on the scores until an …
Friday, February 15, 2013
Barrington School Committee sees a proposed budget for next year that boosts local property taxes about $1 million or 2.37 percent.
The Barrington School Committee got a look at a proposed operating budget for next year that shows a 2.37 percent boost or $1.05 million hike in local property taxes. The budget is still very much a work in progress because of contract negotiations with the teachers’ union – although an estimated amount for salaries and benefits is already built into the budget. As presented by Ron Tarro, finance director, on Thursday night, the new proposed budget is $46.128 million or about $1.45 million more than the current budget. That is a 3.7 percent hike. An increase of approximately $1.138 million is estimated for additional compensation for all employees. That leaves an estimated $310,000 for other operating expenses. Tarro explained that the …
Thursday, February 14, 2013
The Barrington School Committee meets tonight at 7:30 for the second week in a row with all-day kindergarten and the school facilities-use policy on the docket.
All-day kindergarten and the school facilities-use policy top the agenda for the Barrington School Committee meeting tonight, Feb. 14. The meeting starts at 7:30 pm in the School Committee Meeting Room in Town Hall. All-day kindergarten has been a preference of the School Committee for some time. A decision has always been put off for financial reasons. A year ago, the previous School Committee saw a potential $1.3 million cost to implement all-day kindergarten in the first year -- most of the cost would go toward the construction of three classrooms. But the School Committee also saw that children who go to all-day kindergarten are better prepared for first grade, they gain literacy and language skills quicker, and they have better …
Friday, February 8, 2013
The Barrington School Committee agrees that a new facility-use policy could use another look.
Barrington’s policy on the use of school facilities by community organizations will be getting another look. The School Committee -- minus two absent members -- agreed to forward the policy on to a subcommittee that may be assigned to peruse all school policies. First-term School Committee member Paula Dominguez asked that the policy be assessed because she said: “There are some inconsistencies that concern me … which create a fairness issue.” Dominguez said that the policy, which was revised before she was a board member, now has four categories of potential users of the auditoriums, cafeteria, classrooms and gymnasiums; the policy used to have three categories. The four categories are civic organizations that charge an admission fee or …
Tricia Adams
10:16 am on Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Fabulous post! I agree 100%. more ›