Welcome to the March newsletter from the Marblehead School Committee. This month was particularly active as we addressed several significant issues. The Fiscal Year 2026 budget has undergone a thorough review and was approved by the School Committee on March 20. The School Committee will present the budget to the Finance Committee for approval on March 31 and subsequently to Town Meeting for approval in May. The Marblehead School Committee voted unanimously at the March 6 meeting to approve the naming of the Marblehead High…
A Glover School special education preschool teacher fired in the aftermath of a student restraint crisis has been cleared of any wrongdoing by a state arbitrator. Arbitrator Mary Ellen Shea ruled on March 27 that Patty Frawley, who lives in town, be hired back at Glover. “The decision to fire Patricia Frawley on April 17, 2024, was not supported by just cause,” Shea wrote. “The district is ordered to immediately reinstate Patricia Frawley to her position and restore all wages and benefits she would have…
The future looks bright after visiting the Brown School’s third annual STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) Fair where the next generation showed off their ingenuity and imagination on March 27. More than 215 students in kindergarten through third grade presented creative projects to a packed gymnasium of proud parents and family members. Brown School teachers, dressed in white lab coats, roamed the aisles handing out ribbons. First-grader Adeline Frias, 6, walked people through her intricate project, called “How does a chameleon’s tongue work?”…
It’s a big weekend for Marblehead High School senior Aoife Sullivan, whose short film will be presented as part of the Salem Film Festival. Sullivan’s movie, “Making Magic in Marblehead,” focuses on local architect Tom Saltsman and his famous Halloween installations that make news around the world each year. Her 10-minute movie was selected as part of the festival’s “Keeping it Reel” student documentary showcase. The poster for MHS student Aoife Sullivan's short film debuting at the Salem Film Festival this weekend. COURTESY IMAGE Sullivan’s…
The Marblehead Public Schools are sending out a reminder that Friday, March 28, is the deadline to register children for integrated preschool for 2025-26. "Our classrooms are designed to provide high-quality early childhood education for children aged 3–4 years old (with some students turning 5 during the school year). Our mixed-age preschool classrooms provide a continuum of Early Childhood Special Education services, which are designed for young children with disabilities who need specially designed instruction or related services and whose disability(ies) causes the child to…
It’s been called a “hell-raising journey to the underworld and back” and it’s coming to town next month. Anya Kane plays Eurydice, with Sadie Newberg, Scarlett Kindle,and Lucy Key as the Fates. COURTESY PHOTOS Marblehead High School students are preparing to present the Tony Award-winning musical, “Hadestown: Teen Edition,” the weekend of April 11 at the high school. The show is a retelling of the ancient Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, set against a background inspired by the New Orleans jazz bar scene in the…
Students at the Glover School are celebrating March Madness with a literary twist. This year, kindergarten through third-grade students have embarked on a reading adventure, to see how many minutes they can read each week. The read-a-thon has featured special guests, too, like mystery readers in blow-up costumes. Updated brackets are read in each classroom. On St. Patrick’s Day, older students visited Glover and built traps to catch leprechauns with their elementary school buddies. Glover School students joined March Madness with a read-a-thon! They also…
For the first time, the full School Committee debated a proposed flag policy on March 20, with members expressing differing views and deciding to ask the district’s legal counsel additional questions before settling on a plan. The most recent draft policy allows only the U.S., state, and POW/MIA flags on school property and gives the School Committee sole authority to determine any other flags, banners and symbolic displays on district property. It excludes input from students, administrators and the community. The draft policy could lead…
The full School Committee is scheduled to have its first of three required public readings of a draft flag policy Thursday, March 20. The meeting, held at Marblehead High School, begins at 6 p.m. People can join virtually HERE. Flags like these inside Marblehead High School could be removed from all school property if a draft policy is approved. CURRENT PHOTO / LEIGH BLANDER On March 7, the School Committee’s policy subcommittee released its latest draft flag policy, which excludes students and the community from…
At least three people pulled papers on March 17 in the race for two School Committee seats now held by Sarah Fox and Alison Taylor. The election is June 10. Incumbent Fox, along with attorney Kate Schmeckpeper and graphic designer Henry Gwazda all plan to run. Taylor did not return multiple messages about her plans. Attorney and mother-of-four Kate Schmeckpeper is running for School Committee. CURRENT PHOTO / LEIGH BLANDER Schmeckpeper and her husband moved to Marblehead 11 years ago. Their four children have attended…
