Lewiston administrators report smooth start to 2025–26 school year; special programs, facilities and staffing highlighted

At a Lewiston School Committee meeting Monday, district leaders reported a broadly smooth start to the 2025–26 school year while summarizing new programs, facility work and staffing needs.

The updates, delivered under agenda item 6, covered individual school openings, special-education placements and co-teaching expansions, new career-technical offerings, summer facilities work and early data on enrollment and attendance — items administrators said matter for classroom instruction and district planning.

Administrators from elementary, middle and high schools credited planning, custodial and facilities work for the smooth openings. “The pulse right now feels really good,” Superintendent Jake Langley said when he introduced the reports, and several principals described positive feedback from staff and families.

Deb Bryant, principal of Connors, said staffing and routines helped produce “the smoothest start since Connors has opened,” and described classroom-level steps to improve safety and consistency. “All staff have emergency response bags…they have Band‑Aids, gloves, [and] items needed for an evacuation,” Bryant said, describing contents and noting some classrooms include diabetic snacks to support students with medical needs.

Farwell and several other elementary schools reported new co‑teaching classrooms that pair general education and special-education or multilingual staff. A Farwell administrator said the school is running two co‑teaching kindergarten classrooms for multilingual students; another principal said Connors and McMahon have expanded special‑purpose rooms and interventions to allow more students to receive services in-district.

At the middle school, administrators described a new STEM+M (science, technology, engineering, math, plus manufacturing) program that will be supported by roughly a half‑million dollars in equipment and curriculum over five years. The middle school also described changes to bathroom management — a single‑student pass system using a visible clipboard on the bathroom door frame — and said the district will use LCIP (local capital improvement plan) funds this year to study longer‑term building modifications to address state code and privacy concerns.

Lewiston High School administrators reported a strong start to the year and said preliminary counts showed 1,642 students present on opening day. School leaders cited increases in graduation rates and stronger early literacy and math results, and described ongoing partnerships — including with Tree Street Youth’s Branches program and a second year of a guided work/credit recovery program for seniors.

Career and technical education updates came from Rob Schmidt of the Lewiston Regional Technical Center. Schmidt said LRTC students won a silver medal in a national EMT SkillsUSA competition and that the school hosted a first Maine Construction Academy with OSHA and CPR certifications. He reported a successful fundraiser car show that raised about $6,000 for programs.

Adult education director Jen Tyner presented a new brochure and reported 1,821 enrollments through June and growth in workforce programming; Tyner said the program met state benchmarks for measurable skill gains and noted the state’s expanded ways to count gains, including HiSET subtest passes and credential attainment.

The multilingual office reported rising enrollment: staff said the district ended last year with just over 2,000 multilingual learners, has exited 117 students from the program, and had identified 177 new multilingual students since July 1. Administrators said 60 new students were registered after teachers returned for the start of the year.

Several members of the committee asked about staffing and retention; a public commenter had earlier asked the committee to publish retention and vacancy data and to use exit interviews. Several administrators said retention work and staff recruitment remain priorities.

Facilities director Bill (last name not stated) summarized summer projects and said many planned repairs and upgrades were completed, though older buildings required unanticipated adjustments — for example an unexpected structural header delayed one door installation at Montello. Committee members praised facilities and the summer youth employment program for helping get buildings ready.

Transportation and nutrition were reported to be functioning with fewer problems than in recent years. Langley and principals stressed attendance and truancy as ongoing priorities; the superintendent said the district would report on truancy and targeted supports as the year progresses.

What’s next: administrators said LCIP planning and a facilities assessment will guide bathroom and lab renovations, and principals asked for continued committee support around staffing, persistent absences and program funding.