The Cheshire Board of Education on Aug. 14 approved participation of Cheshire High School students in an educational field trip to Italy after the curriculum committee reviewed the trip and other K–12 curriculum work.
During a curriculum-committee update, the presenter said the trip — led by teachers Katie Aporowski and Josephine Countryman and organized by EF Tours — would visit Milan, Cinque Terre, Florence, Rome and Sorrento; the committee described the itinerary as departing from New York City on day 1 and returning on day 11 and said the tour cost is “just over $5,000.”
“I'll make a motion that the Cheshire Board of Education approve the participation of Cheshire High School students in the educational field trip to Italy from April 3 through the 2026,” Doctor Harrigan read when presenting the motion; a public question during the motion asked who would pay. Curriculum staff answered that families pay for the trip and that teachers may provide fundraising options.
The committee also reported curriculum review summaries from the art and music departments. The art chair, Jillian Puckett, told the committee that the art department emphasized academic choice and “real world experiences” for students; music department chair Nicole Clego summarized a five-year review and said teachers plan to grow a music-technology pathway and pursue department-wide professional development.
The committee reviewed early-admission-to-kindergarten petitions: last year 31 families petitioned and 12 students were admitted after screening; this year 25 families petitioned and 8 students were admitted early. The presenter said the district will offer two transition-kindergarten programs for 2025–26 and that this will be the last year the transition program is offered.
Finally, committee members discussed the preliminary safe-school-climate survey results administered in April. Staff said parent participation was low and described plans to increase response rates by offering QR-code response stations at fall parent–teacher conferences, the curriculum conferences and other in-person events.