Wareham School Committee adopts interim competency determination after state removes MCAS graduation requirement

The Wareham School Committee voted 5-0 on Feb. 6 to adopt an interim competency determination for the classes of 2025 and 2026 that replaces passage of the MCAS as the sole route to a diploma.

Under the motion approved unanimously, students in the classes of 2025 and 2026 must earn a passing grade in tenth-grade English (English 10), a high-school math course (generally geometry or Algebra II), and a biology-based science (biology, chemistry or physics) to satisfy the district's competency determination. The vote was presented as an interim measure; the committee said it will revisit the policy for the class of 2027 and beyond.

The committee adopted the change after discussion of state law and guidance. Superintendent Dr. D'Andrea reviewed an amendment to Chapter 69, section 1D of Massachusetts law that removed MCAS as the automatic competency determinant and requires districts to certify coursework that demonstrates mastery of state standards. Principal Scott Paladino presented the district's recommended approach and said the measure was intended to serve students now in the cohort that took MCAS with the expectation it would determine graduation eligibility.

Public comment and student perspectives shaped the debate. Brian Fitzgerald, a fifth-grade teacher and parent, urged the committee not to reinstate MCAS as a graduation requirement for Wareham, citing concerns about test validity, bias and reliability and saying many parents had voted in November to remove MCAS as a criterion. "If my child had earned a diploma ... and then a test that no longer needed to be used as a criterion for graduation was suddenly reinstated as such, my solution would be very simple: I would move," Fitzgerald said.

Student members and the student advisory council were heard as well. Sofia O'Neil, a recent transfer and member of the student advisory council, described her positive experience at Wareham High School. Student representative Emma (last name not specified in transcript) said classmates had mixed reactions to MCAS: some students welcomed its removal as a graduation requirement because it reduced stress, while others used the test data to guide learning. "When we first heard that it was not a graduation requirement anymore, so many people ... were very excited," Emma said. But she also said some students appreciated MCAS as a way to see where they needed to improve.

Committee members cited state guidance and association positions during discussion. April (full name not recorded) noted the Massachusetts Association of School Committees (MASC) had urged rethinking high-stakes testing and said the town's November ballot reflected voters' will. Other members, including Jeff and Brennan (last names not recorded), expressed concern that removing a common state assessment could reduce consistent, objective measures of competency across districts and said the district should monitor outcomes closely.

Paladino told the committee the proposed local standard aligns with what many Massachusetts districts are adopting after the November vote. He said most students who need competency determination already have the required coursework completed; the primary urgency is for a small number of seniors who have not yet received a competency determination and need clarity for graduation.

Vote and next steps: The motion to adopt the interim competency determination passed unanimously, 5-0. Committee members said they plan to return in the fall with a proposal for the class of 2027 and beyond, after seeing how the current approach works for students who still need a competency determination.

Why it matters: The state change removed MCAS as the default route to a diploma, leaving local school committees to certify that coursework demonstrates the skills previously measured by high-school MCAS tests. The committee's interim approach ties competency to standard, grade-level course outcomes so seniors who have not yet passed MCAS have a clear path to graduate this year and next.

The committee emphasized the distinction between competency determination and local graduation-credit requirements: students still must meet Wareham's course-credit and other graduation policies as published in the program of studies.

Provenance (transcript excerpts): "I saw there was an item discussing, the use of MCAS as a graduation, requirement in Wareham" (Brian Fitzgerald, public comment, transcript starts ~s:52) ... "Do I have a motion to accept the competency determination as described by Principal Palladino? So moved." (motion and vote recorded ~s:5888)