Superintendent updates: free senior event access, facility repairs, Chromebook fee policy and November data presentation

Superintendent Brian delivered the Oct. 8 administrative report, covering community access to athletic events, facility repairs, Chromebook fee guidance and plans for a November academic data presentation.

To mark community month, the district will invite local seniors residing in Newbury, Rowley and Salisbury to attend ticketed basketball, hockey and football events free of charge upon presentation of qualifying ID. Brian said the district does not expect a precise headcount because the process relies on ID checks for eligibility.

On facilities, the superintendent reported that Salisbury schools had HVAC issues that have been fixed at a cost of roughly $20,000, with the town of Salisbury covering that expense; larger roof and HVAC upgrades are in planning. Pine Grove's problems were septic-related; Brian said the town of Rowley has spent about $65,000 on alarms, pumps and sensors and the district is finalizing work so school staff can maintain the system.

The superintendent also addressed Chromebook damage billing: families will be billed for accidental damage when it is accidental but preventable; damage truly outside a student's control will be reviewed and may not be billed. "If it was outside the control, then we're not charging the family," he said, and added that staff will consider nuances case by case.

Finally, Brian said the district will delay the usual October performance presentation until November because of delays in receiving assessment data (including AI scoring delays and the absence of a parent portal). The November presentation will combine multiple measures (VOCAL, SQM, iReady and MCAS) and show district- and school-level results. He noted the district exceeded state mathematics growth benchmarks for grades 3through 8 and also reported improvement in science at those grades.