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Board hears summer learning schedule and logistics; commissioners press on transportation and equity

Waterbury Board of Education (Waterbury Public Schools) · December 29, 2024

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Summary

District staff outlined summer learning programs (July 7–30) including mandated elementary literacy camps and specialized ESY offerings; commissioners asked how students without parental transportation would attend magnet and enrichment programs and were told Waterbury resident students in certain programs receive busing but out‑of‑district magnet students do not.

District staff presented an overview of summer learning and extended school year (ESY) programs for 2025, detailing dates, sites and eligibility criteria.

Elementary summer school (extended academic support) is required by the state for students identified as literacy‑deficient; the elementary program runs July 7–30 (08:30–12:30, Monday–Thursday) at five K–8 sites and enrolls students based on end‑of‑year MCAS scores. Wendell Cross houses autism program sessions with extended hours (runs to 1:30 p.m. and includes Friday programming for that site). Secondary offerings include middle school credit recovery, high school credit recovery through August 1 at Waterbury Arts Magnet School (WAMS), robotics programs at Wallace Middle School, and an Early College High weeklong program at Post University.

Commissioners raised transportation and equity concerns. Commissioner O’Brien and others asked how students would get to summer programs when the district is not running general busing for magnet or enrichment programs; staff replied Waterbury resident students eligible for Maloney and Rotella programs do receive district busing when the placement is due to reading deficiency. Magnet enrichment programs such as WAMS Encore typically do not include district busing because they are not mandated and are budget‑dependent. Staff said community partners and fundraising help make out‑of‑pocket costs more accessible in some cases.

Special education ESY programs were described in detail, including five specialized programs at North End Middle School and autism programs at North End and Wilby. Pre‑K ESY sessions and associated meal provisions were also described.

Ending: The board heard clarifications on eligibility and transportation; staff agreed to double‑check busing policy details for specific programs and return any needed clarifications to the board.