Wilkins Elementary spotlighted; school committee approves DESE resubmittal to add special‑education changing stations

Wilkins Elementary Principal Kathleen Monahan presented programs the school uses to boost student engagement and achievement — including cross‑grade buddy pairs, a mentor program, monthly 'communities', enrichment clubs and flexible math grouping — and reported strong early‑literacy results. “This past fall, our first graders all took the beginning‑of‑year benchmark, and 79 percent of them were proficient in that,” Monahan said, describing the data she uses to set school focus areas.

Why it matters: Committee members praised the school and requested wider community access to a staff‑produced video showing classrooms and routines. That outreach was framed as timely ahead of the town meeting and budget cycle.

What the committee discussed and decided: Administrators explained a resubmittal to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to modify schematics so special‑education classrooms have toileting rooms large enough for full‑size changing stations. “The actual footprint of the school is not changing at all,” Monahan said, and staff emphasized the program proposed is not being altered; instead, a small amount of classroom square footage would be reallocated to enlarge bathroom/toileting rooms to accommodate future needs. Committee members asked whether the work would add to the approved building budget; administrators replied the resubmittal does not add funds to the current elementary‑school building budget and that the work was recommended (not mandated), but delaying it could increase future costs.

Committee action: A motion to approve the DESE resubmittal was moved and seconded; the roll‑call vote recorded four ayes and the motion carried 4–0.

Public comment context: Earlier in public comment, resident David Lurie urged the committee to pause planned redistricting and the Wilkins closure, saying recent housing approvals could bring more families and that keeping Wilkins open would preserve capacity. “I think that it makes sense to just kinda pause on it a little bit,” Lurie said.

Details and clarifications: Administrators said adding changing stations requires roughly 20–30 square feet per toilet room. The presentation referenced both “79 percent” and “80 percent” proficiency numbers for early literacy benchmarks in the transcript; the committee’s materials should be consulted for the official published figure. The resubmittal letter to DESE explains the footprint and program are unchanged and that the modification ensures changing spaces are included during initial construction rather than added later.

What’s next: The resubmittal was approved; administrators and project staff will proceed with DESE coordination. Committee members requested the Wilkins video link be provided to SMAC and posted for community viewing prior to town meeting and budget deliberations.