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School committee authorizes summer school, hears plan for SnapPortal health portal and student supports
Summary
The committee authorized Beverly High School's summer school program (start: week after July 4; $200 per course, scholarships available) and heard a district demonstration of SnapPortal, a parent-facing health-record portal intended to improve medication tracking and compliance.
The Beverly School Committee on May 27 authorized the district’s summer school program for credit recovery and attendance support, approving the plan presented by Drew Redmond, director of summer school. The program starts the Monday after July 4, runs four weeks, meets five days a week and offers two two-hour class blocks per day. District students pay $200 per course (scholarships available); outside students pay $500. Enrollment in recent years ranged from about 63 to 77 students.
“The cost is 200 per per course. There are scholarships. So if you qualify for the universal scholarship, you don't pay,” Redmond said.
Superintendent Dr. Peter Cushing also presented an initiative to roll out a secure parent health portal, SnapPortal, which will centralize medication orders, immunization records and other student health documentation. Administration said the system is both FERPA- and HIPAA-compliant, syncs with the district’s Aspen student information system and supports about 130 languages. The district estimated an annual cost of roughly $0.40 per health record and budgeted training for nursing staff.
Dr. Cushing emphasized the operational benefit: with roughly 678 daily ADHD medication entries reported in district records, SnapPortal will reduce repeated phone calls and improve the timeliness of medication refills and order verification. Committee members raised practical concerns about parents’ access to Aspen and requested an instructional guide; administration committed to follow-up and training.
The committee also recognized Centerville Elementary for a Cycle Kids in-kind donation of bikes and curriculum, funded by a local sponsorship, and honored student artists who earned Gold Key recognition at Montserrat College of Art.
The summer-school authorization passed on a committee vote (7–0). The committee asked administration to finalize logistics, scholarship assignments and communication to families before registration opens.
