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Holbrook schools report smooth start; district plans Yondr pouch rollout and flags rising ELL enrollment
Summary
Superintendent Julie Hamilton told the School Committee the district opened smoothly, MCAS scores are embargoed until late September, the district will begin using Yondr pouches in November (with a workshop Oct. 22) and leaders said the English Language Learner population is growing rapidly, prompting likely increases in ESL staffing.
Holbrook Superintendent Julie Hamilton told the School Committee on Sept. 12 that the district's 2024'25 school year opened smoothly and that preliminary MCAS results are embargoed; the district will share test data with families in late September and present an action plan to the committee in October.
Hamilton announced the Holbrook Middle-High School will implement Yondr phone pouches in November and scheduled a community workshop on the program for 6:00 p.m. on Oct. 22 in the school auditorium to answer questions about the rollout and use of the pouches.
John F. Kennedy Elementary School Principal Mallory Stevens said staff focused on social-emotional learning, the PBIS program and curriculum review during preopening work; kindergarten began the day after the first official school day and preschool is set to begin the following Monday. Stevens played a video montage documenting the start of the year.
Holbrook Middle-High School Principal Joshua Tarsky reported high attendance at open house events and said he and a colleague, Mr. Kaulbfliesch, have been meeting with each grade during flex block to set grade-level expectations around conduct. Tarsky described the Yondr initiative as part of that conduct effort.
Curriculum Director Stefanie DeRosa and Hamilton told the committee the district's English Language Learner population "is growing rapidly." DeRosa provided current staffing counts: 1.6 ESL teachers at the Middle-High School and 2.5 at JFK. She said the elementary level will likely need to increase to at least one full-time ESL teacher next year to meet demand.
The district also noted personnel changes, including the hiring of Emily Sanchez (long-term substitute prekindergarten teacher), Ryan Shannon (math teacher) and Kathryn Viles (paraprofessional), and resignations including a crossing guard and a paraprofessional.
Next steps: the district will share MCAS data with families in late September and bring a formal action plan to the School Committee in October; a Yondr information workshop is scheduled for Oct. 22 and the pouch program is slated to begin in November.
