Government

Boston Celebrates First Electric School Buses

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Forty-two different schools have been selected to have some of their students ride the first electric schools buses in the Boston Public Schools (BPS) school bus fleet. Mayor Michelle Wu and other city personnel celebrated the arrival of the first two electric school buses on Feb. 6. Eighteen more buses will be coming to Boston in the coming weeks and are expected to be used following the February school vacation, according to a press release. “I’m grateful to the many people who have been instrumental in getting Boston to this point and helping us demonstrate the many overlapping benefits of moving to a green economy and ensuring that our kids and our workforce are at the center of that transition,” said Wu.

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Coronavirus

BPS Asks Students and Staff to Please Wear Masks for Eight Days

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Boston Public Schools Superintendent Mary Skipper sent a letter to the BPS community asking staff and students to wear masks to limit spreading COVID, RSV, and other illnesses, for the first eight days of school in January. "This is our ask and expectation of students and staff, not a mandate—which will be in effect during the school day on school premises and school buses," wrote Skipper. She emphasized that no one will be disciplined or sent home if they refuse to wear a mask. Skipper said the hope is to "maximize our ability to keep students healthy and minimize staff absences during this high-risk period," and that it's a temporary ask for students from Jan. 4 to Jan.

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Schools

English High School Celebrates 200th Birthday!

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With a mix of glitz and glory, the 200th celebration marking the English High School of Boston’s 200th anniversary wowed the 300-plus alumni and supporters attending the Gala at the Marriott Boston Copley Place Hotel on October 1. Legendary World War II Tuskegee Airman Enoch ‘Woody’ Woodhouse II (age 95, Class of ’44) was honored with a Lifetime Service Alumni Award. Gov. Charlie Baker recently promoted him to Brigadier General.  

In her guest video address, First Lady Dr. Jill Biden brought greetings, referring to her own lifelong devotion to education, emphasizing the importance of public education, commending EHS as the pioneering first public high school in America and its unbroken history of educating immigrants and their offspring. EHS 2022 alum and co-emcee Blanca Ramirez told the audience, “When I miss the place that gave me hope, determination and the opportunity to breathe again, I will visit our home -- English High School.”

Other EHS alumni luminaries in attendance included former Mass. Attorney General Francis Bellotti, retired Judge Thomas Connors, former MBTA General Manager Bob Prince, and retired Brigadier General Joseph Carter.

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Schools

Valedictorians Honored at Fenway Park; Three Jamaica Plain Residents Named Valedictorian

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Thirty-three Boston Public School valedictorians were honored at the annual Valedictorians Luncheon at Fenway Park by Mayor Michelle Wu, the Boston School Committee, and Superintendent Brenda Cassellius. Students were accompanied by their headmasters and families on May 31. This was the first in-person luncheon since 2019. This year three Jamaica Plain students were valedictorians:

Ivanna Mercado is the valedictorian for English High School and will attend UMass-Boston

Worknesh Bekele is the valedictorian of Fenway High School and will attend Northeastern University

Hazel McLaughlin is the valedictorian of Muriel S. Snowden International School at Copley and will attend Boston University

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Boston Public Schools

Superintendent Recommends Closing Mission Hill K-8 School After Investigations

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The Mission Hill K-8 School allowed students to be sexually and physically abused, harassed, and bullied for years, as school staff ignored repeated parental allegations, according to a 189-page external investigation. In a letter to the Boston Public Schools community, Superintendent Brenda Cassellius said she called for multiple investigations last fall after receiving additional complaints last summer. Cassellius is recommending that the School Committee vote in a special session next week to close the school at the end of the school year. Cassellius said that a change of leadership at the school would not change the culture of the school due to, "...lack of accountability shown by school leadership leaves no hope that simple changes in leadership or governance structure would address the pervasive, underlying issues that contributed to the unsafe conditions at the school." Shortly before this school year began, BPS removed the school's two leaders.

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From the Community

Jamaica Plain Students Receive St. Sebastian’s School Honor Roll

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St. Sebastian's School is proud to announce the Honor Roll recipients for the Third Quarter of the 2021-2022 school year. Recipients of these academic awards fall into three categories: High Honors, maintains an A- or above in all subjects; Honors with Distinction, maintains a B or above in all subjects; and Honors, maintains a B- or above in all subjects. The following students are from Jamaica Plain:
Michael J. Kalinichenko, Grade 11, High Honors
Maxim D. Kalinichenko, Grade 9, High Honors
Luis E. Sosa Espinal, Grade 9, Honors with Distinction

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From the Community

Local Students Earn St. Sebastian’s Honor Roll

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St. Sebastian's School is proud to announce the Honor Roll recipients for the Second Quarter and First Semester of the 2021-2022 school year. Recipients of these academic awards fall into three categories: High Honors, maintains an A- or above in all subjects; Honors with Distinction, maintains a B or above in all subjects; and Honors, maintains a B- or above in all subjects. The following students are from Jamaica Plain:
Maxim D. Kalinichenko, Grade 9, High Honors
Michael J. Kalinichenko, Grade 11, High Honors
Luis E. Sosa Espinal, Grade 9, Honors

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Schools

Iron Workers Union Distributes School Supply Donations to Boston Teachers and Families

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It's no secret that many teachers spend their own money on supplies to help students succeed. With that in mind, Iron Workers Local 7 recently donated supplies to hundreds of Boston teachers and families. Iron Workers Local 7 NEXT Committee host its 2nd Annual Mid-Year School Supply Drive on Feb. 26 to replenish school supplies for Boston students and teachers. Hundreds of Local 7 families and Boston area students and teachers stopped by the union hall in South Boston to pick up new supplies.

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Arts

Eliot School’s Alison Croney Moses Awarded Prestigious US Artists Fellowship

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The Eliot School's Associate Director Alison Croney Moses, has been awarded a prestigious US Artists Fellowship. This national prize recognizes artists with a $50,000 cash award for their contributions to the field. Croney Moses is one of five award-winners in the field of craft, among a total of 63 thinkers and makers who represent communities across 23 states and Puerto Rico, spanning every career stage, and illuminating a breadth of artistic practices, according to a press release. “After another year of challenges brought on by the pandemic, artists continue uplifting those around them and investing in their communities. The 2022 USA Fellows were selected for their remarkable artistic vision and their commitment to community – both within their specific regions and discipline at large,” says the US Artists’ website.

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Boston Public Schools

Boston Public Schools Superintendent to Resign at End of School Year

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Boston Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Cassellius submitted her resignation on Monday to transition out of her role at the end of school year. "When I arrived in Boston in July 2019, I couldn’t have predicted that eight months later the world as we knew it would change. Since then we’ve confronted a global pandemic, reckoned with escalating racial division and civil unrest, and worked to repair community relationships that had eroded trust in our schools and confidence in our city," wrote Cassellius in her letter. "It is nothing short of remarkable that in the midst of it all we also developed a community-wide vision for equitable and excellent schools in every neighborhood of Boston; made historic steps forward in expanding access to our nation-leading exam schools; implemented a rigorous set of high graduation standards for every high school in the district with adoption of the MassCore; and put in place more just and transparent attendance, code of conduct, student privacy and grading policies." Cassellius thanked former Mayor Marty Walsh for hiring her, acting mayor Kim Kaney, and Wu in her letter.

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