School Committee Newsletter

A School Committee goal for the 2023-2024 year is: “Create greater engagement with students, parents, guardians, and the entire town. Increase access to and frequency of information about Ipswich Public Schools.” To begin to address this goal, we have launched a social media presence to broaden our messaging on Facebook and Instagram.

The purpose of our accounts is for The Ipswich School Committee to share information with the community. Posts mirror our Newsletter and include meeting agendas as well as relevant district highlights and publications. The accounts supplement the official postings on the Ipswich Public Schools district website, and are offered as a courtesy by the School Committee to help keep the community informed.

Note that in order to abide by the Open Meeting Law, the commenting feature on posts has been turned off. The Ipswich School Committee values input from the community. To contact The Ipswich School Committee, you may speak at “Public Comment” towards the beginning of every meeting, or email school_committee@ipsk12.net (correspondence shall be with the Chair).

When following us on Facebook, please go to “Settings & privacy” → “Notifications” (under “Preferences”) → “Groups” → “Ipswich School Committee” and click “All posts” (under In-app notifications) to stay up to date with the most current content.

The Ipswich School Committee, working closely with the Superintendent and Director of Finance, has finalized the timeline for crafting next year's school budget. Notably, this year's schedule includes dedicated periods in February and March, allowing town boards and residents ample time to review the budget and address any inquiries before its final presentation at the Town Meeting in May. We look forward to sharing more information, including specific dates, in the upcoming months.

Last April, the district submitted a Statement of Interest (SOI) for each elementary school to the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) for construction funding assistance. These documents highlight the severe overcrowding and obsolete building conditions in each facility. A question posed on the application is: “Is this a Potential Consolidation?” The answer was listed as “Yes,” as consolidation is being considered and may be further investigated during a future Feasibility Study.

The MSBA process is highly selective. This year, the MSBA received 63 SOI submissions and will determine which schools will be accepted in December. In 2022, the MSBA received 54 submissions and accepted 10 schools from 10 separate districts. The MSBA typically does not accept two major projects at the same time in one district. If consolidation is not chosen, two separate and successive building projects would therefore need to be pursued over several years.

The MSBA recommended that our School Committee tour schools in other districts who have recently completed the MSBA process to help determine our guiding principles as we embark on this process again. We plan to tour schools over the next few months to help us envision the future of elementary education in Ipswich.

In collaboration with the School Committee, the Superintendent sets annual goals to reflect the priorities and vision of the district. This year’s goals include:

• Unpack the state’s new Comprehensive Health and Physical Education guidelines

• Ensure the successful integration of new administrators

• Develop a budget for the ’25 school year

• Improve ongoing communication with the educational community

• Lead the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion work in the District

See the full set of detailed Superintendent goals HERE.

• The Ipswich Public Schools Policy Manual can now be found on the Massachusetts Association of School Committees website; notably, this will allow users to employ a keyword search when inquiring about specific policies.

• In the September Tri-Board meeting, we provided an update on the elementary school building project statement of interest submission. Additionally, we discussed the Whittier building project, the budget process, and shared goals for the Tri-Board.

• We are excited to announce that Jimmy Bornstein will continue to serve as the Student Representative on the School Committee for a second year.

• Tracy Wagner, Director of Teaching and Learning, provided us with a 2023 MCAS Presentation. Review our district assessment here.

• The School Committee organized an orientation and onboarding workshop in September, ensuring a smooth transition for new members.

• Thursday, November 2nd - School Committee Meeting - 7pm in the Middle/High School Ensemble Room and online

• Friday, November 10th - No School - Veterans Day (observed)

• Tuesday, November 14th - Tri-Board Meeting - 7pm at Town Hall

• Thursday, November 16th - School Committee Meeting - 7pm in the Middle/High School Ensemble Room and online

• Wednesday, November 22nd - Early Release

• Thursday, November 23rd - No School - Thanksgiving Break

• Friday, November 24th - No School - Thanksgiving Break

Continue to stay up to date on district events and school committee news by following Ipswich School Committee on Facebook and Instagram.