SPS District Newsletter

May 2025

A Message from Superintendent Carmona

Dear SPS Community,

Every day our teachers inspire, support, and educate the next generation in Somerville. The hard work of teachers has an invaluable impact on the lives of students and keeps them on the path to academic and personal success. We all remember the impact our favorite teachers had on our own lives. That is why I am so honored to wish our community a Happy Teacher Appreciation Week!

Last Thursday was Principal Appreciation Day. I want to recognize and celebrate the incredible leadership, dedication, and heart our principals bring to their schools every single day. Thank you to each and every one of our principals for all you do in Somerville Public Schools.

Also, last Wednesday was Nurse Appreciation Day. I want to send out a big, heart-felt thank you to the school nurses for keeping our students safe and healthy.

As superintendent, supporting educators and principals as they educate our students, requires effective stewardship of our district resources. As you probably know, my team is working hard to finalize the school district budget for the 2025–2026 school year.

I want to be clear, I take seriously the responsibility of ensuring that every dollar entrusted to us supports high-quality education and aligns with the goals in our Strategic Plan. We remain committed to strong academic programs and the work that goes into making sure that our students can achieve academic success.

Just as we worked together to develop a Strategic Plan, I recognize that every family has a stake in this budget. I appreciate the feedback that the community has been providing me and the school committee. I would also like to encourage interested community members to find more information about the current budget and the budget process on the Finance website.

I am deeply grateful to work in Somerville, where residents are committed to students’ success. Thank you for your continued support and involvement in our schools.

With gratitude,

Dr. Ruben Carmona

Superintendent

Student and Staff Stories

Keith Lockhart Visits the Raccoon Class at the Capuano

Conductor Keith Lockhart is celebrating his 30th year with the Boston Pops and he chose to share some of the celebration with our Raccoon class at the Capuano Early Childhood Center! It all started when the class’s paraprofessional, Ms. Kathy Kumar, sent a fan letter on behalf of the students. Ms. Ritchie's Raccoon class loves watching the Boston Pops “Charlie on the MTA” video as part of their transportation unit. On meeting Mr. Lockhart, students walked into the library carrying a banner they made with their educators. Afterward they watched the video, asked questions, then got a wonderful conducting lesson to the Pops playing Stars and Stripes. While staff know we have talented students, it was gratifying to hear Mr. Lockhart tell the children that they are “all natural conductors!” We couldn’t agree more!

Scholarship winners sit together on a set of steps

6 Students win Scholarship to Summer Berklee Music Program

Six Somerville High School student musicians won a combined total of $32,580 in tuition scholarships! With that money, they are invited to attend the world-famous Berklee School of Music Aspire: Five-Week Music Performance Intensive program. Congratulations Enzo, Maya, Renata, Aden, Milo, and Serena! Read more.

36 SHS Juniors and Seniors Qualify for Prestigious Massachusetts Seal of Biliteracy

Congratulations to the 24 seniors and 12 juniors who qualified for the prestigious Massachusetts Seal of Biliteracy this year! The Seal of Biliteracy is awarded by the district and the State of Massachusetts to students who can prove language proficiency, in both English and a world language, through exams. 13 seniors and 4 juniors won with Distinction, showing unusually advanced scores. World languages included Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, French, Polish, Japanese, and Sinhala. Well done students!

SHS History Teacher Appointed to Statewide Council

SHS History Teacher Adda Santos was sworn on to the K–12 Statewide Graduation Council in April. She will be part of a seasoned team committed to reassessing graduation requirements in Massachusetts. Great work and thank you, Ms. Santos!

Carpentry students pose in front of their bench for auction

Carpentry Students Build a Bench for Auction at Bruins Game

Bosch Power Tools and the Boston Bruins partnered up with our Career and Technical Education (CTE) Carpentry Program students for the second year in a row. Bosch generously donated $10,000 in professional grade tools and the Boston Bruins Foundation donated used hockey sticks as raw material. Talented student carpenters built a one-of-a-kind bench using creativity, know-how, and the right tools for the job. Thank you, Bosch! The Boston Bruins Foundation auctioned off the chair at the April 15 Bruins Game. The proceeds from the winning $2000 bid will go toward the CTE Carpentry program.

Students, staff, and volunteers at the Credit for Life fair

Students Learn Real-World Personal Finance

Congratulations to the CTE Department and Ms. Harney for another successful Credit for Life Fair at Somerville High School. Held in the lower cafeteria, juniors and seniors in CTE programs were assigned a ‘salary.’ They then stopped by booths and had to make financial decisions, like allocating money for every day spending on rent, transportation, entertainment and more. Using the information at hand, students learned how to create a balanced personal budget. Thank you to Northern Bank, who sent 40 volunteers to work with our students.

AFAS Engineering

Eighth grade students at the Argenziano worked on exciting engineering projects using micro:bit educational technology. They built and programmed devices that included sporting good and medical devices, environmental sensors and more. They presented their projects to grade 5, 7 and other visitors, explaining the data and scientific processes that lead to their innovative projects. Thank you to their science educator Mr. Mike Coughlin for this hands-on experience!

Students and caregivers play literacy games around a table

K-3 Literacy Night at Healey School

The Healey School held a fun-filled night of playful learning in April. Students have been playing literacy games in classrooms and had the chance to teach their families those games. Everyone had a great time and the building was full of families learning together. The night wrapped up with pizza and bingo for books. Every child chose a book to bring home, along with their literacy game.

New Books to Celebrate AANHPI Month

All of our school libraries will have new books just in time to celebrate Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage (AANHPI) Month in May. Thank you to the Somerville Asian Family Network (SAFN) for generously donating the funds to purchase these new books. SAFN held a Book Look event recently and students got a sneak peek at the book list! The book list was developed collaboratively with SAFN members, students, our K12 Library and Media Supervisor and the City of Somerville Racial and Social Justice Department.

Information for Families

Any activities listed below are free, unless otherwise indicated.

Memorial Day: No School May 26

May 26. All schools and district offices closed.

City of Somerville Memorial Day Parade

May 25, 11:00 a.m. step off time from Davis Square. Visit the website to find rain date information and more details.

Somerville Recreation Department Programming for Summer

The Somerville Recreation Department released a 2025 Spring / Summer Guide to their programming. Be sure to check it out or visit their website to learn about programs.

Get Ready for Kindergarten Workshop

May 15, 9–10:00 a.m. Join a free, virtual workshop to learn ways to support your child as they transition to school. Registration.

Baby Sign Language Workshops

May 7, 14, 21, 28. 2–2:45 p.m. Parents and caregivers for pre-verbal children ages 4 months and up are invited to participate in a 4-part virtual program about communicating through sign language. Register.

School Readiness Workshops

Mondays through June 16, 9:30 – 10:30 a.m. Somerville Public Library West Branch at 40 College Avenue. Join a free 6-week playgroup to meet friends and practice school readiness. Register.

Parent-Organized Meetings for Families with a Student in Special Education Programs

May 13. Somerville Special Education Parents Advisory Council is hosting an in-person social event to build community and support. Visit the Somerville SEPAC website for more information or email SomervilleSEPAC@gmail.com.

Teen Empowerment Event

May 31, 7:00 p.m. at 50 Cross Street, East Somerville Community School. Teen Empowerment is hosting their annual Somerville Youth Peace Conference. Registration.

Grade-Level Curriculum Guides

Curriculum is uniform across all schools in the district by grade level. For anyone interested in taking a deeper dive into what their student is learning, we invite you visit the Curriculum page of the Academics website.

Attend a School Committee Meeting

Dates and times for school committee meetings are listed on the SPS district website calendar. Visit the School Committee website for information and find meeting details on the City of Somerville Events page.