SPS Weekly Newsletter

This week's header photo features the Stoughton High Marching Black Knights and Color Guard after participating in Stoughton's Memorial Day Parade and Ceremonies on Monday. More photos, courtesy of POPS Stoughton, can be found here.

Eighth grade students at the O'Donnell Middle School and students taking US History I at Stoughton High School have been working on civics projects this spring. Students have researched and identified a local issue they would like to address, proposed solutions and remedies, and reached out to a local official who might be able to implement the solution/remedy or at least be the appropriate person to listen to their concerns. This week I have received numerous OMS and SHS civic minded project requests that can't go unnoticed. For the sake of privacy I will not mention student names but a few themes have risen to the top.

Theme #1: Mental Health

• The students who have made this proposal have articulated a need for the district to recognize mental health from a student perspective. In the information forwarded to me the proposal used recent national data, articles, video, and even information from other states who have supported these changes. One proposal suggests creating mental health habits and tips. Another group suggests more public relations on the topic of mental health.

Theme #2: School Safety

• These students note the increase in student conflict and even fighting. To improve safety they are recommending the utilization of more School Resource Officer support. They are currently creating a petition. Their communication included Police Chief McNamara. One proposal also called for "stricter punishment." They support further outside "real talk" speakers (guest speakers) to support students.

Theme #3: Teen Drug Use

• This proposal targets raising awareness on teen drug use by creating flyers, posters, and using social media. They focus on student assistance, not just student discipline. Finally, they support with data the rapid growth in teen depression.

Other topics are coming my way but for now I want to recognize the great things students are doing. While I sit here writing this I can only think of one thing - our students diligently working to make their schools a better place. Civic education is about being involved, having the knowledge, and making a difference.

Lastly, CONGRATULATIONS CLASS OF 2024. I look forward to celebrating with you this coming week.

Sincerely,

Joseph F. Baeta, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools

Stoughton Public Schools

Click on the button below to watch the portion of the May 28th School Committee meeting that featured an update on the new elementary school building project. This video has the latest information and provided answers to many frequently asked questions about the project.

Additionally, if you visit the the project website, there is a tax calculator where you can see your estimated tax impact for the project.

The special election for the new elementary school building project is on Tuesday, June 11, 2024. Visit the Town Clerk's website for more information about this special election:

Congratulations to Stoughton High senior Aadil Khond for receiving the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents (MASS) Certificate of Academic Excellence! Massachusetts school superintendents present this award annually to deserving students in school districts across the state. Dr. Baeta presented Aadil with his award during the School Committee meeting on Tuesday.

Aadil, a member of the SHS Class of 2024, is a dedicated, hard working, self motivated student who is a positive contributing member of the Stoughton community. He is at the top one percent of his graduating class. A member of the SHS National Honor Society, he takes multiple Advanced Placement classes, is a three sport athlete, and is involved in student council, DECA, and the recycling club. He is also an Eagle Scout. Aadil has committed to Georgia Tech and he plans on studying Computer Science.

Prior to attending Stoughton High School, Aadil was a student at the Dawe Elementary School and the O'Donnell Middle School. Click here to read more about Aadil and this honor!

Aadil is pictured below with Dr. Baeta, SHS Principal Julie Miller, the School Committee, and members of his family.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and as a way to promote mental health throughout the month, the O'Donnell Middle School Student Council created a calendar of activities including "Fist Bump Fridays." A fun way to welcome students to school in the morning, community groups were invited to join in on the fun. Many thanks to the Stoughton Police Department, who generously participated on both the first and last Friday in May. And thank you to our OMS Student Council advisors, Caitlin Valair and Denise Fleming, for helping the students plan and organize these events. Here are some pictures from the Fist Bump Friday on May 31.

The Stoughton High Class of 2024 held its prom Thursday at Lake Pearl in Wrentham. We'll be sharing many photos from prom in the coming days, but a favorite picture from the evening is above. You can also look at some pictures of the students and their guests arriving at SHS Thursday afternoon by clicking here, pictures on a couple of the buses before they departed for the prom venue by clicking here, and pictures of the students arriving at the prom venue by clicking here.

This coming week is a busy one for the SHS Class of 2024. Sunday, June 2 scholarship winners will be announced at Scholarship Knight. Tuesday, June 4 is Class Night. And, Thursday, June 6 is Graduation, followed by Party All Night Long. More information about events for the SHS Class of 2024 can be found here.

Mrs. Catrambone’s class at the Gibbons School went on their annual trip to Town Spa to celebrate the fifth graders in the class. The students prepare for the trip by learning restaurant etiquette and vocabulary related to the event. Service providers and paraprofessionals who work with the students also attend the trip. It was a successful day! More pictures are posted here.

Here are some pictures of South School second graders in Mrs. DeMayo's class enjoying a recent field trip to the Roger Williams Park Zoo in Rhode Island. Students got an up close look at some animals like Mr. Handsome (a Madagascar Hissing Cockroach) and learned about what adaptations help them survive.

Bus Registration for the 2024-2025 school year opened on May 20 and goes through Friday, June 28. This year the bus application is located in the PowerSchool Parent Portal under Forms. Please click on the button below for more information and instructions on how to register:

If you have questions about logging into the parent portal, please contact your child's school.

If you have any other questions, please send them to transportation@stoughtonschools.org.

Join the Stoughton High Athletics Department at the SHS Sports Awards Night on Monday, June 3 at 6:30pm in the SHS Auditorium. This will be a night to recognize this year's sports awards winners from the fall, winter, and spring seasons. The Athletics Department will be celebrating this year's team achievements, MVPs, sportsmanship award winners, scholar athlete award winners, Triple Crown award winners, and Hockomock League All-Stars and honorable mentions.

Party All Night Long (PANL), the annual post graduation event for the newest Stoughton High graduates, is looking for volunteers! The PANL team is looking for non-senior parents, alumni, and community members to help set up, clean up, or work the event. There are plenty of different shifts and tasks available. Click here to see how you can help.

PANL takes place the night of graduation at the O'Donnell Middle School (Thursday, June 6 starting at 11pm and ending at 5am on Friday, June 7). This is a night full of fun and a chance to celebrate graduating in a safe, supervised environment.

We know our students have lots of talent! Dave Walsh is putting together a talent show on SMAC and is looking for participants. If you would like to be part of the show, email info@stoughtontv.com. See the flyer below for more details.

Another friendly reminder that with the school year underway, we want to make sure we have accurate and updated emergency contact information and health information for your child. Please log into your PowerSchool Parent Portal account, click on the forms link in the left navigation menu and update any information that is not accurate in the two forms - Current Student Information/Emergency Form and Current Student Health Information. When you have updated the information, please click on submit at the bottom of each of the forms. If your child's information is accurate, please click on submit at the bottom of each form to indicate that you have reviewed the data and it is accurate.

For updates throughout the week, be sure to follow Stoughton Public Schools on social media: