WARE SCHOOL COMMITTEE NOTEBOOK

By Melissa Fales
Reporter
(mfales@turley.com)

Discussion continues re: students using cell phone on school buses

The School Committee resumed their discussion of whether or not students should be allowed to use cell phone while on school buses at their Oct. 21 meeting. The issue was initially brought up by parent Paul Morris at the committee’s Sept. 30 meeting. Morris said he understood the district’s policy that students’ time on the school bus is considered an extension of the school day, and therefore cell phone use is not permitted. However, he questioned whether the bus drivers should be the ones trying to enforce that policy on the bus at the expense of safe driving. He argued that a driver who is looking in the rear mirror trying to catch a student texting does not have their eyes on the road where they should be.
Committee member Brian Winslow said “Unless we’re going to create 2 different policies, we can’t allow cell phone use on the buses.” Winslow also said the committee should consider the future implications of any policy decision they make about cell phones, reminding them that there would always be new advances in technology to contend with.
Committee member Aaron Sawabi said that he thought the built-in cameras on many cell phones might be an issue for some. “That introduces a new element to the rules,” he said. “Some parents might not want their kids to have their pictures taken.” Chairman Christopher Desjardins pointed out that there is no ban on cameras on the bus, just cell phones.
Sawabi said before the committee can make any decision, it needs to speak with a representative from the bus company, First Student, and come to an agreement on the school district’s expectations and the company’s safety concerns. “We need to have a mutual understanding of what we expect them to do,” Sawabi said. Superintendent Mary-Elizabeth Beach said she would ask First Student to send a representative to the committee’s next meeting on Nov. 4 to discuss the issue.

Hill responds to committee discussion at last meeting

4th grade teacher Bill Hill addressed the committee regarding concerns raised at their Oct. 14 meeting about alleged inconsistencies between what 3rd grade students and their parents were told to expect in 4th grade during an open house in April and the reality they faced when school started in September.
Hill, who spoke to the parents and students at the open house, said he was not at the meeting as a spokesman for the 4th grade, but as a concerned individual. “I don’t believe I was inconsistent with my message from April to September,” he said. Hill said teachers are always looking for ways to improve the transition from Stanley M. Koziol Elementary School to Ware Middle School and admitted that the 4th grade has its own special challenges once students arrive, but said he felt the message presented to students and parents had been consistent throughout the process.
Sawabi thanked Hill and said that unless parents are willing to come forward and openly discuss their specific concerns, there is no way for the committee to address them or for teachers like Hill to consider them. Committee member Kara Brown, who had brought up the concerns about the transition into 4th grade, said she thought the committee’s discussion had “opened some doors” to make improvements for the district. Brown said she had spoken with 3rd and 4th grade teachers as well as SMK Principal Marlene DiLeo about ideas on how to better prepare students for the change and to help them adapt.

Nominations for Ware High School Athletic Hall of Fame now being accepted

Ware Middle School Principal Robert Warren announced that after an 8 year hiatus, the Ware High School Athletic Hall of Fame Committee is meeting again. He said the committee is seeking nominations from the community for worthy candidates, with the expectation that between 5 -7 alumni athletes will be honored at an induction dinner and ceremony in the spring of 2010. In order to be considered for nomination for induction in 2010, candidates must have graduated in 2004 or earlier. Nominations should include the reason why that person deserves to be in the Hall of Fame. Submit nominations to Athletic Hall of Fame Committee Chairman Michael Robidoux via the ware public school website at www.warepublicschools.com, then clicking on “sports” and his email address.