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New School Initiatives

Schools opened last week in Groton-Dunstable on a seamless and positive note as initiatives begun last spring take shape for this school year. Superintendent of Schools Anthony Bent was particularly excited about the major strides made in technology in the school district and was enthusiastic about the long-term benefits it will reap for teachers and students.

Enrollments in the District's schools continued their downward trend and measures to offset the decline, such as expanding school choice, have been successful. The School District has also taken further measures to improve safety and security in the school buildings. Taken together, Dr. Bent reiterated his amazement that an organization as large as the school district can shut down for two months and be up and operating at a high level in a few short days.

Technology Integration in School Curriculum to be Immediate

Last spring voters at Annual Town Meeting approved appropriation of more than $500,000 to address inadequacies in the use of technology in the District's school buildings. The School Committee also added funds in their operating budget to support technology including hiring a new Technology Director and technical assistants to aid in using technology - computers, access to internet and email - in the district's curriculum. Dr. Bent noted that technology capability and use within the District was sub-par by any standard. He said the District lacked wireless capacity, the email system was fragmented and slow and there is very little memory in the District's network to support use of technology in the curriculum.

The School District acted swiftly following approval of the funds and hired a new Technology Director at the end of the school year and hired technical specialist to help teachers integrate technology into the curriculum. The District also purchased new computer devices for teachers and students including many "Chrome" Books for students. Chrome books are similar to "I Pads" except they do not have any memory capacity. They do allow students to use them to access the internet in connection with their studies but do not store any data.

The District also switched their entire email system to "gmail" and the system will allow students on a limited basis to use email as a way to communicate with teachers. Student use of email would be limited to communication only within the District.

Dr. Bent also said the Technology group which will address technology issues within the District has been augmented to include the new Technology Director, Technical Specialists and teachers.

Expanded School Choice Program Fills Some Seats at Elementary Schools

Enrollments continue to decline in the Groton-Dunstable School District and to address the downward trend, the School Committee voted last spring to expand School Choice within the District to include the elementary schools. The change in policy allowed the District to open up to 30 seats at the elementary level to students from outside the District. Dr. Bent noted that 30 seats in selected grades were opened in the elementary and middle school levels. Dr. Bent said the District filled 25 of those seats which he said was a great response. Bent noted that all 30 seats were not filled because many applications requested a certain grade level. Nonetheless, he said the new students provide some offset to declining enrollments and will also generate approximately $125,000 in revenue.

Despite enrollment declines, several new families have moved to Groton over the summer and some only days and weeks before the start of school. One such family moved to Groton from Newtown, CT which experienced an unspeakable tragedy when elementary grade students were killed during a shooting spree at the Sandy Hook Elementary School there, Dec. 14, 2012. The family had decided to move from Connecticut and had contacted several school districts in the area including the Groton-Dunstable School District. The family was pleased with the response they got from school administrators and that influenced their decision to move to Groton.

Safety and Security Gets Added Attention in District Schools

Superintendent Bent noted that while the focus of the School District remains on instruction, the School District has augmented its security measures to improve an already safe environment with school buildings. The most notable change was appointment of Karen Toomey -former Director of the Peter Twomey Youth Center - as Director of District Safety. Toomey will be the contact person for security issues within school buildings and the one to monitor and pay attention to these types of issues.

The District has also upgraded its devices to better monitor different areas of school grounds. A larger TV monitor has been installed which allows multiple images of certain areas around school buildings. The School District already had a "buzzer" system for visitors to enter a school building and that system will continue with improved TV monitors to visually check visitors.

Dr. Bent also noted that Director of Building and Grounds Steve Byrne will be developing a system that would number and label all corridors in the different school buildings. This numbering system would be learned by administrators, teachers and students. If an event occurred in one numbered corridor, it could be communicated to others in the school building and allow decisions to be made on a safe exit.

Despite the added attention to security measures, Dr. Bent sated, "Schools remain the safest place for children to gather."

Groton Herald

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