Mansfield School Committee Roundup: Budget, Calendar and Bullying

The Mansfield School Committee voted 4-1, with Chair Michael Trowbridge voting against, to now include Rosh Hashanah as a day off holiday in the 2012-2013 school calendar (Sept. 17 2012), after adjustments are made to account for the lost day in the schedule.

The school committee discussed the continuing debate on the school budget deficit. The idea was floated to cut personnel, but not continued on.

The committee heard an update on the Strategic Town Plan, which will be gone over in further detail on Saturday at the charrette.

The committee heard an update from Keira O’Neil, a member of the policy handbook subcommittee, concerning necessary changes to the Mansfield schools’ policy handbook. As of March 27, they need to make 36 changes to the policy to come in line with state standards.

Assistant principal at Jordan Jackson Heather Smith and assistant principal at the High School Dawn Stockwell gave a presentation updating the status of the current anti bullying programs in the school system.

The committee voted 5-0 to approve two eighth grade field trips to Canobie Lake Park and Roger Williams Zoo.

Chair Michael Trowbridge asked for a placeholder in the next meeting’s agenda to account for the possibility (and possible school district costs) of having a new development in Mansfield. The development, the old Mansfield chocolate factory, was originally slated to be a one-bedroom apartment complex only, but developers have recently brought up the idea of including at least some family-sized rooms.