This is a portion of the Superintendent’s Update by Superintendent Cliff Chuang mailed to Bedford Public School community on Friday, Dec. 3. Please find this week’s full issue of Superintendent’s Update and back issues at bedfordps.org.
Cliff’s Notes
Dear Bedford Public School Community,
This week I had two wonderful conversations with two groups of parents in my final Coffee & Cocoa Chats with Cliff, which was a wonderful way to conclude the first phase of my entry plan (…Phase One Entry Plan Concludes – The Bedford Citizen).
In Phase 2, I will turn my focus to analyzing and synthesizing what I have heard, observed, and learned. I will continue to meet with stakeholders, though the pace and frequency of meeting will slow a bit.
This week also brought significant developments with our FY25 operating budget request (Superintendent’s Budget Preview Exceeds Finance Committee Guideline – The Bedford Citizen), our approach to literacy (Bedford School Leaders Detail Plans to Overhaul K-5 Literacy Curriculum – The Bedford Citizen), and our school safety plan to be funded by our FY25 capital budget request. More details can be found in the Nov. 28 School Committee meeting summary below.
Sincerely,
Cliff Chuang 莊 宏 毅
Superintendent, Bedford Public Schools
Upcoming Events
December 7, 2023: National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day
December 7 – December 15, 2023: Hanukkah (Chanukah)
December 18, 2023: International Migrants Day
December 19, 2023: School Committee Meeting
December 22, 2023: Last Day of School for Winter Vacation
December 25, 2023: Christmas
December 26, 2023 – January 1, 2024: Kwanzaa
November 28th School Committee Meeting Summary
At the jam-packed Tue. Nov. 28 meeting, the School Committee heard and discussed:
- A Student Presentation from the BHS Art Club, with thanks to Arts Program Director Sean Hagan and Dhara Kaushik, Class of 2026.
- An update from the Bedford Planning Board on options to expand housing in Bedford;
- An update on our approach to literacy, with a comprehensive plan to transition to a new literacy K-5 literacy curriculum by this summer;
- A recommendation to update our FY25 Capital Budget Request to address school safety concerns with tools including security cameras, which the School Committee approved; and
- A FY25 Preliminary Budget Preview.
Full supporting materials can be found here: School Committee – Meeting Schedule & Supporting Documents. Feel free to reach out with any questions.
National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day
On Aug. 23, 1994, the United States Congress designated Dec. 7 as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day to remember the service members and civilians killed and injured during the attack on Dec. 7, 1941. Every year, remembrance events are held at the Pearl Harbor National Memorial, culminating in a commemoration ceremony on Dec. 7. To learn more about this day, please visit: NPS – National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.
6th Annual Migration is Beautiful Celebration
Please join the MGH Immigrant Health Coalition, MGH Center for Immigrant Health, & partners for our sixth annual Migration is Beautiful Campaign in honor of the UN’s International Migrants Day (Dec. 18). Please click here for the flier of events.
Reminder: No Motor Vehicle Idling on School Grounds
With the colder weather coming, this is reminder that no motor vehicle idling is allowed on school grounds (Policy EEAJ). Vehicle exhaust is especially harmful to children, whose lungs are not yet fully developed. Limiting or — even better — eliminating unnecessary bus idling time during loading and unloading of children can dramatically reduce these pollutants and improve our children’s health.
The Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General has partnered with an area school and community health center to create two videos to highlight the harmful impacts of illegal idling and provide information to Massachusetts residents to help tackle this problem. Please click here to see these two videos.
Bedford Adult ESL Program Spring 2024
Bedford Adult ESL Program in Partnership with the Cummings Foundation is offering free English classes. If you are interested in learning or improving your English skills, please register for either the:
Beginning ESL Class
Intermediate ESL Class
Advanced ESL Class
The spring semester is on the following Thursdays:
Jan. 25
Feb. 1, 8,15, 29
March 7, 14, 21, 29
April 4, 11, 18
Location: Bedford High School, 9 Mudge Way, Bedford, MA 01730
Time: 6 to 8 p.m.
Please register via email to Carrie Powers, EL Director K-12, [email protected] and indicate the class you are interested in taking.
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