Cohasset High School Forms Cell Phone Task Force to Address Student Phone Use

District Accepted into MSBA Accelerated Repair Program for School Roof

COHASSET, MA - November 6 - Cohasset High School has established a cell phone task force comprising faculty, students, and parents to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of personal technology access during school hours.

The group aims to develop a pilot program to test potential policies before implementation, according to school committee Chair Craig MacLellan, who attended the task force's first meeting.

"This first meeting, I think, was just to sort of have everyone share their general perspectives on the values and the disadvantages," MacLellan said. "The faculty was super engaged in it, and, you know, it's really appreciating some of the students actually."

The task force is part of a broader initiative at Cohasset High School to address school climate and student well-being. Principal Brian Scott is leading the effort, which includes reviewing benchmark assessments and conducting a school climate survey.

Jennifer Lesky, another school committee member, reported that the survey will look "carefully at the difference between student perception of life at school and parent perception of life at school," particularly around "indications around stress, anxiety, sort of mental health connectedness and things like that."

The cell phone task force is scheduled to meet monthly, with the next meeting expected in the coming weeks. MacLellan noted that the group hopes to pilot a new policy in the near future before it becomes official.

In other district news, Superintendent Sarah Shannon announced that the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) has voted to financially support the repair or replacement of the Osgood School roof.

"We are very excited to share with the community tonight that on Oct. 30, the MSBA has voted in their board meeting to accept the public schools into their accelerated repair program to address the Osgood roof," Shannon said.

The district will seek $15,000 from the school facility stabilization fund at the Dec. 12 special town meeting to conduct a feasibility study. This study will determine whether to repair or replace the roof, which has reached the end of its useful life.

Shannon explained that the MSBA will financially support the remaining portion of the feasibility study cost. The superintendent and other district officials are scheduled to meet with MSBA representatives to learn more about the process.

"We're very excited about that and hopefully the work will happen potentially over the summer," Shannon added.

The school committee also received updates on special education services from the new Director of Student Services, Michael Stapleton. He presented data on active Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and meeting statistics for September and October.

Stapleton highlighted the district's participation in the Advancing Parent and Professional Leadership in Education (APPLE) Institute through the Federation for Special Needs. This initiative aims to build collaborative leadership teams between school officials and parents.

"I really am excited because I think we'll be able to create some nice action steps to build those collaborative teams so that parents and families feel heard," Stapleton said.

He announced an upcoming meeting on Nov. 14 at 11 a.m. in the community use room, where he will present an overview of special education rights and discuss the action plan developed through the APPLE (advancing parent and professional leadership and education) program.

The meeting also included updates on the district's new IEP improvement project, which has encountered some technical challenges but is progressing. Stapleton noted that staff are receiving additional compensation for writing their first IEPs under the new system due to the increased time required.

MacLellan suggested that Stapleton provide a more detailed presentation on the new IEP form in the coming months, to help the committee understand the changes and their impact on families and educators.

The school committee concluded the meeting by discussing future agenda items, including a potential update on the district's electric school bus pilot program.