Pembroke School Committee Tackles Tech Upgrades, Arts Programs Amid Budget Challenges
Committee hears presentations on visual arts, music programs and technology needs while planning for vocational education options
PEMBROKE - February 25 - The Pembroke School Committee receives updates on the district's technology infrastructure and visual and performing arts programs during their February 25 meeting, highlighting ongoing efforts to balance educational needs with fiscal constraints.
Technology Director Mike Tinker presents a comprehensive overview of the district's technology needs, emphasizing the exponential growth of technology and increasing cybersecurity threats facing school districts.
"Schools tend to move on a linear path. The technology is different, especially in these last five years. There's been an explosion of technology," Tinker explains during his first budget presentation to the committee.
Tinker proposes a $50,000 investment in managed services to provide 24/7 monitoring of the district's network infrastructure, a move Committee Chair Patrick Chilcott strongly endorses.
"$50,000 for the size of our network, the number of end users, the number of devices and equipment and everything else is cheap. Really, really cheap," Chilcott says. "I think it's a creative solution to a complicated problem."
The technology presentation highlights the increasing cybersecurity threats facing school districts. Tinker references the Department of Homeland Security's 2024 Threat Assessment, which identifies K-12 school districts as "near constant ransomware targets due to school systems' IT budget constraints and lack of dedicated resources."
Tinker's department oversees 3,600 end users, 250 audio-visual devices, and numerous systems including phones, security cameras, and HVAC controls. His budget proposal includes maintaining current software licensing and support at approximately $490,000, with additional funds for replacing aging devices.
The committee also hears from Gwynne Chapman, who presents on the visual and performing arts programs. Chapman highlights the department's accomplishments, including nine of 11 AP studio art students achieving qualifying scores, student artwork being exhibited in prestigious shows, and music students being accepted to competitive festivals.
"Our overarching goal in the visual performing arts is to always provide for students the most amazing art and music related performances and juried art shows that we can possibly put in front of them," Chapman says.
Chapman notes that while elementary instrumental enrollment remains strong with 179 fifth and sixth graders participating, high school enrollment has declined. Currently, 35% of high school students take art classes and 16% participate in music programs.
The committee discusses strategies to increase participation, including introducing new courses like rock band and music technology, and potentially opening marching band to eighth graders.
"We've known each other for a very long time. This committee, no different than the committees of the past couple decades, is avidly committed to the fine arts and the music program," Chilcott assures Chapman.
Superintendent Erin Obey provides an update on the Vocational Planning Committee's timeline for potentially joining South Shore Technical High School. The committee plans to present financial implications to the school committee in March, followed by community education efforts leading up to a fall town meeting vote in October 2025.
"We are on path to be presenting to the school committee at one of the later March meetings the numbers associated with joining South Shore Tech from a tax perspective, from a potential debt exclusion override, as well as an operational override perspective," Obey explains.
If approved at the fall town meeting, member towns would vote on Pembroke's admission in spring 2026, with students potentially starting as early as fall 2027 or as late as fall 2029.
The committee also discusses updates to graduation requirements policy, which now includes a visual and performing arts requirement for incoming freshmen and clarifies language around math, science, and history requirements.
The meeting begins with a moment of silence for Joel Sugarman, described by Chilcott as "an icon in this town" who served on the committee from 1993 to 2005 and was "one of the founding fathers of the Pembroke school system."
Other notable items from the meeting include:
* The committee schedules a third March meeting on the 25th to accommodate budget discussions
* A presentation on mold remediation efforts is planned for the March 4 meeting
* State representatives are confirmed to attend the March 4 meeting
* The committee acknowledges the boys indoor track team for winning the division state championship and the girls team for taking second place
The committee concludes the public portion of the meeting before entering executive session to discuss collective bargaining strategy and a legal matter.