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Date: 8/29/2023
EASTHAMPTON — At the Easthampton School Committee’s Aug. 22 meeting, Chair Cynthia Kwiecinski announced she will not run for reelection next November due to family matters.
“As some of you know, my family has been facing a very serious health crisis that began shortly after the last election,” she said. “I was able to balance committee work with caring for my family and working full-time. But this year is going to be harder than last year.”
Kwiecinski stated that she loved the committee and is proud of their work. She also stated she trusts the mayor and the remaining members of the committee.
“This is a very difficult position but it’s important work and rewarding,” she said. “I will miss it greatly.”
The committee then discussed the Thrive Act, which would allow school districts to replace the MCAS with their own graduation requirements. Committee members were highly supportive though some had concerns.
Kwiecinski said that from her experience as a special education teacher, the MCAS is stressful for all students. As well, she said the test makes more sense as a way to see how students are doing rather than as a requirement for graduation.
“If you were to get that information and use it to alter your teaching, that makes a lot of sense to me,” she said. “It has never made sense to me that we make students risk not getting their diploma. I have seen intelligent, great, creative students struggle to pass that test because it’s so anxiety-producing at 10th grade.”
Kwiecinski said she believed teachers, administrators and school committees will do “an excellent job” at deciding their own requirements.
Mayor Nicole LaChapelle said she supported Kwiecinski’s position. She said it will give the district more freedom in their curriculum, in terms of what’s appropriate and available to the city’s students.
“I think about the fabrication shop in the high school and building a stronger program for the machine shops that fabricate in town,” she said.
The board voting in support of the Thrive Act would be separate from the school’s NEASC evaluation.
Superintendent Maureen Binienda said that the federal government requires states to have an assessment to prove students are succeeding in schools. She also said there would need to be a way of showing consistency between districts.
Committee member Sam Hunter said that this was a good opportunity and other districts, like Northampton, have already signed on. He also said that members of the community were concerned about the MCAS previously.
Hunter noted in some districts, it is difficult for students with disabilities over the age 18 to get transition services if they meet graduation requirements.
“I’m excited about this from an exploratory perspective,” he said. “I want to really make sure we don’t lose that very small but very important group of students that often get lost in these conversations.”
Besides replacing the MCAS, the Thrive Act would eliminate state receiverships and “[reinstate] the democratic control of the community into the school committees,” according to Binienda. It will also establish a commission to establish a “whole-child system” of assessing schools.
“For me that’s very exciting,” said committee member Ben Hersey. “I want to see that happen.”
After more discussion and shows of support, committee member Marin Goldstein made a motion for the committee to “approve and support the Thrive Act.” The motion was approved unanimously.
Due to scheduling conflicts, a presentation on CAN-DO, formerly the Special Education Parent Advisory Council, will take place during the Oct. 10 or Oct. 24 meeting. Hunter, who is also co-chair of CAN-DO, said years worth of work were put in making the group active. He also said they’re making sure it is open to more people than just parents.
“Caregivers, grandparents, people who just have questions, people who are just interested in being allies to kids with disabilities. We are hoping to eventually include more students themselves and to kind of rethink what a PAC can actually do in a district,” he said.