Discussions Begin on Student Device Use, School Bus Safety Measures, and Budget Planning for Future Initiatives
Listen to this articleReading, MA — In what Superintendent of Schools Thomas Milaschewski referred to as “the first of several conversations,” the School Committee laid some of the framework for investigating a cell phone use policy for the Reading Public Schools on Thursday. This is in response to legislation filed in the Massachusetts Senate encouraging districts to develop device use policies. While the legislature has not yet passed any such legislation, Milaschewski asked the committee for guidance on what type of presentation on the subject it would like to receive.
Milaschewski intends to provide recommendations for the committee after his team has conducted extensive research into the issue. He expects to seek input from educators and administration alike, especially at the high school level. He also suggested that discussion on the topic could inform the community about research into the effects that extended social media interaction has on students.
While welcoming the conversation, School Committee member Shawn Brandt suggested input from those beyond school department staff on the issue, “We could never hear enough from the community,” Brandt stated. He continued to suggest that a series of public hearings on the issue would be appropriate. School Committee member Carla Nazzaro added that different policies for different levels of the district would also seem appropriate.
Chair Thomas Wise shared that many might argue about what is referred to as “the perception of safety” when students have phones available. He continued, noting that some students might use phones to access Google Classroom and other online educational tools. He also asked Milaschewski to include possible capital or financial impacts of policies in his review.
The committee will renew the conversation at future meetings.
The School Committee also briefly discussed the possibility of using cameras on school buses to issue fines for vehicles that illegally pass stopped school buses while students are on board. Milaschewski shared that on January 10, Governor Maura Healey signed into law a bill that would allow for the cameras. For a community to utilize the cameras, it must formally accept the provisions of the law. In Reading, this would be an issue for Town Meeting to consider. Among the issues discussed was whether or not this is a serious concern in Reading, along with how it would be financed, given that Reading uses an outside transportation provider.
“I am generally supportive of anything that improves safety,” Brandt shared. However, he agreed that more information is needed before moving forward to ask Town Meeting to accept the law’s provisions.
In his second-quarter financial update, Interim Director of Finance Philip Littlehale shared that the district is “in good shape financially” and that, as of the end of the second quarter, the expectation is to return $242,000 to free cash at the end of the fiscal year. This would be after a potential transfer of $300,000 to the Special Education Reserve Fund.
FY25-Q2-updatesmIt was also reported that all outstanding funds for classes that have graduated from Reading Memorial High School (RMHS) have been transferred to outside banks, which will be administered by the officers of each class.
Milaschewski reported that kindergarten enrollment for the 2025-2026 school year is 287 students, though this is before school choice and METCO students are enrolled. This is still short of the district projection of 340 students.
The School Committee voted 4-0 to approve the 2025-2026 school district calendar and 4-0 to appropriate $88,000 for the David B. Libby Scholarships. The Libby family provided funding for these scholarships, which benefit RMHS graduates.
The School Committee adjourned at 8:25 pm.
