001I'd like to call our March 25th school committee meeting to order. Superintendent, would you please call the role? >> Mr. Begley, >> present. >> Mrs. Cahill, >> present. >> Miss Campbell, >> present. >> Mrs. Hubley, Mr. Le Young, >> present. >> Mrs. Perios, >> present. >> And Mayor Ko, >> present. Quinsey High School student representative MJ Partios. Thank you for being here tonight. >> You could all please stand and join me in the pledge of allegiance. >> I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. You remain standing. We have some memorials. Superintendent. >> Thank you. Uh if you could please keep in your thoughts and prayers the following individuals and their families.
002These individuals have worked for the Quinsey public schools and recently passed away. Our first uh employee is Lfon Lana Louu. She was a kindergarten par kindergarten par profofessional at the Wall Elementary School for over 30 years. An amazing par profofessional. Next is Virginia McDermott, art teacher at Central Junior High School for 31 years, and she happened to be my art teacher as well. Uh, Dr. Larry Osborne, history teacher at Central Junior High School for 35 years. Janet Shields, therapy assistant at the Almelio Delicaza Early Childhood Center for 14 years. And Mr. Jim Rendle, who began his uh career in the Quinsey public schools as a high school health teacher and coach and was later athletic director serving for over 25 years. He is also the father of Clifford Marshall principal Heather Patch. At this time,
003I believe Mr. Begalie would like to say a few words about Mr. Rendle. Thank you, Superintendent. Jim was a classmate and teammate of mine at Central in the early 60s. Um he often joked that he was a leading rebounder on our team because he rebounded all my misses. Uh he went on to Quinsey High School, started in football, hoop, and track. He was a state champion in the long jump and the high jump. We were again classmates at UMass Ammeris where we started in football while I played soccer. He came to QPS. We became a legend as an educator and a coach. And while at North Quinsey, he coached his girls to eight state championships and he amassed over over 400 wins. Like most coaches, Jimmy was tough and demanding, but always cared for his
004players both on and off the court. Um, many of his players wanted to play um at a high level in college. Jim was inducted into the Massachusetts State Coaches Volleyball Hall of Fame for his accomplishments. I had the opportunity to coach with Jim um when he became the varsity boys coach at North Quinsey uh basketball serving uh as JV coach. He finished his career as superintendent said as the uh QPS athletic director. Uh I'm deeply saddened by his passing. Uh he was not only a colleague But more importantly, he was a a loyal friend. I was honored and privileged to know Jim for 66 years. And I'll remember him as a genuine guy who was exactly as you saw him. I will miss him and his friendship as will hundreds of his former players and
005colleagues. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. If you could keep Mr. Rendle and all the other employees I mentioned in your thoughts and prayers for a moment of silence. >> Thank you. >> If I could just add to that, let us always keep in mind our men and women serving in uniform. Um, and many Quinsey kids, as I've said in the past, may they return home swiftly and safely. Thank you. Next item in the agenda is open forum. Any anybody for open forum. Feel free right went right up to the mic. >> Just test it. Sean, >> try that one. >> Check one, two. Check. >> Thank you. Thank you for the record. Sean Glennon, the third floor. Uh, also 27 Bellev Road. Good evening, Mr. Mayor, Superintendent Movie, and members of the school committee.
006I'm here tonight as an extremely proud parent of three QPS students, all of whom play an instrument in their school band. I have one student at Squantum School with Mr. Salvuchi, one at Central with Mrs. Schmidt, and one at North who is and has been in a number of ensembles under the direction of Mr. Demarco, Mr. Kavanagh this year. Each of my kids adore their band directors. These instructors are extremely talented musicians. They possess strong musical knowledge. They demonstrate tremendous patience. They balance discipline and encouragement. They are incredibly motivating and they all have a deep and various obvious passion for teaching. And so when I saw there'd be an item on the agenda tonight school music program update, I felt compelled to say a few words in support of our very talented student musicians and
007their dynamic and engaging directors. If not for Mr. Salvuchi's infectious optimism, my oldest son would not have gone on to join the middle school band. If not for Mr. Schmidt's relentless enthusiasm and charisma, he would not have gone on to join the high school ensembles. And without Mr. DeMarcos and Mr. Kavanaaugh's commitment to excellence, he would not, as a freshman, already be thinking about playing in a college band when the time comes. Learning an instrument isn't just about the music. It helps students grow intellectually, emotionally, and socially in ways that stick with them long term. Studying music improves skills related to mathematics and language, and it builds discipline and patience, which often carries over into school work and other responsibilities. Performing in front of others builds confidence. Playing music gives students a creative outlet and
008can also reduce stress and anxiety helping with overall mental well-being. As a parent, I'm extremely grateful for the support offered by the mayor, the school department, and the school committee for funding these crucial programs, which are also supported by the Quinsey band and color guard boosters. And I will give a shout out to the dedicated volunteers that make up that organization and to Mr. Marco, who was not only a gifted composer, arranger, and conductor in his own right, but who was also a dedicated department head who gives generously of his time to attend booster meetings and who supports the boosters throughout the year. I also want to give a tip of the cap to the icon affectionately known simply as Calav. I don't want to embarrass him, but you will no doubt hear tonight about
009the tremendous success of the Q marching band and jazz ensembles under his direction, and rightly so. By my count, Mr. Cavs ensembles have won no less than three dozen awards over the past 7 months alone. This impressive tally is a direct result of hundreds of hours of rehearsal which began way back on July 29th and included a mandatory 4-day marching band camp with an arrival time of 7:45 a.m. each day. Getting nearly 200 high schoolers onto a field before 8 a.m. in August might seem like an impossible task, but they showed up and they came because they love and respect Mr. Cav and they know that if they put in the hard work to meet his expectations, great things will happen and they'll have some fun along the way. I know firsthand that Mr. Cav
010routinely puts in 12 plus hours days 14 plus if you include his commute. This does not include travel to weekend competitions nor holiday and parade performances. Yet he never complains. His disposition is remarkably positive and his endurance is truly superhuman. I have yet to comprehend how he physically maintains his grilling schedule or how he finds the time to sleep, let alone write, design, and produce a spectacular marching band shows each year. My working theory is that he has a clone that he's not telling us about. But in closing, the QPS instrumental music program is the envy of districts across the region and across the country, thanks to our incredible and inspirational music teachers under Mr. Demarco's leadership, and I'm so grateful for your continued support. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Glennon. Anybody else open
011for him? >> Good afternoon, mayor and fellow school committee members. My name is Kylie from 42 president. Last week, my family and I treated ourselves to dinner in Quinsey and a show. Show was Sweeney Todd and boy was it a joy. The the collaboration between Quinsey and North Quinsey is definitely something we should continue to replicate in the future. The time and effort put in by Mr. Duset, his team, and the students is evident. Reviews from the folks that attended are nothing but positive. As with a lot of my requests in front of this committee, let's keep funding our arts and drama program. And um I second what Mr. Glendon mentioned. It exposes our students to new experiences, allows them to find their passion and a place of belonging. Mr. The ducet also shared the
012alumni came in during the snowstorm to help build the sets to keep everything on schedule. Acts like this is what make makes Quinsey a home and a community that people want to be part of. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Lee. Any other anybody else for open forum? One last call. Thank you. Go to the next item. Superintendent report. >> Superintendent Moy. >> Thank you. >> Good evening again everyone. Hope everyone is doing well. Tonight we'll be recognizing our high school STEM fair winners. Uh welcome to science department chairs Claire Budro from North Quinsey High School and Megan Murray from Quinsey High School. Our amazing students and their families. Miss Budro and Miss Mari will introduce the students and they will each give a short overview of their projects to the school committee and then
013after that we'll take a picture up here in the front with the uh school committee. So, if you don't mind um introducing the students, Miss Budro. >> Good evening. Thank you for inviting us here tonight to celebrate the incredible achievement of our science students. North Quinsey High School hosted its 67th annual STEM fair on Tuesday, February 3rd. We had 130 students present their projects to 55 volunteer judges. And for the first time since I've been there, uh we had 80 student judges this year. Our students have been developing, researching, and refining their projects since September alongside their supportive teachers. From our school fair, we recognize three overall winners and seven students who received honorable mention. I'm also proud to share that nine students advanced to the region 5 STEM fair at Bridgewater State University on
014March 14th and seven students have earned the opportunity to compete at the Massachusetts State Fair on April 9th at the DCU Center in Worcester. Tonight, two of our students are present are excited to present their work to you. We have Jenna who won first place at our STEM fair with the guidance of our teacher Dr. McKibben and she is joined by Leanne who earned an honorable mention with the support of her teacher Dr. Ksus. So at this time Jenna. Hello. I'm very happy to be here today. Um to keep this really short um my project was yeast under attack. Um basically this project focused on the global crisis of antimicrobial resistance which is basically when bacteria starts to resist um medical sorry um which is when bacteria starts to um resist uh medical antimicrobials which
015can be really dangerous in life because when illnesses want to fight this it can be hard because they start to resist it over time. So basically I chose um yeast as a model organism instead of ecoli. I thought about that at first but it was dangerous to use ecoli in a lab um commitment area. So I just used yeast because it has 48 metabolic pathways with ecoli. Um so basically what I did was I measured the dry mass of the yeast over 72 hours using um coffee filters. It's not really that clear, but um and then I um analyzed them over 72 hours in different time increments to be really specific with my findings. Um I initially thought that the cinnamon oil was going to inhibit the most growth, but due to the viscosity of
016the oil, most of the residue of the oil stuck onto the coffee filter. So, my hypothesis was wrong and vinegar actually inhibited the most growth from my project. Um, this is I thought this was really important because even though I tested household antimicrobials, they were all supposed to inhibit the growth of the bacteria, but it's also important to know about antimicrobial susceptibility because even though all of them were supposed to inhibit the growth, some of them didn't show as much of the power that they're supposed to show. So, it's important in the future if you had a situation and you wanted to learn how to inhibit the growth of bacteria, it's important that you choose the right antimicrobial and the one that shows the most power instead of just assuming that it's an antimicrobial that
017it's going to inhibit the growth. So, that's basically what my project is trying to find. Thank you. Hello, my name is Leanne and my I'm a freshman on Earth Quinzy. So, this is my first time fair. So, I chose the topic um hair under heat since I found it was very just like a very interesting topic to me. Basically, I was just going to see if um natural heat protection. So, hair and heat is very common. People tend to put heat on their hair almost daily. Whether it be straightening your hair, curling it, or even a simple activity such as blowd drying your hair after you get out of the shower. So when heat is applied to the hair, there's a protein in hair called keratene. And that protein responsible is responsible for strengthening the
018hair and giving it its shine. But once heat is applied, the structure of the protein becomes deformed, meaning it can no longer function correctly. So my project was to see if you use natural heat protectants such as coconut oil, grape seed oil, argan oil, and argan oil to see since they each differ in levels of unsaturated fat content. I wanted to see if that played a crucial role in seeing if the hair's tinsel strength, which is the maximum amount of weight it can carry before it breaks, differs. So my researchable question was, does the amount of saturated fat content and natural heat protectants affect the hair's tensil strength after 5 days of constant straightening at 350° F? So to do my project for one week, I strengthen strain one human hair extension for exactly 90
019seconds at 350°. I repeated this over the course of 5 days. And after the 5 days were over, I split the hair into four quarters and performed a tinsel test on it. I hung it on a spring scale gouge and pulled down with all my weight and then a number would appear at the top which would show the weight at which the hair could withstand before it broke in half. I repeated this over the course of four times to find my trials. So I had like the data for each on the data tables. So in the following week I repeated those steps again except each time I added two teaspoons of a given oil to it and each of the oils had differing amounts of saturated fat content. So coconut oil had the greatest amount
020with around 98%. So, it's extremely high, but then an oil like grape seed oil is extremely low in saturated fat content with only around 9, barely 10%. And then argan oil is right in the middle with 20% of saturated fat content. My results found after the following weeks that it was an overwhelmingly positive result towards coconut oil, which has the highest saturated fat content. This also supports my hypothesis, which was that the higher the saturated fat content of the oil, the better it would perform under the heat. So, it basically just finds that coconut oil is the best natural heat protectant against hair when it's put under constant heat because it gives people a most affordable but effective way to protect their hair under constant heat. Thank you. >> Good evening, Mayor Ko, Superintendent Mulvy,
021and members of the school committee. I'm Megan Murray, science department chair at Quinsey High School. It's an honor to be here to celebrate the work of our outstanding students. Thank you for inviting us. On February 5th, over 100 students in grades 9 through 12 presented their projects at our 17th annual STEM fair. These projects covered biology, chemistry, environmental science, physics, and engineering. They were evaluated by a diverse panel of community judges, including scientists, engineers, healthc care professionals, and members of the QHS staff. Students were scored on their scientific approach, reasoning, and presentation skills. The evening was made possible by our dedicated science staff who mentored students from the very start of the research in September and volunteered their time late into the evening of the fair to support every participant. One of our sophomores, Neil
022Takar, moved on to compete at the Massachusetts Region 5 earlier this month and will participate in the state fair next month in Worcester. Tonight, I'm proud to recognize our top three finishers. first place finisher Anzar Ahmed, second place Neil Thakar, and third place Karthika Carthagian, who are all here tonight to provide a brief summary of their projects. To begin with, please welcome our third place finisher, Kthika. Um like this. >> Okay. Um hi, my name is Critica Karten. I'm a freshman at Quincy High School. So the project um bacter is to explore the potential for microbial fuel cells or MFC's. So the reason why I chose this project was because MFC's are part of the renewable resources which means it can used to be help like create a more eco-friendly and sustainable future for the
023environment and for future generations. So what I did in my exper so what I did for my experiment was use MFC's. So the way these work is that the anode which is buried deep into the soil so it doesn't get into contact with oxygen. So the bacteria multiplies on it on the bio electrode and creates a bofilm and then there's the cathode which is on top of the soil and can react with the oxygen and and then it can react with the protons that is produced from the anode to create some water which can create electricity and that creates a power output for the MFC's. So what I was testing in my experiment was to see if the glucose increased the power output for these MFCs or if it was sucrossse that increased it. And
024so why I found out in my experiment was that it was sucrossse that increased it. And so the reason why it was sucrossse was because the shimanel species which is part of the microbial fuel cells and that's found in like soil and it's anorobic has a natural catabolic capacity which means it can only use simple sugars like sucrossse but it can't use glucose. So since it doesn't have that much of a power source, there's less of it which means less of a bofilm which means less water to gray which means less electricity and so it proved my hypothesis which was that sucrossse will increase its power output. And that was my project. Thanks a lot for listening to it and I hope you had a good evening. Hi, so my name is Neil Fakar and
025uh this is my project. My project explores the um my project explores the uh bound boundaries of how much liquids can help with cooling and insulating system for um batteries. This is my project is trying to experiment with the seeing how how liquid cooling system which are used for modern day engines can also work with the batteries. So what I do is I used three liquids vinegar 5 citric acid and water and u I made a case um which would have a battery and have those liquids around it. The battery that I used was a lithium battery and uh it usually works at 20° 40°C. So what I tried to do was I put put the battery in the case and put liquid around it and then put and put it into environments of 5°C
026and5°C environment. I created those environments by pouring 5 degrees CC, 75 degrees CC water around it. And u I put it I put my battery in the case in there for 2 hours and checked and I saw that vinegar is the best at helping with the cooling and insulating the battery. Um why I choose 5° and Celsius. I chose that because um today uh across the world electric cars are usually they roam around this highest and lowest degrees. Um and uh I my analysis was that vinegar was the best at uh helping helping with this. And I feel like that might be a bit wrong because um today and because vinegar has a lower specific heat than water and so my hypothesis was that water would be better. But yeah, my future my future application
027is to further furthest the furthest kind of technology and use this case and make a a small robot out of it and then test it with the robot to better to make a better realistic uh um model and yeah that's Uh, good evening, Mr. Mayor Coach, Superintendent, and members of the school committee. My name is Anzer Ahmed and I'm a sophomore at Quincsey High School. Um, my project to begin my project is focused on combating climate change in a novel way uh and increasing the efficiency of a technique which is used to do that. So right now um according to various studies the Paris agreement uh limit of well below 2.0 0 degrees C for which is a cap for global warming is considered unfeasible if we continue using only renewable resources in uh in
028addition to renewable resources. Um we also have to try to capture carbon dioxide directly into the atmosphere which we've already released. So um there are many ways you can do this including uh simply growing trees and algae and other biorelated methods but one of the more novel ways that scientists are doing this is through direct air capture. So direct air capture or DAC comes in many forms but usually it is a process where a large fan draws in masses of air and the carbon dioxide in that air is absorbed by a liquid or solid solvent. uh and is stored elsewhere. So when I did research on direct air capture, I noticed that originally it was very inefficient when it was first introduced. And the way scientists got around this was um if you imagine a
029glass filled with a liquid solvent inside of it and you release carbon dioxide over that solvent, it's only going to react with the top layer. So that's a large amount of liquid being wasted. The way they got around this was creating chambers that uh maximize the surface area so that more of the solvent is used and more of it comes into effect and that when it was implemented it greatly increased the amount of output and the carbon dioxide captured. What what I noticed is that most of the scientists that did this they used very linear honeycomb structures and they were very predictable. So my project basically is trying to figure out what happens if you add tortuosity to those chambers. if you make them more uh if you add more twists and turns inside of
030the chambers to make it less predictable. and I had a fractal. So these represent three different levels of in my testing I uh coated these three structures with sodium with a sodium carbonate solution and the solution was at 10%. And I ran pure carbon dioxide through it through a reaction with baking soda and vinegar in a controlled amount. And this was put into a system where the sodium carbonate solution absorbed the carbon dioxide and all other most of the the majority of any variables that can cause any uh disparities in the data were methodically removed. So what happened was the honeycomb produced about the medium amount of the carbon dioxide absorbs compared to the other two. If you line them up from least torturous to most you get that the honeycomb is a lesser value
031and the tractor was the lowest value. Uh what this means is that there is a sort of parabolic curve to this and you can see that through the trend line right what this means is that there there's going to be an optimal amount of tortuosity for any >> sorry yes >> there's going to be an optimal amount of tortuosity for any given size of a chamber and this serves as a case study so that um this can be applied in the future at higher levels and at larger scales. Uh you can do testing to find this pro proves that you can do testing to find an optimal level of tortuosity. And um what I believe is that uh direct air capture as it is now can be improved by adding tortuosity into it. Thank you.
032I was very honored to be here. >> Round of applause for all students. Great job. I do also want to recognize uh principal uh Dan Gilbert from North Quinsey High School is here to support our students tonight as well as assistant principal Ed Smith from Quinsey High School. So, thank you both for being here. And if we could ask our students and um Principal Gilbert and Assistant Principal Smith and our educators to come to the front for a picture, that would be great. test for a couple of minutes. Hope people can uh escape Okay, we'll continue with the superintendent's report. At the recent Skills USA District 3 competition, Quinsey High School students participated in a variety of competitive events, showcasing their skills and dedication to their respective trades. Seven Quinsey High School students earned medals
033for their impressive performance and four of these medalists have qualified to advance to the prestigious Skills USA state leadership and skills conference scheduled to take place in May. Congratulations to the following students. Salana Celinga Batista, gold medal in criminal justice and qualified for the state competition. Amazing. Mayana Johnson, bronze medal in criminal justice. Fang Dao and Lucas Ortiz civil medal in team cyber security and also qualified this for the state competition. Sarah Khan and Gregor Brealo uh bronze medal in team cyber security and Dmitri Dufalt silver medal in information technology services and also qualified for the state competition. Please join us in congratulating these students for representing Quinsey High School with excellence, professionalism, and skill. We wish our state qualifies the best of luck as they prepare for the Skills USA Massachusetts state leadership and
034skills conference later this spring. Congratulations to all of our students. In partnership with the Quinsey Historical Society, Quinsey Public Schools grade four students had the opportunity to create brochures highlighting the history of Quinsey and its landmarks. Students were recently recognized for their outstanding brochures at a special event at the Quinsey Historical Society Museum. Congratulations to the winners. Hayden Chen Wallist, Bayen Shalot, Snug Harour, Sri Chural, Clifford Marshall, Alva Dmitri, Bernazani, Sanja Gapanath, Clifford Marshall, Rowena He Clifford Marshall, Almal Jama, Clifford Marshall, Henry Karuni, Wallist, Kendall Leang, Beachwood Null. Uh, Ry Mishra, Lincoln Hancock. Savannah Pulk, Beachwood Null. Michaela Raining, Lincoln Hancock. Via Rodardi, Beachwood Null. Hopper Rollins, Bernazani, Abigail Vicaro, Bernazani, Vaia Vishak, Clifford Marshall, Ashley Wang, Beachwood Null, and Anzagna Zang Wallist. Congratulations to all those students. Amazing. Uh on Monday, March 30th, at
035the invitation of Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Early College High School State Director Falita Jamerson, executive director Keith Sagala, North Quinsey High School Dean Marissa Smith, and Quinsey College Vice President Megan Giovenoni will be presenting our successful middle school early college high school prep program to state administrators, early high school administrators and educators, and post-secary education institutions from across the Commonwealth at a conference conference being held at Westfield State University. This presentation will focus on building intentional equity centered middle school pipelines that expand access for students underrepresented in higher education. Participants will explore early exposure strategies, feeder patent alignment, family engagement and readiness milestones that connect grades 6 through 10 into a cohesive pathway. So, I wish um all of our educators and Mrs. Sagala. Good luck at that event. Tonight, we're also welcoming
036the new Quinsey Public Schools Director of Business Management, Adam Conlin, CPA. Adam has most recently been an experienced associate in the specialty tax services at Price Waterhouse Cooper LLP. His previous professional experience includes positions at Cone Resnik Advisory LLP in Leighton, USA. Adam has a bachelor of science and economics from the University of Rhode Island Rhode Island and a master's degree in accounting from the University of Massachusetts in Dartmouth. If we could have Adam come in, if we can please uh welcome Adam uh to the Quinsey public schools. Oh, Adam's here. Thank you, Adam. I would also like to thank Jim Melany for his 23 years of service to the student, staff, and families of the Quinsey public schools and wish him all the best for a healthy and happy retirement. Mr. Melany will be
037staying on with us um as Mr. Conlin takes on the new role of business director and we transfer all of Mr. Melan's knowledge into uh Adam's um uh head. Uh so, for lack of a better term, so um again, Mr. Melenny will be around. Um so I'm sure you'll see him before he officially leaves. Uh again, welcome Adam. We really uh appreciate you taking on that big big role. Upcoming Quinsey Public Schools in the City of Quinsey events. The annual credit for life fair will be held tomorrow, March 26th at the Terrell Room starting at 9:00 a.m. Thanks to our Quinsey school community business partners for putting together this important annual event for 200 high school students. The Point Webster Middle School Drama Club is presenting the music the musical The Lion King Jr. on
038March 27th at 7 p.m. and on March 28th at 2 p.m. in the Point Webster Auditorium. Tickets are available in advance on lutus.com or at the door uh for each performance. The annual middle school citywide swimming and diving meet was rescheduled to March 28th at 9:00 a.m. at the Jeriff Community Center pool at the Lincoln Hancock School. The city of Quinsey will be hosting the annual Remember the Ladies event on Saturday, March 28th at noon at Quinsey High School. This year's event will recognize the nurses of the Quinsey public schools and also honor Grace Angtoy for their valuable contributions to the community. The virtual parent academy on the new social emotional learning curriculum, Colonels, will be held on Tuesday, March 31st at 6 PM via Zoom. And the spring concert season will kick off with
039the combined high school band concert on March 31st at 6 p.m. at Quinsey High School. And lastly, an additional uh piece that I do not want to miss um recognizing uh tonight is that today grade seven and eight drama students from Southwest Middle School had an exciting opportunity to participate in the filming of a public service announcement that will begin airing on Channel 5 on Patre Day. It's very exciting. This commercial is part of the we declare grade 8 video contest, a statewide contest that invites students to engage deeply with the founding ideals of our nation by interpreting and bringing to life the words of the Declaration of Independence in creative and meaningful ways in honor of the 250 anniversary of the Declaration. All grade 8 classrooms across the district will be participating in this
040exciting contest. Students filmed at the Adams birth birthplaces as well as at Southwest Middle School today and had the unique opportunity to read sentences from the declaration bringing history to life through their voices and performances. I would like to thank Dr. Perkins, Mr. Morani, Principal Mitchell, and Assistant Principal Foley for their work in organizing this excellent opportunity for our students. And special thanks to Assistant Principal Susan Foley and her cameo as a historical tour guide for the students at the birthplaces. So, I know that was long, but that ends the superintendent's report. Thank you all very much. >> Thank you, superintendent. Any questions of superintendent? See none, we'll go on to uh No, no old business, so we'll go right to new business. Item five A. a music program update with a whole cast of
041characters. You want to put some of those down. Thank you so much for having us here tonight. Uh it is my absolute pleasure to introduce the unbelievably talented group that is here with me tonight. It has is absolutely one of the things I am most proud of uh to be a person who gets to support every day the performing arts department of Quinsey public schools. Um I I do need to thank a big thank you to Mayor Ko and to this body. You heard uh Mr. Glennon speak about the amazing things that have happened. Mayor Ko, you make my job very easy by always being there and offering support for the music department. And for that, I know we are all extremely grateful. Um, and the and the theater program. And so, I'm going to
042let them, you know, take it away. I think you're going to be so impressed when we put this presentation together to see the unbelievable offerings that are happening throughout the district in Quinsey public schools. I would absolutely uh feel very comfortable saying that we have one of the strongest, if not the best performing arts departments across the Commonwealth. We offer so many things for our students. Um and so I'd like to introduce uh Mr. DeMarco who is the department chair, Miss Martell, Joanna Martell, who is one of our choir instructors, Mr. Ducet who is our theater instructor, Miss Judy Lie who is one of our instrumental teachers, and Mr. Kavanaaugh Cav who is our one of our band directors. And with that, I will turn it to Mr. DeMarco. >> Thank you, Dr. Perkins. And
043um thank you to everyone tonight for this opportunity. I'd also like to thank uh Mr. Glennon and Mr. Lee for the appreciative and supportive words. Um, that means a lot to all of us. Thank you. It's my pleasure to share an update on the Quinsey Public Schools performing arts program. This presentation highlights our prek to 12 music and performing arts offerings, our recent growth, and the impact these programs have on our students. Every image you'll see in the presentation represents Quinsey students actively engaged in our programs. To begin, I'd like to start with the vision that guides our work. At the core of our program is a commitment to access, growth, and student opportunity. ensuring that every student can engage meaningfully in the arts and carry those skills into whatever path they choose. We aim
044to cultivate confidence, creativity, and transferable skills while ensuring equitable access for all students. From that vision, our program is intentionally structured as a continuous pathway supporting students from their earliest experiences in elementary school through advanced opportunities in high school. The performing arts program is structured as a continuous developmental pathway supported by both academic and extracurricular components. the academic program during the school day and extracurricular opportunities beyond the school day. Our academic program is designed as a continuous pathway across all grade levels. Students begin with general music in elementary school where they are introduced to foundational skills and early performance opportunities. At the middle school level, students expand into full ensemble experiences. At the high school level, students can pursue both performance-based and academic courses. This structure supports both broad participation and advanced study. This ensures
045that every student has both an entry point and a pathway for continued growth in the performing arts. To support that pathway, we've built clear entry points that connect directly to advanced opportunities. Students enter the music program through clear foundational pathways that colle that connect directly to advanced study. At the elementary level, students are introduced to music through four core areas. each one building a specific set of skills that connects directly to later opportunities in our program. Singing, which builds vocal skills and supports coral development. The recorder, which introduces wind playing and prepares students for band, ukulele, which develops string skills and transitions to guitar and orchestral strings. and orph instruments and drums which establish rhythmic understanding and percussion skills. These serve as foundational entry points for all of our students and each pathway connects directly
046to more advanced opportunities later in middle and high school. This structure ensures both accessibility and long-term growth. From these entry points, students begin developing the foundational skills that prepare them for ensemble participation. This ensures that every student has both an entry point and a pathway for continued growth. Let's take a closer look at how that begins at the elementary level. Elementary general music builds foundational skills and prepares students for further ensemble participation. All students participate in general music classes at the elementary level where the instruction focuses on the foundational skills of singing, rhythm, movement, and listening. Singing being the primary foundation for musical development. Then in grades four and five, students are introduced to band and chorus opportunities. This provides an early transition into ensemble participation. In addition, as we'll discuss later, students can begin
047taking string lessons in grades two and three through our extended day music program. This level builds the foundation that supports continued growth in middle and high school. As students move into middle school, those foundational skills expand into more comprehensive and varied musical experiences. The middle school general music program offers a well-rounded resourceupported program for all students. Students continue building musical understanding through literacy, listening, and music history. The curriculum expands beyond performance to include technology, composition, and global music. We appreciate very much that the district has invested in a class set of guitars at each middle school, allowing students to build on their elementary ukulele experience and transition to guitar. At Broad Meadows, students also have access to a full piano lab to support keyboard instruction. These resources allow for more engaging, hands-on learning experiences for
048our students. In addition to general music, students also have opportunities to participate in ensembble-based programs such as chorus. Middle school chorus provides accessible and consistent vocal opportunities for all students. Chorus is offered at all middle schools, ensuring broad student access. Programs are structured to support participation within each school community according to its unique schedule where students participate in rehearsals and performances including the winter and spring concerts. We enhanced those concerts with the addition of professional accompanists and found that that is greatly strengthened the overall quality of performances and made students excited for their coral experience. This experience prepares students for continued participation in the high school coral program. It provides an accessible entry point for students to begin developing vocal and ensemble skills at a more advanced level. In addition to chorus, students also participate
049in instrumental ensembles through the middle school band program. The band program is a large-scale growing and multi-layered part of the district with strong participation and expanded opportunities. Currently, the band program serves over,00 students across grades 4 through 12, representing a significant portion of the student population, approximately one in every 10 students in the Quinsey public schools. And we're very proud of that. Students begin in elementary school and continue developing through middle school. Instruction at the middle school level includes both small group lessons by instrument and full ensemble rehearsals twice a week. Each middle school has also considered expanding its program to include jazz ensembles, providing additional performance opportunities for our students. And at the district level, students can also participate in the all city honor band and all city jazz band, extending these experiences beyond
050the school day. Performances and public events remain a central part of the program. This is one of the largest and most impactful music programs in our district. As students move into high school, these opportunities expand into a broader range of courses and pathways. At this point, I'm going to turn things over to Miss Martell, who will walk us through our high school music electives and coral program. >> Good evening. Thank you so much for giving us this opportunity. Um, so the high school music electives um expand access and provide multiple entry points for students beyond our traditional band and chorus and string ensembles. Um, in addition to our performance ensembles, students have access to a wide range of electives, including advanced course work such as AP music theory, um, as well as entry- level and
051exploratory classes and even an early college high school, um, music elective called music across cultures. Uh, both high schools now have full class sets of electric pianos, which allow for dedicated keyboard instruction, which we're very, very thankful um to the district for providing um, and a full class set of guitars, which were purchased by the city as well. We've seen strong student interest in both piano and guitar, particularly in students who are not involved in these traditional ensembles. As we continue to grow their program, our goal is to expand elective offerings, including a dedicated guitar class, music fundamentals and appreciation, and a music production and engineering class. These courses help complete the broader scope of music instruction while providing relevant and modern opportunities for students. We're building a program that hopefully reflects both student interest
052and the evolving landscape of music education across the nation. I will now speak about the high school coral music program. Um both high school choirs um are structured credit bearing academic programs with a clear sequence. Um just a few years ago uh we added a choir 1 class um which has helped our enrollment grow to over 110 students between the two high schools. Um this progression of choir classes begins with choir one moves to choir 2 and then finally advanced choir is an option. These are credit bearing courses with regular assessment not just extracurricular activities. Students develop vocal technique alongside music literacy skills such as site reading and ear training. Daily ensemble rehearsals build both individual musicianship and collaborative performance skills. This is an integral part of the high school music program and reflects a
053fully developed academic course of study. Additionally, the coral program fosters both meaningful student experiences and high level achievement. The program fosters a strong sense of community and many students find meaningful connection and their home through our choir classes. For many students, choir becomes a place where they feel supported and engaged, not only learning music, but also developing commitment, collaboration, and confidence. Students grow in the vocal technique and musical expression and ensemble collaboration through their consistent participation. Performances are an integral part of our learning experience both within the school and the broader Quinsey community. Events such as the Tis the Season concert helped help strengthen that connection. Our programs also provide advanced opportunities for students. Our select choir is also a credit bearing course that offers a pathway for more advanced musicians. Um, and we also
054offer contemporary a capella groups uh that are available for students as well. Students regularly participate and have shown increasing enrollment um in the Massachusetts music educators festivals including junior districts, senior districts, and all state. Um, these are all audition- based groups um that students get selected across about 33 different school districts um to participate in. This program has earned recognition um at Micah and other regional festivals and many students have shown to continue their involvement in music and theater at the collegiate level. I will now turn it back to Mr. DeMarco um who will talk about the marching band. >> I have to add about choir. Um I'm very appreciative and we're very grateful to have Mr. Karu and um Miss Martell working with our coral music students and also we are very grateful to
055Mayor Ko and the city for their support in providing the formal concert attire. It has truly sharpened the look of our students at performances and as you can see in those pictures they look stunning. So thank you. Thank you so much for that and thank you Joanna. Um, at the high school level, one of the most visible and recognizable parts of our program is our marching band. The Q andQ marching band has experienced tremendous growth in recent years and represents our program in the community at a very high level thanks to the dedication and expertise of Mr. Kavanaaugh and our committed marching band staff and band booster volunteers. At the same time, that visibility is built on a solid foundation, our concert band program, where students develop the core musical skills that support all their
056performance experiences and continue the instrumental instruction they began in middle school. Together, these components create a comprehensive program that supports both highle performance and continued musical growth. Before Mr. Kavanaaugh um was a band director at at the high school, I was also the high school band director. And at that time, our marching program did not even exist. Just to give you uh some perspective, some historical perspective. Um when we started it initially, it was a pep band that performed in the stands for the football games. They did not perform any kind of routine or show on the field. And when we first got that on board, um, we actually got a grant from Music Drives Us and we were able to hire three staff members and we performed a show of very limited scope, maybe
057a three minute selection, one one one show simple on the field. More recently in 2019, the program has grown from about 60 to 70 students at that time to now60 students in 2025, which is now that makes us the largest marching band in the region. This year, the incoming freshman class was our largest ever. We had 50 students that wanted to continue the program into high school. And next year we have projected enrollment of anywhere between 160 to 180 students. At the same time the program scope and quality has expanded significantly. Now the marching band is not only capable but well accomplished in performing fulllength shows with increased musical and visual complexity. For example, the Quinsey uh 400 last year was spectacular, and I don't think anyone in any of the competitions saw visual props
058that large or that grandiose. So, it's amazing they didn't blow over in the wind. We're also incredibly appreciative of all the support from Mayor Ko and the city of Quinsey with all the investments with these new students. We need additional uniforms and the city has been there and has provided this for us. We've had challenges moving all of those very large props, needing to have several rental trucks and and U-Hauls and get all these volunteers. And now the city has been able to provide an 18-wheeler trailer for transportation logistics, which simplifies things both logistically and financially for us. So, we're very grateful to everybody here for your support and for Mayor Ko and the city, for the school administration, Superintendent Malvy, Dr. Perkins. It's been truly spectacular and we would not be able to continue
059this level of growth without that support and and we truly appreciate that. Let's take a closer look now at how the growth and impact of our marching band, how that has it translated into achievement and recognition. So now that we're able to sustain excellence and a strong competitive achievement over multiple years, we've earned consistent placements at NESPA championships. Um in 2021 we had fourth place, third in 2022, second in 2023. Now more recently in 2024, 2025, uh we've had some top placements in gold ratings. The program has also garnered silver and gold ratings at Micah festivals uh reflecting both strength in musical and visual performance. And I remember my first year we didn't even place in the Quinsey Christmas parade and now five consecutive years top band um at that parade. So that's truly an
060accomplishment and shows that we remain a strong presence in the community and I think that visibility sells the program and and motivates the students to want to continue. This is not a one-year success story. This is a program defined by sustained excellence over time and very careful management and dedication. While the marching component is perhaps the most visible aspect of the band program, it is supported by a strong concert band curriculum that develops students core musical skills. The concert band program is a structured high-level continuation of instrumental study with strong participation and achievement. Students transition into the concert band program following the fall marching season, and the program serves roughly 130 to 140 students across both high schools. Students are placed into two tiered ensembles based on both experience and audition. Our initial group is
061the symphonic brand and we have around 85 to 95 students in that group. And then by audition only we have roughly 50 to 70 who audition every year and we take 45 students in our wind ensemble. Instruction focuses on tone production, technique and music literacy aligned with the desi frameworks of creating, performing, responding and connecting. Currently, our program features the most diverse range of instruments in its history. Anywhere from bassoons to contraalto clarinets. Again, thanks to the support of the school system in the city that were able to provide those instruments for those students. In addition, our students are being selected at increasing rates for top honors in district, all state, and regional honor band festivals. Micah achievements for our concert bands as well. Symphonic band earning consistent silver ratings. and our wind ensemble in
0622024 earned a gold rating which garnered them a place at Graten Hill Music Center. You could see that photo up there on the top right. That was that event and we're very proud of that. The future looks especially bright with all these freshmen coming in. You might remember I said 50. Uh we're looking to expand even further to a third concert band, a freshman concert band to better meet our student needs when they enter our program. This is a program that continues to grow in both size and musical achievement. Beyond performance, our high school music program is deeply rooted in academic development. This next slide highlights our focus on music literacy and measurable student growth. Music in Quinsey public schools is not just performance-based. It is a structured academic discipline with measurable growth in literacy
063and fundamental skills. As a department, we have made a deliberate shift toward strengthening music literacy and fundamentals across all high school courses and have consistently made this our goal. When we refer to music literacy, we mean students ability to read and interpret musical notation, understand rhythm, pitch, scales, and key signatures, and apply expressive elements like dynamics and articulation. It's kind of like learning a world language, except this language, in our case, is the musical language. These skills are measured through common departmentwide assessments administered three times per year and this year's data shows strong achievement. Students began this year with an average of roughly 59% on our initial assessment of music literacy. By midyear, that number increased to 73%. This reflects substantial improvement in a relatively short period of time and aligns with our departmental goal
064of increasing student proficiency. This work also builds on last year's success where we exceeded our growth target and saw over 13% improvement from initial to final assessments. I believe that this demonstrates that our music program is both artistically strong and academically rigorous with measurable student growth aligned to district goals and the DESI standards from the elementary level through middle school and into high school. Our program is designed as a continuous pathway that builds both musical understanding and academic skills over time. While this work reflects the academic strength of our program, it is complemented by a wide range of extracurricular opportunities that allow students to further engage, perform, and grow beyond the school day. In addition to our academic programs, the performing arts program is supported by a wide range of extracurricular opportunities that extend student
065learning beyond the school day. These programs provide additional opportunities for students to deepen their musical and artistic skills, participate in performances and public events, collaborate with peers across schools. These extracurricular programs are available across multiple areas. And these experiences allow students to engage at a higher level and explore areas of personal interest. Many of these programs bring students together across schools, strengthening the district-wide performing arts community and also that sense of belonging that the students feel. Some of them describe these students and our programs as their family away from home. Participation in these extracurricular programs continues to grow across all areas and they complement the academic program by providing additional pathways for student engagement, leadership, and a strong sense of community. This allows students to extend their learning beyond the classroom while deepening their engagement
066in the performing arts. To highlight one of these areas in more depth, I'd like to now turn it over to Judy Lie, our facilitator of the strings program, our director of the John Adams Orchestra, who will share more about the opportunities and growth within our strings program. >> Thank you, Mike. String program starts in second grade and continues through grade 12. We offer small group lesson for students to learn the orchestral string family instruments which include violin, viola, cello, and double bass. After they complete a two years program, they join the orchestras. Students have the opportunity to perform in major events, including the tista season concert with the Quinsey Symphony Orchestra. Each spring, we also bring students together across the district to celebrate their achievement in a citywide string concert. Overall, the program serves over
067200 students in five locations with the team of six string instructors. The string program shows continuous growth across grade level and is supported by strong participation in district investment which we are very grateful for all your support. Now I'll turn it back to Mike. >> Thank you Mrs. Lie for that overview of our strengths program. I'd now like to highlight another area of our extracurricular offerings that continues to expand and provide meaningful opportunities for students. Our color guard and winter guard program. Color Guard is a rapidly growing multi-season program that provides both performance and competitive opportunities for our students. The program began approximately 6 years ago and was not initially part of the marching band. Participation has grown significantly in the meantime from approximately 10 to 15 students in its earliest years to 30 to
06845 students annually today. And the program today now operates across three seasons. Fall integrated with our marching band. Winter, which is the competitive winter guard season, and spring, which is utilized for training and recruiting new members. The program is now one of the largest in the region. Students are grouped by ability level and develop skills in movement and dance equipment work. And our winter guard program has expanded to encompass both junior varsity and varsity ensembles. Students compete in regional competitions and have earned strong placements, including advancements into higher competitive divisions. And this was actually the case most recently. This past weekend, our groups placed into a higher level and they actually won, beating out some seasoned professional groups. So, we're very proud of the color guard. Their instructors are fabulous and I I' don't think
069I've ever seen a group of students more enthusiastic about what they do. They're polite. They're kind. They're respectful everywhere they go and they're just fabulous to have. Another area that has seen strong growth and achievement is our high school jazz program. The jazz program is a growing multi-level pathway that supports creativity, improvisation, and highlevel performance. The high school jazz program now serves approximately 40 to 50 students and has grown significantly in recent years under Mr. Kavanaaugh's direction. This growth has led to the creation of two ensembles, expanding access for students. Our junior varsity jazz ensemble, which supports our developing jazz musicians, teaching them leadership skills and basic improvisational skills, and our varsity jazz ensemble, which provides an advanced performance pathway. In addition to the creation of jazz programs at our middle schools, we also have
070our all city middle school jazz band under the direction of Mr. Salvuchi. He has been instrumental in creating a clear and intentional pathway for students to continue into the high school jazz program. And we're very grateful for Mr. Salvuchi's efforts. Jazz wouldn't be jazz without improvisation and that remains one of the central focuses of the program. Improvisation supports creativity, composition, and musical independence. Our students earn strong recognition at regional and state festivals, including gold medal performances and invitations to perform at venues such as the Hatshell, as well as participation in national level clinics. This is a rapidly growing program that provides students with a unique opportunity to develop creativity, independence, and highlevel performance skills. To highlight another important performance opportunity for our students, I'd like to turn it over to Miss Martell, who will share
071more about Our high school recital series provides students with opportunities for individual performance and artistic expression beyond our large ensembles. The high school recital series includes two events each year, typically held in the winter and the spring. These recital provide opportunities for many students to perform solo works, small ensemble pieces across many genres of music. Students from across the performing arts participate, including our band students, choir students, jazz theater students, jazz students, theater students, and piano students. This creates a different performance experience from large ensemble settings. The participation is strong with approximately 30 to 40 students involved in each recital. These events help students develop confidence, independence, and individual musicianship. And just to once again thank the city so much. Um you guys have were instrumental in providing acoustic shells for us that um have
072increased just the ability to hear and to project um and just offer a really nice um sound experience for every single one of our performing opportunities. So um just wanted to say thank you so much for that and that has increased our um our sound possibilities with our recital series as well. Um so I will now turn back to Mike to talk about the percussion program. I also want to thank um QAV and Ryan W Ryan Mcuade for all of the filming. There are so many events, concerts, elementary, middle school, high school. And what is really meaningful about this is that we have documentation of where we've been and the growth that we've endured in the meantime. And that is just a tremendous transformation to witness. So we are very appreciative of QAV for documenting
073that journey for us. So thank you. Another area that has seen thoughtful growth and expanded opportunities for our students is our high school percussion program, which is a a a very new innovation and for good reason, which I'll discuss. Our high school percussion program is a structured component of our ensemble program, which supports both skill development and increased student participation. And this is for a very good reason. A lot of times in concert band and when you have a lot of percussionists and with our recruitment sometimes we have more than 20 in a band when typically a a concert band may only require four to six percussionists. It creates a unique problem. What do you do with the other students? Do they just sit there and twirl their thumbs or do we try to give
074them more engaging opportunities? And we have a student representative here, a percussionist MJ, who can certainly attest to uh the percussion experience and how this program has maybe helped his colleagues in the band. Our percussion ensemble program provides more targeted instruction for these students. Rehearsals take place during the concert band night rehearsals, allowing for focused work on specific percussion techniques. Um, we have three different percussion ensemble levels. We have the wind ensemble percussion group, the symphonic band, and we have also a freshman percussion ensemble where students receive instruction in technical skills and percussion techniques. Also, specific percussion ensemble repertoire and musicianship. And this culminates in a in an annual concert for the percussion ensembles at the end of the year. This structure allows for more individualized instruction specific to our percussionists and it also enables
075the band directors to have more dedicated time for the wind players to work on all of their issues separately such as blend and balance and inonation and some of those nuanced techniques that the percussionists don't really have to deal with. Um, we're we're grateful to Amy Woo and Gabe Leel who provide both ensemble direction and skill-based instruction for us. And this program allows us to better meet the need the needs of our students while continuing to expand opportunities for participation in in musical growth in our band program. To highlight another important area of our performing arts program, I'd like to now turn it over to Mr. Ducet, who will share more information about our theater program. Thank you, Mike. Um, high school theater provides meaningful opportunities for student engagement through both academic and extracurricular experiences.
076While all performance art forms are expressive, theater is unique. Theater is the only art form that specifically deals with the human experience. The theater space is a place where students can examine history during its triumphs and its pitfalls. Theater holds a mirror up to society and allows us to examine relationships and power dynamics. Theater has the ability to highlight the struggles of a people while also celebrating a multitude of different cultures. Theater allows our students to view the world from a different perspective and ask the question, "What would I do in that situation?" Our students have opportunities to experience theater both on stage and behind the scenes at Quinsey High School and North Quinsey High School. At Quinsey High School, students can take theater courses during the day, including introduction to theater and pathways in
077acting and technical theater. These students explore different historical genres, literary styles, and vast performance mediums such as puppetry, mask work, and mimicry. At North Quinsey High School, students participate through an active drama club and multiple school productions. Across both schools, students have the opportunities to be involved in all aspects of theater, including acting, scenic painting, set construction, lighting, and sound production, and costume design. These experiences help students work creatively, collaborate with peers and skilled staff, and build confidence in such foundational skills such as public speaking, reading comprehension, and visual communication. This ensures meaningful experiences for students at both schools with growing interests and opportunities for continued expansion. Um I would just like to point out um the photo on the left and that's Quinsey High School's production of Ruth Gordon's autobiographical play called Years Ago.
078Um, it was one of the shows included in the 400th anniversary celebration of Quinsey and is a great example of how theater can be used to celebrate and uh build community. The theater program provides a district-wide pathway with growing participation and increasing collaboration across Quinsey public schools. Students begin engaging in theater at the middle school level where each school presents an annual extracurricular musical production. These experiences provide early opportunities for performance collaboration and stage production. Um, and I just want to tip my hat to my middle school colleagues. There's a wonderful group of music teachers, visual art teachers, reading teachers, history teachers, teachers with so many different academic backgrounds who all come together and collaborate for months and put on truly wonderful performances. We have uh seen the numbers in the middle school programs increase
079every year and I believe those increases are due to a combination of the dedication of the middle school production teams and also due to the exceptional theater spaces throughout the city. at schools. Um, as schools have been rebuilt or renovated in the city, there have been continued emphasis to have a state-of-the-art performance facilities at the schools. Such venues as Quinsey High School, Central Middle School, Southwest, and Broad Meadows all show the importance of a communal gathering place. These venues serve a special purpose not only as performing arts venues, but also a space where the local community gathers for a variety of important events. We are grateful that our school system recognizes the value of those spaces and views them as the biggest classroom in the school. Our middle school students have also had the additional
080opportunity for a summer drama camp. This camp is a two-eek experience that allows students to create their own plays through the process of exploring guided topics in group playwriting. At the high school level, both Quinsey High School and North Quinsey High School present fully realized productions in the fall semester. In addition, students from both schools unite for a combined district musical each spring, which has become a major collaborative performance opportunity. Participation has grown significantly across all productions. At North Quinsey High School, fall productions now involve approximately 30 to 40 students, um, which is up from about 15 to 20 in previous years. And at Quinsey High School, fall productions involve approximately 20 to 40 students, which has also seen steady growth. The combined district musical engages about approximately 70 to 90 students annually. These students
081are involved in all aspects of production, including acting, prop construction, stage design, publicity, and stage management. These theater experiences support the development of our students and they bring together students from so many diverse backgrounds and challenges them to unite in a common artistic endeavor. So this is a growing and increasingly collaborative program and that brings students together across the district and I thank you so much for the opportunity to talk tonight and I'm going to turn it back over to Mike. >> Thank you Tom. As we step back and look across the entire program, I'd like to highlight the range of opportunities available to our students and our continued focus on access and participation. Students have access to performing arts opportunities across all grade levels, beginning in elementary school, continuing through middle school, and expanding
082into multiple pathways in high school. The program includes both academic courses during the day and extracurricular opportunities well beyond the school day. Students can participate in a wide range of areas. The program is designed to provide multiple entry points for students, pathways for continued growth, and opportunities for both broad participation and advanced study. Participation continues to grow across all program areas. We remain committed to ensuring that all students have access to meaningful performing arts experiences. We work very closely with coaches and the athletic department to ensure that our students have access to a wide variety of experiences during their time in the Quinsey public schools. Our goal is to provide every student with the opportunity to engage, grow, and find a place within the performing arts community. We are incredibly grateful for the continued support
083of Mayor Ko, the school committee, Superintendent Malvi, Assistant Superintendent Perkins, and our district leadership team and parents and staff. We also want to thank our music and performing arts teachers, our staff, and the families who support our students and our programs. That support has directly impacted our students by expanding access, improving resources, and creating more opportunities. Everything that we've shared today is made possible through that partnership. I want to thank you for your time and continued support. And at this time, we'd be happy to take any questions. Thank you. >> Thank you for that great presentation. open up now to our colleagues. Anybody? Mrs. Cale, >> I don't really have any questions, but I I do want to say thank you. And um I think what we need to understand is that when you have
084a successful program, it's because of the work that you do in in the in our classrooms every day with our students and you encourage them and you inspire them and they want to be there. And um so I think that tonight we've had examples of academic success and and success in the performing arts and um and excellence I think that we have here in our district. And I I truly believe that QPS is one of the best districts in the Commonwealth. And um I think that that doesn't happen by accident. We need to have people in the classroom and we have great teachers in our buildings because we have investments from our city and none of this can happen. We have to understand we've been really um fortunate to have a mayor and a city
085council who has been able to invest in these programs. And I hate to even say this, but I have four daughters who went through QPS maybe started about 30 years ago. And in that time, I've been able to see the transformation in our programs. Um, they had great experiences, but I wish they could have been there while you guys were here with the investments that we've had because it's it's phenomenal. And I have never gone to one event or performance where I didn't come out of there thinking like being blown away by what the kids are able to do. Um so I'm really grateful for that. Thank you. And I think that the community at large needs to understand that that doesn't happen by accident. We're lucky to have the investment that we have and
086hopefully we can continue to have that in the future. Graduation's a great day, too, where we get to see a little bit of the culmination from the whole year with the chorus and the band and all of that. So, if when we have graduation, it's a it's a beautiful day to see all of that as well. So, thank you for your work and I thank you for that. Okay. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mrs. Kale. Go over here and I'll be back. Um, Mrs. Pios, >> thank you. Um, you guys all know how I feel about um all of you. Uh I I see the impact that uh this program, the performing arts, music and theater has on all of our QBS kids, but especially my kids. Uh there are weeks that Mr. Ducet, Mr.
087um Kavanaaugh, you see more of my kids than I do. Uh they live at the school. Uh they live in your programs and they have thrived in your programs. So um I'm glad to be able to publicly thank you for it. Um and just as kind of from a parent perspective of kids in those programs, it's just, you know, it's it is a family. It is Mr. um Demarco you said about finding a place within the fi performing arts community. They really have and there's really so many kids that have found that you know not only my kids but the you know the kids that they are in band and theater with. Um it's just it's very it's it's impressive um the band. So my comments are kind of half and half. So I think
088I see it all together, but my world is very different. So during band season, it's very intense. Very intense. Um Mr. Cav, you uh get all all the best out of them. Uh one way or another, you get all the best out of them. Uh long days, long nights. Um but you get the best out of them and they and with professionalism and um the band, you can tell it's it's fantastic. Um and Mr. you just that you've taken a kid who didn't do any theater before going into high school and made them go into college uh majoring in stage production and going to New York and wanting to take on the world. So, it's thanks to you guys that my kids are on the path that they are. And I just want to say
089thank you and I appreciate all of you. >> Mr. Leon, >> thank you, Mr. Mayor. Um, I also want to uh echo and amplify a lot of the things that were already said. Um, I really want to commend the um entire performing arts team uh for what you do and what you're able to accomplish every school year. Um my kids also are proud participants in um many of the programs and um we see the benefits. Um it's it's undeniable uh the benefits of um studying music and um preparing for a performance. um the the hard and soft skills uh that they gain from um being um participants in that um are just going to help them um throughout their lives. So um thank you all for for what you do um and I mean it's
090so obvious the the teamwork that's involved and that is then kind of passed on to the the participants, right? Because um Mr. to Demarco, you spoke about um all the success that you had um at the high school level, but that's not possible without the the foundation um the foundations that are uh built at at the um uh earlier levels. Um I guess my one question uh would be uh about access. So, uh, thank you so much for your focus on, um, providing access, um, to all students that want to participate. Um, so I am curious, um, if there are any, uh, challenges there with providing access. I mean, one thing that comes to mind is perhaps the uh, inventory of of instruments, right? Not all students are able to um you know come to
091to band with uh the instrument that they want to play. Um but it but it sounds like um you know the the city and and and boosters um do a great job of providing um your programs with what you need. So um if there are any issues with with access um don't be shy about um bringing those to our attention. Well, thanks to your support and the city's support, we're able to acquire many school instruments. And when I mentioned some of those specialty instruments such as the bassoon, the contraalto clarinet, um that provides access for a student who might not have their own instrument. And due to the great variety of instruments that we have in our program, not just in the band, but also if someone's interested in the vocal arts and joining the
092choir, those students have those opportunities to to play those instruments and they don't have to worry about getting an instrument. We're also incredibly grateful our band boosters, Quinsey band boosters, has a very generous scholarship program and students can apply to receive aid to study with a private teacher to get them caught up. And one thing that we really pride ourselves on is that if an instrument isn't a good fit for a student, let's say they want to be part of the band, but they don't maybe like the instrument they're currently playing, we really want to move kids onto other instruments. That helps us both for instrumentation purposes and it also is a is a nice match for the student where they can find an instrument that suits their personality and their interests better. So I
093think that's one aspect. Another aspect as far as access um might involve scheduling and that's why I appreciate that our program is a hybrid program. We have our academic component during the day along with the extracurricular component in the evening and some of our courses are actually structured that way where we have like the band experience course, the select choir. Um those are classes that take place after school. So if a student does have a scheduling issue, we're usually able to mitigate those concerns and they can participate in something along those lines. Um I also think that because the marching band curriculum is so rigorous that affords students an opportunity to um we have some leeway with the physical education requirement and that also helps open up some scheduling for the students. So we try
094to be as flexible as possible and work with students and guidance counselors to make sure that the students have access to our programs and also have the necessary instruments and other supplies that they need to succeed. >> Great. Thank you. >> Jay recognizes Mr. Campbell. >> I just um want to say like it's such a powerful story that you just shared about the history and the success now of the program, right, of of the performing arts programs. And it's really remarkable how your passion comes through as you're speaking and it's just so impressive and I just want to say thank you because it was really um it was just it just was powerful to hear all of you speaking about your successes and and how much your students have achieved. So thank you >> Mr.
095Regali. >> Thank you. Um sorry I missed some of that. I had to get up. Um, I've been a advocate for um this program for for years. Um, I think if you think back um when Beth Howlet was here, she initiated some big changes in hiring and I think this is the fruit of it uh with your hard work as well. Um, I'm very interested in music. Uh, my dad was a professional musician. That's how he put food in the table. Uh he played and performed u all over the state and he also taught the instrument. Um and I can still hear some of the um pieces from downstairs when people were take taking lessons at my house. Um the extent of my performing was uh chapel choir at central with Alice Goody and uh
096Jim Rendle was a part of that too. So, um, but what you've done in in the 14- 15 years that I've been here is remarkable. Absolutely remarkable. And one of the things I said, um, several years ago, and I think it it hopefully it struck a chord with some of the kids and encouraged them to u participate. You're more likely to get a college scholarship as a band member than you are as a football or a basketball player coming out of this district. Uh because there's more opportunities and you prepare our kids incredibly well so that you afford those opportunities for our kids and that is u more than we can ask. Uh it's it just it's incredible. Have we had some of our kids who have gotten college scholarships for uh band and >>
097Yes, we have. >> Okay. So, that's that's that's a fact. >> Okay. That's that's good news. And I've watched Mr. Demco and M u Mr. Kavanaaugh practice. If you thought I was a hard coach, this guy is unbelievable. I heard it's worth worse than double sessions at the football field. >> It puts my coaching to shame. I mean, um, you're you're a great uh uh teacher of that and uh I appreciate it. I I appreciate your hard work because I know what goes into it. So, again, thank you all. Um, keep up the great work. It's not good work, it's great work. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Moly. Um if I m might add a few comments. Um I'm so proud so proud across the board of the program and I've always been a
098believer you know our kids we want to expose them to every possibility in the schools. Not every kid likes to do athletics uh and uh there's other opportunities not only for their growth and maybe create a pathway but it also helps them get through school. um you know, one of my boys if it weren't for sports, he probably wouldn't wouldn't have gotten through school. So, I I think there's that part of it as well. I did want to uh say that I know uh Mr. DeMarco mentioned the tractor trailer. I've been working with Mr. Kavanaaugh on that for for months. Um just for my colleagues edification, uh I meet periodically with with the team and see what the needs are going out. There's times when I get discretionary funding uh that I can apply in
099different places and some of that over the last few years was through some of the federal money we received. Uh and just for the example in that tractor trailer. So normally you got to rent four or five U-Haul trucks. They're not build to carry the equipment appropriately. Um you're renting them or the booster club helps renting them. You got to find drivers uh etc etc. By having a permanent trailer that is built and fit out to store the equipment appropriately, uh it preserves and protects the equipment uh as well. So what'll happen now is we don't have to rent all those trucks. Don't have to worry about drivers. Instead, we'd rent one tractor like a schlagas on uh center street perhaps uh with a driver, hook the trailer up and go where they need to
100go for the competition. So uh I just want to that was probably the first time it's been mentioned publicly. I'm not sure, Michael, but I just want to clarify that and somebody uh maybe the new councils will be looking on the line items. Um but that was from discretionary funding. Uh and I just want to make that clear. And and I know from time to time uh you guys apply for grants. I know the Bark Foundation uh this past year provided a number of new instruments to the program as well. Um so great work on that and and I've often said too, you know, our job is to provide the resources. In the case of buildings, we're in our fifth new school and the facilities are extremely important. So, they provide a good, safe, great
101learning environment, but that's only a little part of really what it is. Uh, at the end of the day, it's that kid connecting with you and the other teachers that make the difference. So, I'm just so damn proud of our public school system. Very proud of our music program. when I get uh hit up all the time, people complaining about taxes perhaps. Uh I could go on for days about what we do in this city, in particular, what we do for the kids of this city, and I'm proud of that. And you guys make it happen. So, great job. Outstanding. Thank you all. >> Uh public wireless. Well, I'll put them both on. Give it a try. Is it dead? >> We can try the second one, too. >> They're both on. >> That one.
102that one reach. >> Yeah. >> Thank you. Um, so first I just wanted to say that how important it is that this music program starts so early in like elementary school and stuff. It's really good for development and it like really gets you into the middle school and then high school programs. So then I also wanted to say um how important different styles of music is in our program. We have the marching concert band and then especially the jazz ensemble. Like you don't see a lot of jazz. So I'm I've been in the JV and then the varsity jazz ensemble. And when I was in middle school we didn't have a jazz ensemble but I was in the all city. So now that in middle school they have I think four out of the five
103have their own jazz ensemble which is really great. And I'd love to see that in all five. Um, so then also I think Miss Martell mentioned something about a guitar class. Do we have that yet? >> We're working on expanding our offerings. Yeah. >> Okay. Yeah, that'd be great because >> we have the resources now. So >> yeah, a lot of my peers have been saying like how great it would be to have a guitar class. I think that would be awesome. Um, and then also I was in the um African drumming ensemble and the percussion ensemble last year. This year they don't have African drumming ensemble. And I just want to say how like really important it was like that culture. You never get that. So, um, is are you guys like working and
104getting maybe that back or are we done with that? >> It's it's there aren't many teachers that teach uh that style of drumming. So, sometimes it's hard to >> um get someone to teach that ensemble. So, this year we weren't able to offer it, but we're hoping to bring it back in the future. >> Yeah, it's it's a really great experience. You don't get that kind of culture ever. So, and then um for for theater. So, um in the in the beginning it said something about um equitable access and in the middle schools I feel like there could be improvement in equitable access to resources like higher level sound equipment and stuff like that. So, I feel like there was mention about like a maybe a representative from the high school going down to the
105middle school theaters and um kind of just checking in with them periodically to make sure that they have good experiences. Is that like happening? >> Uh so it is right now MJ. We actually um um have kids that have gone to Point Webster to get uh Point Webster set up um and they bring some sound equipment from the high school um that we're able so to have a sort of mobile um sound sound gear that goes school to school when they need um extra equipment. Um and so some of our students do go down and set up and then help run it during the uh the shows. >> Yeah, that's that's really good. And like if each like instead of like a mobile, maybe like some funding could go to getting each of these middle
106schools like their own thing cuz it's it sometimes when you see it going into the high school programs, not all the middle schools have the same experience and acting and and stage tech that other middle schools did. So it it helps a little bit in high school if it was it was equal. So that's all. It's really great program. >> Thank you so much. >> Thank you MJ Mr. Begley. Just to dubtail on the mayor, uh people who were watching tonight saw academically what Quincy public schools are able to present um as a finished product. Not even a finished product because they were mostly freshman and sophomores. Uh and then this program here is an extension of of what we do in the Quincy public schools. So if you're out there thinking about Archie's CM
107Fontbond, why would you spend that money when you have all of this right here for nothing for your taxes, but you're going to pay the taxes anyway, so why wouldn't you stay here? It's just a It's just a great um uh presentation of everybody involved in our school system tonight. And why go anywhere else when you have it all right here for yourselves? So again, if you're thinking about going to those places, you want to spend that money, God bless you. You can work your second job and uh throw your money out the window, but you have it right here. And uh these people right here in front of you are tremendous professionals and uh we have them all through the school system. >> Thank you, coach. >> Well, good. >> Superintendent, anything to add?
108>> Thank you all very much. Great presentation. >> Thank you. >> Thanks, guys. >> We're going to take a brief recess. >> Yes. Good evening again, everyone. Um so every year we need to vote um as a committee um it's by statute to uh not en enroll residents in school choice. So it would be my recommendation to withdraw from enrolling non-resident students in the Quinsey public schools for the 26 27 academic year for the following reasons. the level of current and projected enrollment in all elementary, middle, and high schools as well as adherence to the Quinsey School Committee policy on class sizes. So essentially, this would prevent, as we have done for many, many years, non-residents outside of Quinsey being able to enroll in the Quinsey public schools. And so we would need a roll
109call vote to uh potentially maintain that stance. >> Okay. Going to get a motion to support the superintendent recommendation made by Mrs. Kale. Seconded by Mrs. Pios. Mr. Superintendent. >> Mr. Begalie. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Cahill. >> Yes. >> Miss Campbell. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Hubley. >> Mr. Le Young. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Perios. >> Yes. >> And Mayor Ko. >> Yes. >> Thank you all. >> Thank you. Next item on the agenda is our consent agenda which includes the minutes um the grants that are listed and we have a couple of trips. Any questions on those? If none motion by Mrs. Campbell, second by Mr. Le Young. Superintendent. Call. >> Mr. Begley. >> Yes. Mrs. Cahill, yes. >> Miss Campbell, Mr. Hubly, Miss Style Young, >> yes, >> Mrs. Perios, and Mayoke. >> Yes.
110>> Thank you. >> We have one item under additional business. We had a uh late application Quincsey High School Skills USA going to a field trip uh April 30th to May 2nd out in Malboro. Um grades 10 through 12. Can I get a motion? Motion by Mrs. Pio. Second by Mr. Dele Young. Superintendent >> Mr. Begley. Yes. Mrs. Cahill. Yes. Miss Campbell. >> Yes. Hubbley. Mr. Le Young. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Sperios. Yes. And Mayor Ko. >> Yes. >> Thank you. >> Next item, uh, communications. Upcoming meetings here, school committee meetings, April 8th. We are, uh, May 6th and 20th and June 10th. Uh, June 10th will round out the academic year. Upcoming subcommittee meetings, uh, April 1st, we get athletics and wellness at 6:00. Policy and special ed. Any any missed anything on that,
111Laura? We good? >> Okay. We have no reports on subcommittee. We don't have any contract >> no >> issues. Okay. Nothing in executive session. I'll accept a motion to adjourn. Motion's been made. All in favor? I oppose. The eyes have it. Good night. Thank you everybody.