Stoneham School Committee Approves Restored Course Offerings, Moves District Offices to Middle School

STONEHAM — May 15, 2025 — Stoneham School Committee approves restored high school program of studies and votes to relocate district offices to the middle school. The committee voted unanimously Thursday to formally approve a final FY26 program of studies that reinstates most of the roughly 66 courses flagged for elimination during the budget crisis, funded for one year with one-time Town Meeting appropriations. In a separate 3-0 vote, members authorized relocation of the majority of district offices to the middle school after MSBA contractual restrictions blocked a planned move into the new high school; approximately $300,000 remains from a $500,000 state earmark grant to fund renovation and IEP file digitization. The committee also gave conditional approval for Department of Corrections groundskeeping services, declined to renew a roughly $6,000 carpool app contract due to low utilization, and heard that kindergarten registrations — currently 149 against a projection of 201 — are running significantly below historical norms, with administrators watching Weiss Farm development enrollment and weighing a possible section consolidation. Incoming Superintendent Dr. Christian DeFrancisco, who officially starts July 1, attended voluntarily and was formally introduced to the board.