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.