School Committee approves capital project forms

School Committee · Meeting of September 8, 2026

WELLESLEY — The Wellesley School Committee approved five capital project forms and opened debate on a $50,000 Sprague Fields scoreboard and new state graduation rules. Members voted 5-0 to send roof and HVAC proposals for Sprague, Wellesley Middle School, Bates and Schofield to the town's capital committee. The Diamond Club baseball booster group has pledged to fund the full scoreboard cost, with a committee vote targeted for September 22.

Member Robert Sullivan pressed staff on why only 46 percent of Wellesley graduates meet the state's MassCore coursework standard versus 86 percent in Newton, prompting Principal Jamie Chisum to point to Wellesley's lack of an arts requirement. Staff also previewed a PROTECT Act policy restricting civil immigration arrests on school grounds, acknowledging the district missed the state's early-September adoption target. "I couldn't find a district that had as low a mass score number as us," Sullivan said.

In the full story:

• Public Comment: Sprague Fields Scoreboard and Sustainable Facilities Planning
• Reports and Consent Agenda
• Opening of School Report
• Field Projects: Sprague Fields Scoreboard Proposal
• Field Projects: Honeywell Track and Field Update
• New State Graduation Requirements
• Policy ACL: Interacting with Law Enforcement Engaged in Civil Law Enforcement (PROTECT Act)
• Air Conditioning Project
• CapCom Forms Vote
• School Facilities Master Plan Task Force
• Executive Session
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 3,713 words

Source: the School Committee meeting of September 8, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript.