Gill-Montague School Committee Approves $316,000 in Warrants, Accepts Superintendent Goals

GILL -- October 11, 2022, Gill-Montague School Committee unanimously approves more than $316,000 in warrants and accepts superintendent goals. The seven-member board voted 7-0 at its October 11 meeting to approve four warrants, the largest a $309,767.97 accounts-payable bill, alongside a $3,777.06 high school student activity payment, a $324.07 middle school student activity payment, and $3,000 in graduation scholarships. The board then voted 7-0 to accept Superintendent Brian Ewers' three state-required annual goals, which include submitting a Statement of Interest to the Massachusetts School Building Authority for a proposed new Hillcrest Elementary School by a late-April deadline, expanding a writing-across-the-curriculum initiative at the secondary level ahead of a higher MCAS graduation threshold affecting the class of 2026, and establishing a standing district wellness committee to update a lapsed wellness policy. Three building principals, Christopher Barnes for Turner's Falls High School and Great Falls Middle School, Carrie Heathway for Sheffield Elementary, and Sarah Burstein for Hillcrest Elementary, presented school improvement plans built around five shared district goals; the Gill Elementary plan was deferred while Principal Dr. Walter Houston recovers from surgery.