Letter to the Editor: Snow Days From a High School Student’s Perspective

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Photo: A long way to school.

To the editor:

My name is Lloyd Ellison, and I am a senior at Belmont High School. For the third or fourth time this year, Belmont public schools will stay open even with the threats of six inches of snow.

I have a couple of issues with this; the first is obviously that I don’t get a snow day in which I get to sleep in and not take tests, but there is a much larger problem with the safety of getting and leaving school. Every time it has snowed this year, the large parking lot is not plowed before school. The lines are nearly invisible leading to confusion in where to park and disruptions in the flow of traffic in the parking lot. It is also not plowed during school, which makes it tough to get out.

I also find the main road is also not plowed particularly well, and this makes it very tough to get out of the school and onto Concord Avenue in addition to dropping off and picking up students in front of the school. I also get out early most days, so I find these troubles even before the bulk of students leave.

I’m not sure who is responsibility for clearing, but in my opinion, the removal needs to be better. I know it is tough to get this work done, especially early in the morning before staff and students come in. But this is why we have snow days because if it is too dangerous to get or to leave school then we don’t have it. Just because the roads are clear doesn’t do anything if the last roads and parking lots are not. I’m not saying that tomorrow needs to be a snow day, I’m just saying I want to feel safe going and leaving school.

Lloyd Ellison

Paper Saver: Belmont Kindergarten Registration Now Just a Click Away

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Photo: It’s registration time.

From the beginning of time – probably the 1970s – registering your five-year-old into Belmont kindergarten was both a joyful occasion (the beginning of 13 years of public education) and an odious process in which parents would need to deal with mountains of papers, forms, documentation and subsequent copies to place your child into the school district.

Well, the need to scale Mount Paper is now a thing of the past as the Belmont Public Schools announces its new online registration process for incoming kindergarten students.

Registration for incoming kindergarten students will be initiated online at the following link.

The online registration portion should be completed by March 1. After completing this step, parents will be notified via email of the next steps in the registration process.

Kindergarten Parent Information Night

A general information and orientation program for all parents of incoming kindergarten students is scheduled, as follows.  Each elementary school will host its own program at each school.  

  • Butler School: Tuesday, March 22 at 7 p.m.
  • Burbank School: Thursday, March 24  at 6 p.m.
  • Wellington School: Thursday, March 31 at 5:30 p.m.
  • Winn Brook School: Thursday, April 7 at 6:30 p.m.

In order to qualify for admission to kindergarten, a child must be five years old on or before Sept. 1, 2016.  As always, proof of residency is required. 

They’re Back! First Day of School in Belmont Wednesday, Sept. 2

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Photo: Crossing the street at the Burbank. 

Remember the alarm clock? It probably hasn’t been heard since the last week in June; but starting today, it returns as a weekday companion for parents and children as Wednesday, Sept. 2, marks the first day of school in Belmont for student in 1st through 12th grades.

Kindergarten students get to sleep in for a week, as the youngest Belmont students start on Tuesday and Wednesday, Sept. 8 and 9.

Belmont High School starts at 7:35 a.m.; Chenery Middle School at 7:55 a.m.; the Burbank, Butler and Wellington elementary schools at 8:40 a.m.; and the Winn Brook at 8:50 a.m. 

For school hours, the school-year calendar, bus routes, lunch menus, and more information, go to www.belmont.k12.ma.us/bps/

With students being greeted by temperatures reaching the lower 90s on both days – and with several schools lacking adequate air conditioning – school officials are suggesting students come to school with water and stay hydrated.

On these first two days of the 2015-16 year – the six Belmont public schools will be closed Friday, Sept. 4 through Monday, Sept. 7 for the Labor Day holiday – Belmont Schools Superintendent John Phelan is asking for parents and students to be safe and patient.

Phelan said due to street closures and road construction throughout the town, drivers learning new routes and parents giving long goodbyes to children on their first days, buses will likely be delayed. 

Parents driving their children to school along with students driving to Belmont High School are also being asked to be patient while each school’s administration works out the kinks of their drop-off and pick-up plans.

In addition, Phelan and the Belmont Police are asking all drivers “to be mindful of our students who are walking or biking to school.”  

“The sidewalks, streets,  and parking lots will be congested and we want to make sure all can share the road safely,” said Phelan. 

Beginning this year following a suggestion by Phelan, the district has adopted a pre-Labor Day opening to the school year. Phelan hopes starting school for two days, followed by the four-day Labor Day holiday and four days of school “will facilitate a smooth transition for our children.”

“This gradual start will give our students a chance to meet their teachers this week, find out expectations for the year, and set up their school routines,” said Phelan in his opening day memo sent to parents and teachers.

“Then, hopefully, they can spend the four-day weekend stress-free and return to school Tuesday refreshed and prepared to learn,” he noted.

Belmont Schools Scheduled to Finish June 23, IF No More Snow Days

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If – and that’s a big “if” – today, Tuesday, Feb. 10, turns out to be the final snow day for Belmont public school students this school year, the district is scheduled to close shop “on schedule” on Tuesday, June 23, according to Belmont’s school superintendent.

After declaring five “snow” days due to the two weeks of record snow fall, the reason the schools will not be closing with the Fourth of July fireworks in the background is that the school district “pockets” five days into each school year’s calendar for school closures, said Belmont Superintendent John Phelan.

“The district works backwards from the pending final day to determine the actual final day of school,” said Phelan.
“Right now, we are not adding any days,” said Phelan.

The final day, two days into summer, is the latest Belmont schools will close in several years. The last day in 2014 was Friday, June 20.

While parents and students will not have to make changes to summer plans, the most immediate effect of five snow days in the past fortnight “disrupts the rhythm of teaching,” said Phelan.

“It’s problematic for teachers and students to be removed from a planned schedule,” said Phelan, noting that teachers map out an educational program that leads to the February break then “smoothly transitions into seven to eight weeks of teaching until the April recess.”

And if additional snow days are destined for Belmont, don’t expect to see either the state’s school commissioner or the district stray from the 180 days of school required under state law.

Mitchell Chester, the state’s Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education, stated in a memo to school officials statewide that, “[s]chool districts may decide to cancel or shorten the April vacation period, convert scheduled professional development days into school days for students, hold school on Saturday, keep school open on Good Friday, or add days later in June beyond the originally scheduled last day of school.”

“We will have 180 days of school in Belmont,” said Phelan.

School Closed Tuesday; Full Parking Ban Ends 7AM Tuesday But Parking Limited to Odd Side

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Once again, the Belmont Public Schools will be closed on Tuesday, Feb. 10 due to the nearly 20 inches of snow that fell on Monday.

Also on Tuesday, the full Snow Emergency Parking Ban will be lifted at 7 a.m. Until that time, a full parking ban will be in effect, including on-street parking as well as municipal and school parking lots. Violators will be ticketed and towed.

After 7 a.m., the partial Snow Emergency Parking Rules will be in effect which limits parking on most streets to the odd-numbered side of the street.

Trash will be picked up on normal schedule

While the Beech Street Center will remain closed on Tuesday, Belmont’s two libraries, the Belmont Public and the Benton, will be open for regular hours.

No School Tuesday Due to Snow, Partial Lifting of Parking Ban at 7AM

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The larger-than-expected snow fall from the Groundhog Day storm has forced the Belmont Public Schools to be closed once again tomorrow, Tuesday, Feb. 3. This marks the fourth snow day to be called in the past week.

According to the Belmont Police Department, the snow emergency parking ban will be partially lifted at 7 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 4. Belmont Police reported that parking will be allowed on the ODD side of most street in town. Exceptions will include business centers such as Waverley and Cushing squares and Belmont Center.

Town Offices will be open and trash and recycling will be picked up on Tuesday as scheduled.

The Belmont Public Library and the Beech Street Center will be closed.

Schools Closed Monday, Parking Ban In Effect at Midnight, Trash Will Be Collected

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The Belmont Public Schools will be closed on Monday, Feb. 2, due to a pending snow storm that is expected to drop up to a foot of snow on the town. In addition, the Belmont Public Library and the Beech Street Center will be closed on Monday.

Beginning at midnight, Monday, Feb. 2, the town is declaring a snow emergency during which there will be a parking ban on on-street parking and in the three town municipal and six public school parking lots.

Trash and recycling pickup will occur on Monday despite the storm. Also, Town Offices will be open on Monday.

It’s Official: School’s Snowed Out for Tuesday. But Wednesday …

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Only the most wildly optimistic of parents would have thought Belmont District schools would be opening on Tuesday. 

And now it is official. Below is the note sent to parents from Belmont’s Superintendent of Schools, John Phelan. 

Dear Parents, Guardians and Staff:

Due to the impending storm, all Belmont Public Schools will be closed tomorrow, Tuesday, January 27, 2015.

Due to the Governors “State of Emergency” all buildings will be closed for the day.

If school needs to be cancelled/delayed for Wednesday – I will email you with further instructions.

I hope you stay safe during this storm.

Banding Together to Make Wonderful Music in Belmont

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Belmont High School’s Wenner Field House was transformed Monday night, Dec. 8, from an athletics center into a concert venue for the 43rd annual Bandarama Concert.

Ensembles of winds, brass and percussions from elementary-school youngsters just starting out on Saturday mornings to the highly-skilled High School Jazz Band performed for parents and friends.