Dear WPS School Community,

I want to start this message by thanking everyone for your patience and flexibility last week as we managed the major snowstorm and its impact on school operations. My thanks also to the Town DPW for their hard work in tough conditions, especially Monday night into Tuesday, which allowed us to open school with a delay. 

As a result of the January 26th snow day, our 2025–2026 school year calendar has been updated and is available here: calendar (PDF). The last day for students will now be Wednesday, June 24, 2026 and a full-day professional development session for all faculty and staff will be held on Thursday, June 25.

As we begin 2026, we are also looking ahead to next school year, with registration opening on Monday, February 9. In the coming weeks, the School Committee will approve programs of study for WHS and McCall Middle School, along with the 2026–2027 school year calendar. For planning purposes, please expect the first day of school for students to be Wednesday, September 2, 2026.

There are great things happening across the district. Check out the updates below.

Best Wishes,

Frank Hackett, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools

Ambrose 3rd graders helping WBZ-TV meteorolgist Jacoby Wycoff with the forecast

Registration for the 2026–2027 school year will open on Monday, February 9. To be eligible to register for Kindergarten, children must be Winchester residents and at least five years old on or before September 1, 2026. As part of the registration process, parents and caregivers will be asked to upload documentation that provides proof of residency, as well as children's birth certificates and immunization records. Elementary school assignments by street address are available here.

Parent to Parent Winchester will host its annual Transition to Kindergarten event for registered families on Wednesday, March 25, from 6:30–8:00 p.m. at Lynch Elementary School. This event will feature remarks by district administrators and staff, as well as a community resource fair of enrichment program providers.

The first day of the 2026–2027 school year is planned to be Wednesday, September 2, with no school on September 4 or 7.

On Tuesday, January 20, Massachusetts education officials honored 63 Schools of Recognition during a ceremony at the State House. Superintendent Frank Hackett, Ed.D. and Ambrose Elementary School Principal Andrea Phelan attended the ceremony in honor of the celebration of Ambrose as a School of Recognition. The state identifies Schools of Recognition through its accountability system for demonstrating high achievement, significant improvement, and/or high growth. Learn more here.

On Wednesday, January 21, the Healey-Driscoll Administration announced that 84 schools in Massachusetts have been selected to receive free, high-dosage early literacy tutoring for February through June 2026. The high-dosage computer-based tutoring program will provide one-on-one or small-group support multiple times per week for at least 10 weeks to help students build foundational reading skills. All five Winchester elementary schools, Ambrose, Lincoln, Lynch, Muraco, and Vinson-Owen will be included in this program. Learn more here.

On Tuesday, February 3 at 6:30 p.m., the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts will host a webinar, Keeping Kids Safe Online: A Project Safe Childhood Presentation for Parents. Learn more here. Register here.

Fifth grade students at Lynch recently enjoyed a special visit from Starlab, the portable, inflatable planetarium. Inside the Starlab, students make connections to science standards by observing the starry night sky and how the stars and sun appear to move throughout the course of a day. The district has been fortunate to host Starlab visits for the past several years, thanks to the support of the Winchester Foundation for Educational Excellence (WFEE).

Message from Lia Stelljes, Elementary Science, Technology, and Engineering Coordinator

On January 21, McCall students had the opportunity to hear from Holocaust survivor Marion Blumenthal Lazan. Thank you to Ms. Rivais for leading the effort to bring Ms. Lazan to McCall, and to Ms. Plosky and her English Department colleagues for giving students the historical grounding and reflective space to fully engage with the presentation. Learn about Marion Blumenthal Lazan and her story, here.

Message from James Lin, Principal, McCall Middle School

Winchester High School students and science teachers recently presented the Cancer Research Fair, a meaningful, engaging event that has now become an annual tradition. The fair provides students with the opportunity to dig deeply into science standards and apply their learning to real world issues, through a process that includes authentic connections to each other, community members, and the wider medical profession. While deepening their knowledge of science standards and practices, students also strengthen their social emotional learning (SEL) skills, particularly relationship skills, social awareness, and responsible decision making. They share their learning in ways that mimic authentic experiences they may encounter as part of future career endeavors.  

Students raised $11,000 in donations for the Winchester Hospital Cancer Center in conjunction with this event. It is meaningful to see students engaging in experiences that take their learning in the classroom and draw a direct connection to making a tangible impact on the lives of community members impacted by cancer.

It was uplifting to see how this event brought so many community members together to share and learn from each other while supporting and caring for each other.

Message from Jennifer Elineema, Ed.D., Assistant Superintendent of Schools

Thursday, April 2, 2026 | 5:30–7:30 p.m.

Location: Winchester High School

Free and open to K-8 students accompanied by a parent or caregiver

Get ready to explore at the first annual WPS Science and Engineering Night—an exciting opportunity to discover the world of science and engineering through fun, hands-on activities led by WHS Science Olympiad students. Experience lab classrooms equipped with robotics, construction and manufacturing, engineering, biotech, and neuroscience technology funded by WFEE and the WHS PFA. Science Olympiad is a STEM competition with over 6,000 teams in all 50 states. Learn more here. See you there!

Message from Jennifer Elineema, Ed.D., Assistant Superintendent of Schools

Winchester High School counselors, nurses and school psychologists recently conducted the SBIRT Screener with 10th grade students.

SBIRT in Schools is a proactive approach to having conversations about substance use. The SBIRT approach is:

For additional information about Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT), please visit: https://masbirt.org/schools/

Kindergartners practice calming strategies at stations throughout the classroom, learning and practicing breathing strategies, squeezing strategies (lemon squeezes and chair push-ups), and various types of movement, expressing their feelings in helpful ways and getting into the green. Pictured here are students at the movement station, practicing yoga poses and wall push-ups. 

Second graders discuss how trying hard, persevering, and learning from our mistakes helps our brain grow and strengthen. These pictures show students using LEGOs as part of an activity practicing changing statements from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset. One larger LEGO represented each student’s brain. With each statement, changing from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset, students added smaller LEGO pieces to the larger piece, visualizing their brains growing and strengthening. 

Message from Erin Kuehn, Director of Student Support and Social Emotional Learning

First and second grade mathematicians have enjoyed diving into another round of take-home math game bags! Each bag includes a mix of games, including specially designed dice and card games to help make math practice enjoyable and low-stress at home. Families have shared that these games make for fun math playtimes—with siblings often joining in, too.

Each first grade student brings home a math game bag four times this school year. Second grade families may sign up to receive four bags, each targeting grade-level math standards. More than 100 second grade families have participated. Twenty caregiver volunteers help prepare and distribute the bags within each school, helping to keep this program running smoothly. The games foster strategic and flexible thinking while strengthening skills in the mathematical strands of operations and algebraic thinking and measurement.

We’re deeply grateful to the Winchester Foundation for Educational Excellence (WFEE) for supporting this engaging program, bringing families together in support of learning math.

Message from Julie McElaney-Gorman, Elementary Math Coordinator

Nearly 100 elementary educators have recently stepped into classrooms across the district to observe the EL Education 2025 and Arts & Letters pilot curriculums. These visits highlight a powerful shift toward building deep, common knowledge across all schools, sparking impressive levels of student engagement and critical thinking.

The heart of this experience lies in the teacher debriefs. Educators are engaging in candid, collaborative conversations with pilot teachers about the "how" of instruction—discussing how they plan, adjust in real-time, and tailor lessons to ensure the success of every student.

This hands-on professional development bridges the gap between theory and practice, fostering a culture of peer-to-peer learning. As one participant noted, "It has been a very impactful experience and has helped us to grow as educators."

This momentum is just beginning! Classroom visit opportunities will continue between now and February. 

Message from Melissa Newell, Elementary Literacy Coordinator and Laurie Kirby, Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Education

Purpose: To prevent significant regression of learned skills for special education students as determined by the child’s IEP Team. It must be determined whether a child's regression would likely be substantial, and whether the child would require a greater than usual time to "recoup"—to get back to the level achieved before a break in service (summers, school vacations, etc.). At least once annually, the child's IEP Team must consider the need for an Extended School Year Program and record its determination in the IEP. Decisions about ESY programs must be made on an individual basis, taking into consideration the unique disability related needs of each student. Winchester provides Extended School Year special education programming (8:30–11:30 a.m.) as well as appointment based services (scheduled during the timeframe of 8:30–11:30 a.m.). ESY Related Services (Speech, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy) are 50% of what is provided during the regular year. 

Dates: July 6–August 6, 2026 (5-week program)

Planning begins in January/February 2026. Families may expect to receive a survey around March to inquire if your child will attend the Extended School Year (ESY) program if ESY is on the IEP and your family has provided consent. An ESY coordinator will be provided to facilitate program logistics.

For additional information about Extended School Year (ESY), please visit: https://www.doe.mass.edu/specialeducation/policy/procedures/esyp-qa.html

Message from Marlena Ysalguez, Director of Special Education

District Calendar | WHS Athletics Calendar

Explore upcoming Town events here.

Explore upcoming community events here.