The Halifax School Committee met on Monday, April 3. They began the meeting with their annual school choice hearing. Committee Chair Summer Schmaling said, “school choice allows residents and students from other towns to choose Halifax Elementary as a school that they can send their child to even if they don’t live in our district.” No one from the public asked to speak during the hearing and there was no conversation amongst the Committee on the topic. Superintendent Jill Proulx said that the Committee would need to cite a reason for declining school choice. Schmaling said that she felt it would be a financial hardship to the town to accept school choice as well as the negative impact it could potentially have on class sizes. The Committee voted unanimously against school choice.
For correspondence, Schmaling said that Committee member Jim Keegan had submitted his letter of resignation with a year left on his term. “His position is open on the ballot in the spring,” Schmaling explained.
Updates were given for the standing committees including PTO. It was said that they are running an HES apparel fundraiser. Discussion was also had at the last PTO meeting surrounding the increased costs associated with busing for field trips. There was some talk of fundraising per grade rather than per pupil since some grades have significantly more students than others.
Principal Kayne Beaudry said that Grade 5 had MCAS for ELA the first week of April and Grades 4 and 6 the second week of April. Grade 3 will have their ELA MCAS the week after April vacation. Beaudry also said that they had a 70 percent response rate to the School Council survey. Schmaling asked what the survey included. “Every couple of years, we put together a survey that we send out to families and it’s about the climate in the building, the effectiveness of our staff, the relationships that we’re building here in the school; and it’s all designed around our strategy for district improvement at the building level,” Beaudry explained. Beaudry said that the book fair during conferences raised almost $15,000. He said that the PTO “generously bought a book for every student in kindergarten through fourth grade.”
Beaudry told the Committee that each year they send out a student placement feedback form for parents. He said that placement teams are starting up now before the end of the school year. “We don’t take teacher requests, but we look for some feedback in terms of how their child learns best or if there’s any particular friendships or any details that a placement team will know,” he explained.
Assistant Superintendent Ryan Lynch said he had an update on the elementary school team leadership meeting on March 16. He said that Beaudry and Assistant Principal Brian DeSantes shared their data on student growth with the other elementary school principals in the district. “They played a leadership role in our session by sharing their data… and the way in which they track student growth and achievement over the course of the year… they did a great job with the visual display… we thought that was great to share with all of our elementary principals because data analysis is a key part of student growth,” Lynch said. Lynch said that the assessment tools used include both DIBELS and Star Math and Star Reading. Beaudry said that the most useful data is typically from the spring scores to the fall ones as there is usually a dip over the summer.

It was no April Fool’s Day trick at the Plympton Transfer Station. PayT, where Plympton residents using the transfer station are required to purchase special bags for their rubbish to help cover the ever-increasing cost of trash disposal.
Chief attendant Art Morin said that he only had to turn away three residents, two who didn’t have their sticker and one who didn’t have the new bright orange Plympton PayT bags.
As of Tuesday noon, Colleen Morin, Highway Dept. Admin., said she has sold 583 transfer station stickers. Last year at this time she had sold 637 stickers
Residents can purchase their PayT bags at the Highway Department on Palmer Road, Aubuchon Hardware on Rte. 58 in Carver, Plympton Convenience and Liquors, and Market Basket in Plymouth. As other stores join, they will be added to the list.
All in all, Colleen Morin said that people have been very pleasant and most seem to feel this is a good way to go. “I have had a handful of people (two farm people) who have been disgruntled over the charge.

The Kingston Public Library will hold a poetry contest from Wednesday, March 22 through Wednesday, April 12, for National Poetry Month in April. The contest is open to all residents of the Town of Kingston and neighboring communities.
Individuals may submit one original poem in any form, but it must be about the theme, “Connecting with Nature,” and suitable for a general audience. The poem may not exceed 35 lines, including line breaks and title. Poems will be judged on creativity, style, and adhering to the theme. Judges from the Greater Kingston area will pick winners in each age category.
The age categories for the contest will be children (ages 5 to 11), teens (ages 12 to 17), and adults (ages 18+). Winners will be announced on Thursday, April 20 or Friday, April 21.
In each age category, top prize winners are eligible to win a $50 Amazon gift card, second-place finishers can earn a $25 Amazon gift card, and the third-place winners will receive a $10 Amazon gift card. The prizes have been generously provided by the Friends of the Kingston Public Library.
The winning poems will be published on the Library website. Patrons must be able to pick up their prize at the Kingston Public Library.
To submit your poem, please submit two pages. The first page should be the title of the poem and the poem. The second page should be the submitters name, title of poem, entry category (children, teen, adult), grade (if applicable), address, phone number, and e-mail address (if available). Please do not put any identifying information on the first page, so judges only see the title and poem.
Submit your typed entry as a Microsoft Word, Google Doc, or PDF attachment by e-mail to [email protected] (Please use subject line – Poetry Contest). Typed entries can be also dropped off at the Reference or Children’s desk of the Kingston Public Library. Poems must be in size 12 font. Fancy fonts, colors, or illustrations are not permitted.
A full list of rules and guidelines is available at kingstonpubliclibrary.org. For more information, please contact Steven Miller, Reference Librarian at (781) 585-0517 x6272 or e-mail [email protected].

Kingston Town Clerk Paul Gallagher has announced the following candidates will be on the ballot for the Town of Kingston’s Annual Town Election, Saturday, April 22. Registered voters may cast their ballots from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Kingston Elementary School’s cafeteria.
Incumbent Sean O’Brien is unopposed in his race to remain Kingston’s Town Moderator. The position is for three years.
Two residents are on the ballot for two three-year terms as selectmen. Don Alcombright, incumbent, and Eric Crone are unopposed.
The race for Treasurer is one of two contested races on the ballot. Kenneth G. Maolli and Jessica M. Kramer will oppose each other for the three-year term.
Stephen J. Dunn is running unopposed for the three-year term as Assessor.
Paul M. Gallagher, incumbent, is running unopposed for Town Clerk.
The Planning Board 5-year seat has David Gavigan as its contestant.
Mark Guidoboni is running for the one-year term on the Silver Lake School Committee.
Joanne Coleman is seeking election to the three-year term on the Silver Lake School Committee.
Tricia Arieta, who was appointed to fill an unexpired term, and Jeanne Coleman, incumbent, seek three-year terms on the Kingston Elementary School Committee.
Robert Kostka, incumbent, seeks re-election to the three-year term as Water Commissioner.

There is no candidate for the five-year term on the Housing Authority. Write in your choice.
Two board of Health incumbents, Dennis Randall and Heidi Whipple, will be challenged by Lauren Hache for one of the two three-year terms.
There are no candidates for the two three-year terms as Library Trustee. Write in your choice.
Incumbent Patrick Rooney and Suzanne Haggerty, appointed to fill an unexpired term, will seek re-election to the Recreation Commission’s two three-year terms.
Eileen Moynihan, who was appointed to fill an unexpired term, is seeking election to the one-year term available.
These candidates have been certified for the 2023 Town of Kingston Annual Election ballot. Candidates have until March 21, 2023 to withdraw their name from the ballot.
April 1 is the last day to register to vote in Kingston’s Annual Town Election.
Check the Town Clerk’s website to see if you qualify for an absentee ballot.
See www.kingstonma.gov for additional information under Election News. If you have any questions or please feel free to contact the Kingston Town Clerk’s office at 781-585-0502.

Kingston – – Nautical researcher Arthur Milmore will discuss his book, “And the Sea Shall Have Them All,” on Tuesday, February 22 at 6 p.m., at the Adams Center, 33 Summer St., Kingston.
The novel discusses the loss of the steamer ship Portland, a palatial side-wheel which left Boston in November of 1898 for Portland, Maine and never arrived. It was caught in 100 MPH winds and all 192 passengers along with the crew of 65 perished. The wreck would not be found for 91 years and over 30 miles from where it was thought to have sunk.
Milmore will show a 45-minute video detailing the voyage and showing a National Oceanographic and Atmosphere Administration dive to the ship, which views the wreckage up close. The research is a combined 80-year effort between noted local author Edward Rowe Snow and Milmore to tell the story of the  Portland.
Following a brief question and answer period, the presentation will conclude with a book signing.
To register for this event, please visit – https://kingstonpubliclibrary.org. For more information, you can contact Steven Miller, Reference Librarian at (781) 585-0517 x6272 or at [email protected].

Kingston — Experts from South Shore Health will be hosting an informative falls prevention session on Wednesday, Feb. 15, at 2 p.m. at the Adams Center, 33 Summer St., Kingston.It is estimated that one in three older adults will fall each year and household falls account for more than half of injuries among seniors, which result in an average of 6.3 days in the hospital.
Most falls are completely preventable.  Patrons will learn who is most at risk for falls, how to prevent them, and create a safer environment.
This hour-long event is part of a collaboration between South Shore Health and the Kingston Public Library.
To register for this event, please visit – https://kingstonpubliclibrary.org. For more information, you can contact Steven Miller, Reference Librarian at (781) 585-0517 x6272 or at [email protected].