The Marblehead School Committee’s Policy Subcommittee met last week to tackle an extensive review of district policies, with members working to bring the manual up to date with recommendations from the Massachusetts Association of School Committees (MASC).
Among the policies highlighted for review were updates to civil rights complaint procedures for child nutrition programs, curriculum adoption, homeschooling, and the evaluation of instructional programs. The committee also discussed policies on public comment at school committee meetings, student services, sex education notifications, and field trip guidelines—particularly noting that Marblehead’s existing rules for international travel are more robust than state templates.
New policies under consideration include raffle and fundraising rules, building access and visitor policies, food and nutrition modifications, and parent advisory councils for both special education and English language learners.
Members agreed that reviewing the policies in one sweep would be overwhelming, instead proposing to take them in sections by category—such as A and B at one meeting, C and D at another. Substantive changes will be sent to the Superintendent for review and feedback before the committee votes.
“It’s a lot to go through,” co-chair Jennifer Schaeffner said, adding that redlined versions of the policies would make the review easier for both the subcommittee and the full School Committee.
Another concern raised by Schaeffner was operationalizing policies around student surveys (Policy ILD), which requires parental consent and federal compliance. Members agreed to move the updated version forward, but emphasized the need for clarity on how the policy works in practice.
The committee also discussed making the policy manual more user-friendly online by creating a hyperlinked index, so families and staff can easily navigate from the index to individual documents.
Looking ahead, the subcommittee scheduled future meetings for September 30 and October 23, with additional sessions set through May 2026. The group plans to start with sections A and B of the manual at its next working session.
