MA public schools and bb parks (Salem, Auburn: lease, construction, school district)

[txbaker27]

Can anyone tell me more about the public school system in MA. Preferably what areas to avoid. Do the Public schools have uniform dress codes, lockers, etc. We are in TX and starting this year the majority of schools in the DFW area have all gone to solid colored shirts, khaki pants, and solid colored shoes. They are in the process of taking out lockers for security reasons. I know this kind of sounds silly but do they allow the classes to have holiday parties, Carnivals. One other questions is towards the towns parks our town started a new thing by locking the cities little league baseball fields requiring you to now lease these out hourly. Are the little league parks up there locked?

[CaseyB]

Uniforms in public schools are still somewhat rare here. I wish our school would go in that direction - I'd save a lot of $$$.

I don't know of any little league parks that are locked, maybe in one or two of the inner cities.

As far as I know lockers are the norm for middle school and up, some of the elementary schools might have them as well.

Holidays and Carnivals? The individual towns and cities decide those (school committees).

Are you moving here?

[capecodcathy]

Wow! In my town on Cape Cod we have a dress code but no uniforms. We still have lockers with padlocks for the high school and middle school. All fields are open when not in use for local school and youth sports. Parents are encouraged to volunteer in the schools and be very actively involved in their child's education. We have art and science fairs, dinners, holiday fairs, etc. in the schools. Teachers and administration are very responsive to students and parents. Tennis courts & lessons, as well as swimming lessons for the the kids in the summer. Various sports leagues running throughout the year.
Our schools do, however, have security systems. The middle and high schools both have closed circuit cameras throughout. But pretty transparent to the students.

[txbaker27]

Originally Posted by CaseyB

Uniforms in public schools are still somewhat rare here. I wish our school would go in that direction - I'd save a lot of $$$.

I don't know of any little league parks that are locked, maybe in one or two of the inner cities.

As far as I know lockers are the norm for middle school and up, some of the elementary schools might have them as well.

Holidays and Carnivals? The individual towns and cities decide those (school committees).

Are you moving here?

We are really interested in moving up there. As far as the uniforms my son was upset of course but i did save A LOT ! The schools are doing it down here because they say it is a security issue and this will keep the schools safer. I have mixed feelings on that one. The lockers are out and the kids including High school also are required to carry clear or mesh backpacks. Thanks for the info

[txbaker27]

Originally Posted by capecodcathy

Wow! In my town on Cape Cod we have a dress code but no uniforms. We still have lockers with padlocks for the high school and middle school. All fields are open when not in use for local school and youth sports. Parents are encouraged to volunteer in the schools and be very actively involved in their child's education. We have art and science fairs, dinners, holiday fairs, etc. in the schools. Teachers and administration are very responsive to students and parents. Tennis courts & lessons, as well as swimming lessons for the the kids in the summer. Various sports leagues running throughout the year.
Our schools do, however, have security systems. The middle and high schools both have closed circuit cameras throughout. But pretty transparent to the students.

Yes this is what I would expect from a school district. The carnival at my sons school the past years have been a real disappointment's. maybe a total of 20 parents volunteered and half of the teaching staff came. The booths were one card table, a few balloons and a piece of construction board with the class information on it. This was so disappointing because I want my sons memories of school to be fun. They are no longer allowed to have the holiday parties because of different religious beliefs and there are no fairs of any at all besides the lousy carnival. It is hard to find any summer activities that are offered here I wish the schools would take the cameras into consideration I believe that security comes within the staffing and not clothes. Sadly enough the district has built 2 brand new schools here and we are now fixing to have a big fund raiser to help raise money to improve these schools!! Makes no sense does it?

[capecodcathy]

I should also mention that we have a school resource officer from the local police department who is also very active in the schools. We have an advisory panel that includes school admin, law enforcement, fire department, DA's office and parents to discuss the latest, greatest ways kids can get into trouble. We also bring in the drug-sniffing dogs randomly as a precaution. We had one incident last year where a student was hauled out. Other than that they usually find nothing.
I never thought I'd enjoy living in a small town but if you're raising kids, it's the best. I've always been involved in kid activities and schools and pretty much know every teacher, parent and administrator. My kids have always said they'll never be able to get away with anything because everyone know them and me! There is a method to my madness (evil grin)!

[txbaker27]

Originally Posted by capecodcathy

I should also mention that we have a school resource officer from the local police department who is also very active in the schools. We have an advisory panel that includes school admin, law enforcement, fire department, DA's office and parents to discuss the latest, greatest ways kids can get into trouble. We also bring in the drug-sniffing dogs randomly as a precaution. We had one incident last year where a student was hauled out. Other than that they usually find nothing.
I never thought I'd enjoy living in a small town but if you're raising kids, it's the best. I've always been involved in kid activities and schools and pretty much know every teacher, parent and administrator. My kids have always said they'll never be able to get away with anything because everyone know them and me! There is a method to my madness (evil grin)!

We will be visiting in late October and we will be staying in the Cape area a couple of days I cant wait to visit this area. Thank you so much for this input!!

[capecodcathy]

Originally Posted by txbaker27

We will be visiting in late October and we will be staying in the Cape area a couple of days I cant wait to visit this area. Thank you so much for this input!!

Whereabouts? Maybe I can make some suggestions. Visiting family/friends?

[txbaker27]

[quote=capecodcathy;1423178]Whereabouts? Maybe I can make some suggestions. Visiting family/friends?[/QUOTE

We are going to be staying in Auburn our first 2 days then we are going to be staying at the Cape Codder resort for a couple of days and our last few days we will be visiting the Salem area. Our son is a Halloween fanatic!!! We figured we would try to see as much as we can while we are there!!! Any suggestions would be nice!!! We dont have any family/friends there so we are just going to set out for an adventure!!! I must say though that the past few months i have run into several people down here who are from different areas including my next door neighbor and they all have told me the same thing how different it is down here and how nobody really takes to the simple things in life and how they miss it especially the natural beauty.

[ogre]

Originally Posted by txbaker27

We are really interested in moving up there. As far as the uniforms my son was upset of course but i did save A LOT ! The schools are doing it down here because they say it is a security issue and this will keep the schools safer. I have mixed feelings on that one. The lockers are out and the kids including High school also are required to carry clear or mesh backpacks. Thanks for the info

Of course it varies from town to town, but, in most suburban towns at least, they still have lockers, and have not gone to clear backpacks. I guess some incident would have to happen somewhere in this vicinity for the concern to hit home. Human nature, ya know. If it's never happened in my back yard, it's not going to. As for the dress codes, again, it varies from town to town, but usually the dress codes seem fairly loose, allowing for casual clothing as long as it's sanitary, decent, and reasonably modest (tank tops, etc., would typically be prohibited).