School starts at Stoneham, MA public schools – NBC Boston

Due to ongoing construction on a new high school building, the new school year for public school students in Stoneham, Massachusetts, will begin about a week later than usual.

Stoneham Public Schools’ first day of school, originally scheduled for Wednesday, August 28, has been postponed to Tuesday, September 3.

Superintendent David Ljungberg explained that while the delay primarily affects the high school, the decision was also made to maintain the same schedule for all grades.

“Although this really impacted the high school, we knew this because of our food service, which operates out of the main high school building and provides food to the entire district,” Ljungberg said.

Fifth-grader Evelyn is happy about the extra days of summer vacation.

“I’m very, very happy,” she said. “I’ll probably spend it in my pool.”

The superintendent stressed the importance of avoiding problems with the bus contract and keeping families with multiple children informed, but noted that if the new building does not receive a student occupancy permit, there could be further delays for high school and preschool students. Currently, the permit is only for teachers and staff.

Ljungberg assured parents that they would be notified immediately if further delays were necessary. If further delays were to occur, the missed days would be made up at the end of the school year.

Ljunberg said the new facilities featured natural light and common spaces and included a STEM lab, video production lab, new gymnasium, theater and artificial turf fields.

“We are stewards of this new building, which will hopefully last for many generations to come,” he said.

Ljunberg said they are working to ensure this does not impact the sport.

“We have already started some training and have practice games planned for this week. We also have a few games planned for this week,” he said.

Stoneham High School Principal Bryan Lombardi sent a message to the community last week addressing the growing feelings of anticipation and concern surrounding the construction progress and change in the start date.

“Concerns and doubts are legitimate and will only be answered when we enter the building and the school year begins. All I can say is that when we open, we will definitely be prepared, it will be great and safe. It will be worth it,” he wrote. “In the meantime, it will require all of our patience, understanding and cooperation as students and teachers move into a school building that is equally new for everyone.”

Currently, all Stoneham students are scheduled to begin school on September 3. Parents will be notified as soon as possible of any necessary adjustments for high school and preschool students.