Budget planning has begun;

Opportunities to engage are plentiful

Each fall, the District Leadership team begins the process of developing a proposed budget for the following school year. Staff throughout the district are provided opportunities for input through team meetings held by grade level or learning area. Building principals and district administrators present their proposals to the superintendent in early January, which leads to the beginning of public deliberations on the budget.

Throughout the winter and spring, members of the public are invited to participate in the budget approval process. This year's schedule of public meetings is as follows:

Thursday, January 23 Budget Workshop I - 6:00 p.m., Log Cabin - 196 Main Street

Cost centers to be presented include:

Yarmouth High School
Harrison Middle School
Athletics and Activities
Yarmouth Elementary School
Rowe School

Monday, January 27 Budget Workshop II - 6:00 p.m., Log Cabin

Cost centers to be presented include:

Facilities and Transportation
Superintendent and School Committee
Business Office
Instructional Support
Teaching & Learning
Technology
School Nutrition

Thursday, February 13 School Committee first reading -7:00 p.m., Log Cabin

Monday, March 10 Finance Committee review - 8:30 a.m., Central Office

Thursday, March 13 School Committee second reading – 7:00 p.m., Log Cabin

Thursday, March 20 Budget Presentation to Town Council – 7:00 p.m., Log Cabin

Thursday, April 3 Town Council – Public hearing/first reading – 7:00 p.m., Log Cabin

Thursday, May 1 Town Council – Public hearing/second reading – 7:00 p.m., Log Cabin

Tuesday, June 3 Town Meeting – 7:00 p.m., YHS Auditorium (YPAC)

Tuesday, June 10 Budget Referendum – 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., YHS Gym

School zones are safest for picking up students

As students return to school and we anticipate the build-up of snowbanks along the streets of our fair town, please be reminded that the safest places to drop off and pick up students are the controlled-traffic areas right in front of the schools.

While the lines can be lengthy in these locations, things move along quite efficiently, and students are protected by slower speed limits, proper crossing zones, good visibility, and an orderly procession of vehicles.

Picking students up in neighborhoods around the schools can become more problematic as snowbanks build up along sidewalks, hindering visibility and making walking difficult. We encourage everyone to consider using the school setting for student safety.

PreK and Kindergarten registration now open

The time has come to open our Pre-K and Kindergarten registration for the upcoming school year! We are spreading the word through multiple means, however, we also ask for your help in sharing this important information with anyone in the community you might know who has a child eligible for Pre-K and/or Kindergarten for the 2025-2026 school year.

Our Pre-K and Kindergarten programming is a full-day model and runs Monday through Friday from 8:40-3:25. Transportation will be provided to and from school.

Pre-K Pre-Registration / Enrollment

Children are eligible for Pre-K for the 25-26 school year if their birthday falls between October 16, 2020 October 15, 2021.

To pre-register your child for Pre-K for the 2025-2026 school year, please click HERE, starting on Monday, January 6 and no later than Tuesday, March 4. Completing this form does not guarantee your child a spot. If there are more children pre-registered than we have spots available, we will use a tiered-priority enrollment process. Spots will be offered to families beginning Friday, March 7th. If a spot is offered to your child, you will be notified of next steps for completing the official registration process.

Kindergarten Registration / Enrollment

Children are eligible for kindergarten if they turn 5 on or before October 15, 2025.

To register your child for Kindergarten for the 2025-2026 school year, please click on the online registration portal to begin the registration process. This first step will ask you to complete some basic initial information, after which you will receive a more detailed email giving you instructions about how to complete the online registration forms. While the kindergarten registration timeline is ongoing, we do ask that you register as soon as possible to ensure your family receives all necessary communication regarding kindergarten screening in the spring. If your child is already enrolled as a Pre-K student at Rowe School, you do not need to register them for kindergarten.

Later this spring, we will also be holding Pre-K and Kindergarten Screening, by appointment. We will be in touch to schedule these appointments.

If you have any questions regarding Pre-K or Kindergarten programming or registration, please contact Amanda Murray in the Rowe School Office at 207-846-3771 or by email at amanda_murray@yarmouthschools.org.

Powerschool data breach - more information to come

As was shared by Superintendent Andrew Dolloff earlier this month, many of you have likely heard or read recently that Powerschool - one of the most widely used school data management platforms in the U.S. - was the victim of a data breach conducted by individuals from outside the country.

This breach impacted hundreds of schools throughout the United States, and the Yarmouth School Department is among those impacted.

Fortunately, current YSD student data does not include Social Security Numbers (SSN). However, Yarmouth has been using Powerschool for approximately 20 years, and up until 18 years ago, SSNs were collected and stored in our system. Accordingly, we will be working with Powerschool to notify individuals for whom their SSN was stored in the system how they will be supported.

Powerschool assures us they have resolved the breach and recovered the data, and we - along with thousands of other schools across the country - continue to push for greater support and guidance from Powerschool as to how our clients can be protected.

We will provide more information as it becomes available to us.

Third Family-School Alliance Presentation Scheduled for Feb. 6