SCHOOL COMMITTEE NOTEBOOK: Superintendent Responds To School Bus Driver Accused Of Inappropriate Behavior; NYC Field Trip Approved; New Courses At WHS; Athletic Trainer Upgrade & More

WILMINGTON, MA — Below is a summary of the Wilmington School Committee Meeting held on Wednesday, January 14, 2026.  The meeting took place in the Large Instruction Room at the High School. All committee members were present.

— Once the meeting was called to order, the School Committee heard a brief report from their Middle School student representatives — Amy S. & Gabe E. They provided updates on the school’s Chorus, Drama Club, Math Team, Robotics Team, Band, Student Council, and new Cubing Club, as well as highlights from Spirit Week. Of note, the Drama Club is presenting “Shrek The Musical Jr.” on Thursday, January 22, 2026 and Friday, January 23, 2026 at 6:30pm, and on Saturday, January 24, 2026 at 4pm, in the Joanne M. Benton Auditorium at Wilmington High School (159 Church Street). Tickets are on sale now. Learn more HERE.

— The School Committee then unanimously approved a request from Middle School Teacher Samantha Prindiville to organize a field trip for 8th Grade Middle School students to New York City during parts of April vacation week in 2027. Up to 50 kids will get to experience NYC over the course of 4 days, with trips to Midtown, Central Park, Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, 9/11 Memorial, Times Square, a Broadway show, and the American Museum of Natural History. The trip will cost $1,499 per student, and fundraising opportunities will be available to each.

— The School Committee next unanimously accepted $6,550 in grant awards from the Wilmington Educational Foundation:

● $800 to Michelle Levesque, K-5 STEM Coordinator, for the 2026 STEM Fair
● $2,500 to Melissa Bettencourt, Elementary Literacy Coordinator and Title 1 Director, for the 2026 Literacy Night
● $750 to Margie Dunlap, Teacher at the Wilmington High School, for the Wildcat Service Council Reader Leader Grant
● $2,500 to Lisa King and Mike Walsh, Administrators at the Shawsheen School and North
Intermediate School, for Shawsheen and West “Smile Project” Murals for Buildings

— After approving warrants and minutes, the School Committee moved on to public comments. There were no in-person comments, but a parent had submitted a written one prior to the meeting, concerned that his son had to walk in the roadway on his way home from school recently because sidewalks were not cleared. Despite the unsafe conditions, the child is not eligible to ride the bus because he lives less than one mile from school.

— The School Committee then heard a presentation from Wilmington High School Principal Ryan Gendron, who provided an update on the five new courses added to this school year’s program of studies. He had a student enrolled in each course share their experiences. These courses were: (1) History of Wilmington; (2) Journalism; (3) World Religions & Cultures; (4) English 12: Futuristic Fiction; and (5) Google: Applied Digital Skills. All courses have strong enrollment, especially History of Wilmington (63 students over 3 sections) and Journalism (45 students over 2 sections). The School Committee will hear about new courses proposed for next year’s 2026-2027 program of students at its meeting on Wednesday, January 21, 2026.

— Wilmington High School Athletic Director Dennis Ingram followed with a discussion over his proposal for the district to hire a full-time Athletic Trainer beginning next school year, rather than continuing to contract the service out. The company (“Professional”) is down to just three clients — Wilmington, Woburn and Shawsheen Tech — having lost six school contracts in recent years. If Professional were to fold, the hourly rate of a per diem would be extremely expensive.  Ingram explained that a trainer must be on site for all football games, wrestling meets and varsity hockey games. For tournament games, under most sports, a trainer must be present. The High School currently tries to have a trainer at as many games as possible. A lot of schools in the conference and in the area have already transitioned to a school-based employee model — Burlington has 4, Lexington has 3, and Watertown has 2. The position would require a salary of $70,000-$80,000, an increase from the approximately $50,000 being spent on Professional currently. School Committee member Jennifer Bryson discussed the importance of a full-time trainer now being able to have the time to teach preventive care to student athletes. Ingram’s proposal is a part of the FY27 school budget, which will be voted on next month by the School Committee, and ultimately by the voters at Town Meeting on May 2, 2026.

— Ingram also touched on the upcoming Wildcat Clinics to take place this summer. The clinics will be back at Wilmington High School after being away for two years due to the reconstruction of the track and then the installation of the turf field. Details of the clinics will likely be announced in February, although Ingram noted it is difficult to plan until he knows when the last day of school is finalized after winter. He is in the planning process now, and hopes to possibly include some new exciting offerings along with many of the returning favorites.

— Assistant Superintendent Christine Elliott next provided an update on non-athletic summer enrichment courses being offering by the district, including Summer Theater Camp (Annie Jr.!), Robotics, Programming and more. The catalog was put together by high school teachers Matt Hackett and Mike Jones. Registration for the courses are now open. Payment plans for parents are available upon request, particularly for the 3-week theater camp. More information can be found HERE.

— Superintendent David Thomson provided an informational update on the SEEM Collaborative by sharing its annual report — pages 58 to 131 in the meeting packet. School Committee member Stephen Turner noted SEEM is a fantastic resource that allows students to be given what they need if it can’t be provided in-district, and is done so in an affordable way. 7 out of Wilmington’s 60 out-of-district students attend the SEEM Collaborative, which has locations locally, including in town.

— Superintendent Thomson then provided an informational update on the school district’s contribution to the Town’s 2025 Annual Report — pages 17 to 57 in the meeting packet. The Town Report book is typically first made available to residents at the Annual Town Election and Annual Meeting. There was no discussion around this agenda item.

— After noting the Roman House staff is in the process of relocating to the third floor of the new Town Hall/School Administration Building, Superintendent Thomson provided an update on alleged inappropriate behavior from a Wilmington school bus driver. Thomson noted he has returned families’ phone calls over this matter and will continue to do so.

“This is still an ongoing police investigation, with the possibility of charges being filed,” began Thomson. “Accordingly, and according to the legal process, the information is sealed in a police investigation until someone is arrested or arraigned and brought to court. That puts the schools in a very difficult situation as we’re now authorized to discuss a lot of the things that the police are investigating.”

“I want to be clear,” Thomson stressed. “The complaint went to the police. The police contacted us and North [Reading] Transportation, and we immediately and fully coordinated and cooperated with them to make sure they had all the information they needed. The police were in contact with the people affected by that situation. That was [the police’s] responsibility and not something [the school district] could put out.”

“The School Department and North [Reading] Transportation are working closely with [WPD]. As soon as we were informed of a serious allegation, the driver was removed,” Thomson continued. “Bus drivers in Massachusetts have to actually undergo very vigorous and annual background checks. They have to go through a criminal background check, as well as a sexual offender background check. They have to provide their driving record, even if it’s out-of-state. On top of that, North Reading Transportation also does a fingerprint background check. They also do monthly safety meetings and trainings. If we look at the history of NRT, you will see they’ve been a very good partner with us… They’ve been very cooperative in this investigation We did meet with NRT about procedures, expectations and training topics going forward.”

“We are in a contract with NRT,” added Thomson. “There is a state bidding process. … There are not a lot of transportation companies out there, and the prices for transportation are much different than they were three years ago, which would severely impact the budget that has been worked on.”

“That’s what I can say at this point,” the Superintendent concluded. “I cannot comment on the investigation. To be honest, I have periphery knowledge of it. When and if the DA arraigns the person that is alleged to have done these things, then that’s when that information will be released.”

“After we see all the information, it’s maybe worth talking with NRT to see, despite the great safeguards in place, how did this fail and slip through the cracks, if that’s what we think happen?,” asked School Committee member Michael Mercaldi. “And then putting in some mitigation procedure in the future to try to prevent something like this from happening again.”

“It’s kinda one of those things where you can do a background check, but if someone hasn’t actually been caught at something, they’re not going to show up,” responded Thomson. 

— Thomspon noted the next Wilmington Elementary School Building Committee meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 20, 2026 at 6:30pm in the High School’s Large Instruction Room. Read the agenda HERE.

— School Committee Chair Jesse Fennelly thanks the PAWS Group for providing coffee and refreshments prior to the meeting in recognition of School Board Appreciation Month.

— The School Committee received no correspondence for the meeting. Following the reading of important dates, the meeting adjourned around 8:50pm. The next School Committee Meeting is scheduled for this Wednesday, January 21, 2026 at 7pm in the High School’s Large Instruction. Read the agenda HERE. Watch the meeting live on WCTV and wctv.org.