This year the Needham Public Schools, as part of its regular curriculum review cycle, is examining the World Language program. We are very interested in learning what parents think about world language instruction in general as well as in their perceptions about their child's experiences in the program. Responses to our parent survey last month yielded a wealth of information but also raised a few questions that we would like to explore further within a focus group setting.

On May 31, 2012, we will be holding a parent focus group from 7:30 PM-8:15 p.m. The group will meet in the second floor conference room at the school administration building and will be facilitated by an outside evaluator who is assisting with the program review. Debbie Watters, our Director of World Languages, will be available after the session to meet with participants for questions or further discussion.

If you are interested in helping with the World Language program review by participating in this focus group, please email Corinne MacDonald in the Office of Program Development by Tuesday, May 29, 2012 (corinne_macdonald@needham.k12.ma.us). Include your name, your child's grade level, and language studied. We will confirm your participation by May 30, 2012 via email and provide you with logistical details.

We encourage you to consider attending this session. The collective voices of our parents, students, teachers, and administrators will help guide the course of World Language instruction and program development in the district for the next five to ten years.

• Hillside/Mitchell Prefeasibility Study The School Committee and Permanent Public Building Committee have engaged an architect to study options for the renovation and/or replacement of the Hillside and Mitchell elementary schools. The architect will present a final draft report to the School Committee on June 5th at 7:00 p.m. at Broadmeadow, and parents and members of the community are encouraged to attend or tune in and listen to the presentation. My recent blog post details some of the ideas and thinking around options for both schools: http://npssuperintendent.blogspot.com/

• Congratulations to our Retiring Staff! Last week we celebrated the retirements of several colleagues who will leave us at the conclusion of this school year after a combined 164 years of service to the children of Needham:

Margaret Crowley (Hillside), Betty Morgan and Dale Jovin (Eliot), Joel Neiditz (High Rock), Dorothy Furgason and Paula Martin (Pollard), Jacques Bignet, David Cournoyer, Susan Klingerman, and Christine Mirabile (Needham High School)