Last updated 6/20/2023 at 6:00 p.m.

Dear WHCIS Community,

We hope you are enjoying the first days of summer break.

Before we get too deep into the summer we want to provide some more updates on our plans and current work at the Winter Hill school.

Last week, structural engineers continued to assess the building. They will be back on site over the next several weeks. Because we expect assessments and final reports to take several more weeks, and to be sure we have a formal plan in place for the fall with enough time to plan, we have made the decision that classes will be held in an off-site location for next school year. Last week, City and SPS staff identified and toured locations that would keep as much of the WHCIS community in one building as possible. At this time, the site that best meets these needs is the Edgerly Building at 8 Bonair St. The Edgerly is ADA accessible and it can accommodate all classes in grades 1-8, including the AIM Program. PK and K classrooms will be held at the Capuano School (a total of 3 classrooms), which provides a quality learning environment designed for these age groups.

SPS and City staff currently located within the Edgerly Building will begin moving out of the building during the first week of July, and the building and site will be prepped over the summer for the start of classes in late August. We anticipate that WHCIS families will be able to tour the building in late August; we will share more information at a later date

We continue to work on multiple details such as transportation and after-school programming. To provide additional details and answer questions, the City and SPS will host another virtual community meeting on Tuesday, June 27th, from 5 to 7 p.m. A link and details will be emailed later this week.

If you have questions in the meantime, or if you are unable to attend the meeting, please email questions at any time to communications@k12.somerville.ma.us. 

We will continue to update you regularly throughout the summer on our progress and any news, and a new website is in the works.

Sincerely,

Jeff, Courtney, and Mayor Ballantyne