Middleborough draft calendar starts school Sept. 1, 2027, with restraint policy vote set for Thursday

MIDDLEBOROUGH Middleborough families would send students in grades 1 to 12 back to school on Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2027, under a draft 2027-28 calendar the School Committee reviews for the first time Thursday, Nov. 12.

The draft is listed as a first read, with no vote on it Thursday. The committee meets at 6:30 p.m. in the John T. Nichols Middle School auditorium, 112 Tiger Drive, where it is also set to vote on a replacement policy for time-out, seclusion and physical restraint of students, discuss a rewrite of its public comment rules and take up the search for a permanent superintendent.

The calendar sets the days families plan vacations, child care and work around for the school year that starts in fall 2027, and the policy items would change how the committee runs its meetings and how staff may handle a student in crisis.

The draft calendar

The draft, labeled "Draft Option 1," holds new teacher orientation Aug. 24 and 25 and two staff-only training days with no school Aug. 30 and 31. Kindergarten students have an orientation on the first day and start school Thursday, Sept. 2, and preschool starts Tuesday, Sept. 7, the day after Labor Day. The calendar grid also shades Friday, Sept. 3, as a holiday or vacation day, so students in grades 1 to 12 would have two days of school before a four-day Labor Day weekend.

Middleborough Public Schools draft 2027-28 calendar, key dates (Draft Option 1)

Date	What the draft lists
Wed. Sept. 1, 2027	First day, grades 1 to 12, and kindergarten orientation
Tue. Nov. 2, 2027	Staff training, no school
Wed. Nov. 24 to Fri. Nov. 26	Thanksgiving
Fri. Dec. 24 to Fri. Dec. 31	December break
Fri. Jan. 14, 2028	Staff training, no school
Mon. Feb. 21 to Fri. Feb. 25	February break
Mon. April 17 to Fri. April 21	April break
Sat. June 3, 2028	Middleborough High School graduation
Thu. June 15, 2028	Last day of school, early release

The draft also lists early release days for staff training on Oct. 8, Feb. 18, March 17, April 14 and May 26, and holidays including Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples Day on Oct. 11, Veterans Day, the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday on Jan. 17 and Memorial Day on May 29.

Seclusion and restraint

The committee's policy subcommittee recommends replacing the district's current time-out, seclusion and physical restraint policy with a new draft "as regulations have changed," and lists no changes since the first read. The draft says those methods "shall be used only in emergency situations of last resort" and in line with state education department rules.

Under the draft, seclusion, defined as confining a student alone in a room or area the student is not allowed to leave, is prohibited except in an emergency as a last resort when a student poses an imminent threat of assault or serious physical harm. Seven safeguards must be documented first, among them a documented history of the student repeatedly causing serious injuries, a licensed physician's finding of no medical reason against it, a licensed mental health professional's justification, a parent or guardian's consent, the principal's written approval and staff training. Physical restraint is allowed only when a student poses a threat of assault or imminent serious harm and does not respond to less intrusive steps, and never as discipline or punishment.

Other second reads up for a vote would state that the superintendent is appointed by a committee vote and reports directly to the committee, and add state ethics training and conflict of interest summary requirements for members.

Public comment rules

A rewrite of the public comment policy is listed for discussion only. The draft sets "no fixed individual speaker time limits or global time caps," with a 3-minute limit for speakers who neither live in Middleborough nor have students in the district. It lets the chair move a common theme to a Community Dialog Forum before the next meeting and says the committee "will not restrict, silence, or censor speech based on the viewpoint, opinion, or criticisms expressed by a speaker." At first read the subcommittee recommended giving public comment 45 minutes on the agenda, which the chair could extend with a committee vote, and the rewrite now in the packet drops overall caps.

Superintendent search

David L. Thomson is the district's interim superintendent, chosen unanimously by the committee from four candidates on June 3 for a start expected July 1 and a one-year interim term. The committee opened a community survey on the search for a permanent superintendent Oct. 5 that ran through Oct. 18, and its search subcommittee was scheduled to meet Tuesday, Nov. 10, with an agenda to choose officers, discuss the criteria in the job posting and pick interview questions. Thursday's agenda lists that subcommittee among the night's discussion items. South Coast 360 asked Thomson about the search timeline and the calendar draft and will add his answer.

The committee will also hear school improvement plans for Burkland and Goode elementary schools, the Memorial Early Childhood Center and Nichols Middle School. The consent agenda includes a $75,000 state Fair Share earmark, which the state education department awarded for use through June 30, 2029, and a $1,000 Cooler Communities grant for Nichols.

How to weigh in

Public comment is the third item on the agenda, recordings of committee meetings are on Middleborough TV's school committee page, and the superintendent's office can be reached at 508-946-2000.

Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.