Weston School Committee Unanimously Approves Three International Trips for Spring 2024

WESTON — September 11, 2023 — Weston School Committee unanimously approved three international student trips, two new teaching positions, and an ESSER grant modification at its September 11 meeting. The committee voted without dissent to send students to Taiwan (approximately $4,300 per student including airfare), Italy ($4,000), and Ecuador ($2,900 plus airfare) over April vacation 2024. High School Principal Paul Perry reported the school had absorbed nearly 50 new students this fall, creating waitlists of up to 18 students in honors biology and crowded sections in college-prep social studies; the committee voted to add 0.25 full-time-equivalent positions in each course, funded through attrition savings. A separate unanimous vote modified the district's ESSER grant — ahead of an October 1 deadline — to pay for a one-to-one nursing position required by a returning student. The committee also voted to consolidate dormant student activity accounts into a new scholarship fund for international travel, with Superintendent Dr. Karen Zaleski calling the seed money a first step toward making trips accessible to more families. A second discussion of proposed administrator salary policy revisions produced no vote; members agreed to submit individual language changes before the next meeting.