School Committee Addresses Teachers' 'No Confidence' Vote in Pope

A vocal crowd packed the meeting room as the board took up the teachers union's recent resolution.

"I'm a teacher in Southborough, but a taxpayer and parent in Marlborough," said Jennifer Turieo, "and I don't feel there is leadership at the top in Marlborough, and that trickles down to every staff member and every student. It doesn't matter what your vision is; if there isn't leadership, you won't move forward." Turieo was one of more than 100 citizens who packed the standing-room only special meeting held by the Marlborough School Committee on Thursday that included on its agenda a discussion of the "no confidence" vote taken by the Marlborough Educators Association (MEA). The MEA on Thursday, May 16, approved a vote of no confidence in Superintendent Anthony Pope. The teachers vote, according to the recent article in Marlborough Patch…

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Councilors Express Frustration Over Schools in Budget Hearing

Several councilors leveled criticism at school officials during a review of their spending plan for 2013.

While they stopped shorting of making steep additional cuts into the proposed school budget for fiscal year 2013, members of the Marlborough City Council's Finance Committee used budget hearings to express their dissatisfaction with school leadership. Superintendent Anthony Pope said $1 million in cuts already made to his proposed budget--the school committee trimmed about $50,000 and Mayor Arthur Vigeant removed nearly $950,000 more--are “hurting us a lot.” “We have a lot more work to do” to balance the budget, Pope said. A major reason for the needed increase is rising special education costs, he added. That part of the budget alone grew 4.2 percent, including rising costs of paying for students who are placed out of district due to …

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Keith Regan

9:49 am on Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Mary-Ann, the topic of accreditation did come up during the hearing. The context was the library, where the decision to fill a slot with a less experienced and non-certified librarian prompted some councilors to question whether the move would affect future accreditation. School officials assured the council it would not.   more ›

Letters to the Editor

LETTER: Former Student Takes Issue with Current Superintendent

A reader calls for a school committee investigation, saying the culture of MPS has shifted toward an unhealthy environment.

To the Editor: As a former Marlborough High School student and the brother of a high school junior, I am ashamed of the way that the school district has had its reputation tarnished by this superintendent. The superintendent I speak of is Dr. Anthony Pope. He came to the school district with a message of hope, a vision of turning Marlborough Public Schools into a world class school district; instead it has become a world class laughing stock. Every morning, I open up the news and find yet another story about my former school district that leaves me wondering where the leadership is. Whether it is the mysterious firing of an assistant principal, accusations of assault on a teacher or accusations of bullying and intimidating students, Dr. …

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Week in Review

Teachers' Union Complains as Bakr Fired, Truck Cuts Pole and Power

This is a look back at the week on Patch.

Monday, April 9: Police Log: Assault with Deadly Weapon, Suspicious Activity Tuesday, April 10: Marlborough Resident Running His 10th Marathon Woman Runs Over Cop's Foot During Domestic Incident Police Log: Witness Intimidation, Shoplifting at Sears Wednesday, April 11: Brazilian Leader Wants to Strengthen Education, Commerce Ties with Bay State Mayor Vigeant's First 100 Days James 'Scott' Riciutti Gone at 48 Tractor Trailer Clips Telephone Pole at Elm and Dudley Death Notices: Antoinette 'Ann' Trolla Gone at 98 Thursday, April 12: Friends Talk About Scott Ricciuti's Legacy in Advance of Services Police Log: Vandalism, Tractor Trailer Crash Jackson Circle Home Sale Tops $550,000 Friday, April 13: Marlborough Teachers Claim Intimidation by …

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High School Assistant Principal Adam Bakr Confirms Firing

The assistant principal has been fired by the Marlborough Public Schools after a long suspension.

Marlborough High School assistant principal Adam Bakr confirmed Friday that he has been fired from the Marlborough Public School system.  Rumors of the firing were rampant on Thursday, but Superintendent Anthony Pope did not respond to a request for confirmation. Bakr himself confirmed that he was no longer with the district in a post on the Facebook page "Bring Bakr Back" early Friday morning.  "On behalf of my family and myself, I just wanted to thank everyone—staff, students, parents, friends, and community members—who have shown their support for me over the past four months," said Bakr. "I am humbled by your kind words and selfless actions. Your courage and your tireless efforts will never be forgotten. Students and alum of MHS—please…

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LIVE BLOG: Students Continue to Protest High School VP's Absence

Vice Principal Adam Bakr has not been at school in months, and students want to know why.

Cover it Live

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High School Students Protest Absence of Assistant Principal

Marlborough High School students are asking for answers pertaining to the unexplained absence of Assistant Principal Adam Bakr.

A growing and mysterious controversy at Marlborough High School has come to a head this week: The long-time, unexplained absence of Assistant Principal Adam Bakr. Bakr, an administrator at the school for several years, has been out for almost two months and without any sort of explanation, said students.  There has even been a "Bring Bakr Back" Facebook page created that features messages from students and supporters of the administrator, along with copies of emails and petitions asking the school and city officials to bring Bakr back. There are also several photos of Bakr and even a video of a sit-in that students recently staged demanding answers to the absence. As of this post, nearly 450 people had "Liked" the page. The page's creator …

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School Committee Candidates Speak Out

Although running unopposed in Tuesday's election, Patch interviewed the three school committee candidates for a glimpse into what to expect in the upcoming term.

Incumbents Margaret Dwyer, Katherine Hennessy and Kathleen Robey are up for re-election this year for the Marlborough School Committee. However, Robey instead is seeking election to the City Council, thus leaving an open seat for which newcomer Heidi Matthews is seeking. Although Dwyer, Hennessy and Matthews are running unopposed for the three school committee seats, Patch interviewed each candidate to provide residents a glimpse of the priorities regarding our school system that the candidates will be taking into the new term. Incumbent Katherine Hennessy is seeking her second term on the Marlborough School Committee. One of the biggest accomplishments Hennessy felt she was involved with during her first term was the overhaul of the …

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Schools Promise Laser-Like Focus on Student Achievement

Administrators, teachers to follow new core curriculum aligned with state standards.

It was a combination of Show and Tell and What I Did on my Summer Vacation as the School Committee on Tuesday, Aug. 30 heard from new administrators and teachers about how they plan to improve the Marlborough school system . With the reorganization of Marlborough High School to a traditional grades 9-12 and the Whitcomb School becoming a middle school with grades 5-8, there were a lot of changes in personnel and assignments during the summer. Staff have been meeting in teams and coordinating their work in curriculum development, special education and with the 6th grade and 9th grade STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Early College High School programs. In fact, all students who signed up for the new programs were …

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