Office of Civil Rights To Investigate Framingham High

Framingham Patch has learned that the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights will look into reports that Framingham High violated Title IX when responding to reports of two sexual assaults in the school last spring.

UPDATED 10:45 p.m. Statement from School Committee Chair Beverly Hugo UPDATED 9:15 p.m. Statement from Superintendent of Schools Stacy Scott *** The U.S. Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights will look into reports that Framingham High violated Title IX when responding to reports of two sexual assaults in the school last spring. The federal Civil Rights' office evaluated a complaint and has determined there is enough legal evidence to investigate. The complaint states Framingham School District did not take appropriate action in response to a complaint, does not have appropriate Title IX grievance procedures in place and did not have a designee coordinating the district's compliance under Title IX. Superintendent of Schools …

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Supt. "Our Challenge Is To Rebuild Trust As a Community"

After reports of two sexual assaults at Framingham High last spring, the Superintendent of Schools unveiled an action plan and a crisis response team Monday night.

Parents continued to speak out about the school district's handling of two reports of sexual assault by a Framingham High football players against two females last spring within the walls of Framingham high School. Looking towards the future and not the past, Framingham School Superintendent Stacy Scott unveiled an action plan and a crisis response team to deal with future reports of sexual harassment, sexual abuse and sexual assault within the public school system. Editor's Note: Scott was not the superintendent of schools when students reported the two assaults last spring. "In the life of any community, critical moments may be turning points where we may be faced with the question of who we truly are and what we hold dear. The reports …

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Exploring Education

Trinity Repertory To Stage Framingham High Student's Play Tonight

Trinity Repertory Company will do a staged reading tonight of a Framingham High senior's original play, after she was one of three students who won a New England playwriting competition.

Tonight, Trinity Repertory Company will do a staged reading of Framingham High senior Bonnie Atterstrom's original play Revelation. Atterstrom was one of three students in New England to win the Trinity Repertory Company’s second annual Write Here, Write Now! Student Playwriting Competition. The competition was launched last year by Trinity Rep’s Education Department, and solicits 10-minute plays from high school students across New England. This year, nearly 100 students from across Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island submitted plays. “This year’s competition received the same number of scripts as its inaugural year,” said Education Outreach Coordinator Michael Williams, “and the plays were outstanding.  Students wrote and …

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Funeral Held for TJX Employee Jill Hurley, 38

The Framingham High Class of 1993 graduate and logistics manager at TJX Corporation died Easter Sunday at MetroWest Medical Center.

Jill Hurley, 38, of Framingham, died Sunday, March 31, 2013 at the Metrowest Medical Center, Framingham. Born in Wellesley, She was the daughter of Charlene M. (White) Hurley of Framingham and the late Kevin J. Hurley who died in 2012. She was a graduate of Framingham High School class of 1993 and Wheelock College in Boston. She worked as a logistics manager at the TJX Corporation in Framingham, and formerly worked for Firestone and Walgreens Corporation. Besides her mother, she is survived by her brother Greg Hurley and his wife Amy of Bellingham, her paternal grandmother, Virginia Hurley of CT and many aunts, uncles and cousins. Funeral arrangements were by Norton Funeral Home. A funeral was held Friday, April 5. In lieu of flowers, …

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Exploring Education

Raissa Reis Wins Sherwood Collins Playwriting Contest

Two other Framingham High seniors - Carrie Miller and Hannah Cohen -- finished second and third in the contest sponsored by the Massachusetts Educational Theater Guild.

Two best friends get drunk one night and wake up wondering if they had sex. The girl and her gay best friend spend the rest of the day trying to figure out what happened the night before, in the original play written by Framingham High School senior Raissa Reis. "It's not what they think in the end," explained Reis about her 40-minute play which won the 2013 Sherwood Collins Playwriting Contest, sponsored by the Massachusetts Educational Theater Guild. Last month, at the finals of the Massachusetts Drama Festival, Reis' classmates Connor Fallon and Olivia Wiles performed a 10-minute staged reading of the original play written by Reis, before a sold out audience. Reis, received a scholarship, and this summer her play will be published by …

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Kerry Najarian

7:07 pm on Friday, April 5, 2013

Congratulations to the students and Ms. Wresinski! I hope you are still at FHS when my 3rd graders are heading to high school!   more ›

School Committee Vice Chair: 'I'm Sorry This Has Taken Place'

Framingham High students and parents told Framingham School Committee change is needed after the report of two sexual assaults last spring; and the School Committee unanimously adopted a proclamation in support of Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

For the first time, School Committee members reacted to reports of two sexual assaults within the walls of Framingham High by one male athlete last spring. "It sadden me and shocks me, that there were incidents at the school," said School Committee Vice Chair Beverly Hugo, who has had three children graduate from Framingham High. She told students and parents who came to speak before the School Committee she was unaware of the sexual assault reports until the protest outside Framingham High last Wednesday. (Framingham Patch was the first media outlet to report on the allegations of sexual assault and the public protest last week. Read that report and subsequent reports here.) "From the bottom of my heart, I’m sorry this has taken place…

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By Mistake, Thousands of Parents Receive Call Child Not In School

After the accidental calls, Framingham High parents jammed the phone lines, worried if their child(ren) were in school.

An automated messaging service for Framingham High School mistakenly called all parents to report their child was not in school Tuesday. If it was working correctly, the service would have just notified parents whose students were actually absent. Calls and emails went out around 9:45 a.m. notifying parents that their child was not in school today, April 2. A call and email explaining the mistake did not go out until almost 90 minutes later, due to the fact that the high school's phone lines were jammed with calls from parents worried and inquiring about their kids. "Please disregard the attendance phone call that was sent from FHS through our Connect Ed phone system at 9:45 AM this morning. This call was erroneously sent to ALL parents …

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Resident89

11:18 pm on Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Typical! More bad press for Fhs get your act together! Mr. WELCH HAS DESTROYED OUR HOME VALUES   more ›

Exploring Education

Framingham Students Compete in Televised Quiz Show

Framingham High's brightest students tested their knowledge in a televised contest on Sunday.

Trivia-savvy Framingham High students traveled to the WGBH studios in January to test their knowledge in the High School Quiz Show tournament. The slideshow of photos were taken during the taping of the show. The show aired yesterday, Easter Sunday at 6:30 p.m. on WGBH. Madeline Barowsky, Cornelia Bendel, Jason Shaffer and Kevin Connor faced off against the brightest students from Washusett High, answering general knowledge questions, during a taping of the annual High School Quiz Show series. Framingham High qualified in November by taking an oral test and placing in the top 16 out of the 90 schools in contention.  Framingham High took a substanial early lead, but eventually lost 545-300 to Wachusett. Topics of questions ranged from rocks…

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FHS Grad Creates Petition Calling for Principal's Resignation

Petition: "He has failed to teach the student body that violence against women is unacceptable in our society."

A Framingham High graduate started a petition this weekend calling for the resignations of the high school principal, superintendent of schools and the Middlesex District Attorney to resign, following the report of two sexual assaults at the high school last spring. "As an alumni of Framingham High School, I have always viewed the school as a positive force for the students attending. Now the school, principal, superintendent, and even the Middlesex District Attorney are covering up the sexual assault of two young students. Leaders do not act in this way. Cowards do," wrote Edward Hipson on Change.org, where he started the petition. Framingham Patch tried to contact Hipson for an interview about his petition, but was unable to reach him …

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MB F

7:29 pm on Wednesday, April 3, 2013

I strongly agree with this statement. I find it quite understandable that these students are trying to point fingers at the school, because majority of these students I'm assuming are minors. The fact that there are parents are also agreeing with their children, is not understandable. As a former student from several years back, I am honestly not suprised by this whole "witch hunt". I can recall …   more ›