Weekly Buzz | Graduation Day; Pride Events This Week

And students to present results of parent survey about half- versus full-day professional development

Red tail hawks on the hunt. Photo by author.

Good Morning, Burlington.

It’s graduation day in our fair town. Congratulations to all the seniors on their hard work and growth over their time in BPS.

It’s also Pride month, and there are many Pride-related activities happening in various pockets of town this week, including Pride on the Common this Saturday.

Speaking of Burlington students and Pride, on Friday, the Spectrum Club at Marshall Simonds organized a Pride Day to celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community among students and staff members at the school. Students and staff wore rainbow gear, handed out stickers, and posted motivational posters around the school with the intention of creating visibility and inclusivity for students who identify with the LGBTQIA+ community.

After this day was announced, a group of students organized to wear red, white, and blue instead. There were reports of students ripping rainbow stickers and posters and chanting things like, “My pronouns are U/S/A.”

The school hasn’t sent any official communication to families yet, but there are a number of conversations happening on social media, including among parents and students.

This seems like a good place to put this old, very short short podcast about the importance of DEI education.

Episode 1.2 | DEI FAQ

This Week in Burlington

Meetings and Events

Monday, June 5

• 12:00 PM - Select Board Joint DPW Subcommittee (Town Hall)

• 1:00 PM - Music & Story Time with Early Intervention (library event; Register)

• 5:30 PM - Zoning Bylaw Review Committee Sign Subcommittee (virtual)

• 6:00 PM - Teen Advisory Group: Movie Viewing at the library

Tuesday, June 6

• 10:30 AM - Cards for Dad Class at Made in Burlington

• 6:00 PM - Human Services Committee (Grand View Tavern)

• 6:00 PM - Shawsheen Audit Subcommittee (Shawsheen Tech)

• 6:00 PM - D&D For Beginners (Grades 4-8) (library event; Register)

• 7:00 PM - BHS Coffeehouse Concert (BHS Cafeteria)

• 7:00 PM - Board of Appeals (Town Hall Basement Meeting Room; public hearings to begin at 7:30 in the Main Hearing Room)

Wednesday, June 7

• BHS Spring Music Banquet

• 11:00 AM - 567 Workshops-Taxes In Retirement (library event)

• 1:00 PM - School Committee - Special Session to hear from the 10th grade civics students who created that survey that so many of you amazing people completed! I won’t be able to attend, but I will definitely keep people posted with a summary afterward. (BHS)

• 6:30 PM - Improper Bostonians with The History Project (library event):

• 7:00 PM - Teen Event: Pride Party (library event; Register)

Thursday, June 8

• 9:00 AM - College Topics parent breakfast for grades 9/10/11 parents at BHS

• 9:00 AM - Housing Authority (Tower Hill Apartments Community Room)

• 3:30 PM - Cards for Dad Class at Made in Burlington

• 4:00 PM - Rainbow Crafts (library event; Register)

• 6:00 PM - MSMS Spring Vocal Concert

• 6:30 PM - Conservation Commission

  (Town Hall and virtual)

• 7:00 PM - Financial Aid Event (BHS)

• 7:00 PM - Library Trustees (BPL)

Friday, June 9

• 10:30 AM - Craft & Chat (library event for adults)

• 10:30 AM - Sensory Play (library event for ages 18m-3y)

• 6:00 PM - MSMS 8th Grade Final Fling

Saturday, June 10

• 11:00 AM-2:00 PM - Pride Celebration on Burlington Common

• 11:30 AM-1:00 PM - Kadilak Realty Group Real Estate Workshop Luncheon at Seasons 52 (Free tickets)

• Dottie’s Way Dedication at BHS driveway

Sunday, June 11

• 12:00-1:00 PM - Solar Panel Celebration at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church; come for refreshments and an interfaith blessing. (Free tickets)

Sports and Activities

Our Track and Field champs competed at the All-State Meet of Champions this weekend, and represented Burlington in true champ style.

• Grace Hanafin follows up an indoor long jump gold with a gold for outdoor, as well!

• The boys’ 4x800 relay team, consisting of Eric Sekyaya, Colin Irwin, Connor Herrera, and Ryan Moradei, took 8th place!

So far we have some matchups on Monday, including baseball, softball, lacrosse, and the next round playoff game for our Boys’ tennis team. I’ll keep you posted!

That’s it for the day. I’ll be back tomorrow!

Nicci