By Grace Dempsey, News Editor
Graphics by Emily Cheng
Stras takes maternity leave
Principal Stras will be out on maternity leave to care of her newborn daughter Isla, who was born on July 20. In her absence, Cutler House Dean Josepha Blocker will take the position of acting principal, while CORE program director and head football coach Ted Delicandro will serve as acting dean of Cutler House. In an email to families, Blocker said that there will be no other significant changes and that students should experience few differences. Principal Stras is expected to return on Nov. 1.
“She’s an excellent leader, and I’m happy to try to keep things moving in the direction she had started them in while she takes care of the new baby.” – Josepha Blocker, Cutler dean and acting principal
“We are overjoyed to share with you all that Isla Zulica-Anne Stras made her debut on July 20th, 2022 at 2:12 p.m.” – Tamara Stras, principal (via email announcement)
NPS recycles clothing in bins
Collection bins to hold recycled clothes, shoes and textiles have been placed outside of 15 of Newton’s public schools, including South. Newton Public Schools (NPS) has partnered with HELPSY, a Northeast-based organization whose mission is to keep clothes out of landfills by collecting used clothes to reuse, recycle and upcycle. Based on the amount of textiles that NPS collects per pound, HELPSY will pay NPS money, which the district plans to use to fund more sustainability programs in Newton.
“We are being proactive because in three months, on Nov. 1, textiles in Massachusetts can no longer be disposed of in trash and in our blue bins.” – Ruthanne Fuller, mayor of Newton (via Boston Globe)
“The intent is to keep the bins in place for the long term to continue to provide a convenient way for residents to donate and dispose of unwanted textiles.” – NPS website
MBTA shuts down Orange LIne
On August 19, the entire MBTA Orange Line shut down for 30 days to allow for construction to replace rails and to improve safety and reliability on the railway, which opened in 1901. The August 3 announcement came amid a period of increased accidents on the transit system, including an Orange Line train catching fire on a bridge over the Mystic River on July 21 and three Green Line trains becoming stuck on their tracks on August 12. Orange Line commuters can use shuttle buses and the commuter rail trains as alternative methods of transportation.
“I acknowledge the closure will be disruptive. But people want and deserve safe and reliable service, and we want to give it to them, and this is a way for us to effectively invest in maintaining the system,” – Steve Poftak, MBTA General Manager (via WCVB)
“I think every fire that happened, every delay, every major incident just shows how old the system is and how much it needed major repairs.” – Michelle Wu, mayor of Boston (via WCVB)
