Winchendon 2009

Here we go…it’s time to get going. But what will 2009 hold for all of us at Winchendon?

As I write this, there is the part of me that is very focused on the global challenges: Things continue to deteriorate in too many places and for too many people on the African continent; the two-week old hostilities between Israel and Hamas in Gaza have caused over 500 deaths and the displacement of thousands and are an indication of the fragility throughout the region; and further east the multi-faceted tensions involving Afghanistan, Pakistan and India threaten to worsen at any time. Pair these with the widespread economic challenges and loss, and about the only thing that is too exciting beyond Winchendon is the hope for the incoming administration in Washington.

Fortunately, the other part of me is able to focus on Winchendon and all that is exciting here. A rested and refreshed faculty and student body on its own would be enough to look forward to, but all come back to continued improvements on the campus. After the improvements in the library over Thanksgiving, energies were re-focused in other areas over the most recent break. While many were relaxing over the holidays, a crew was hard at work in Ford Hall upgrading bathrooms, Mr. Chretien was overseeing the installation of the new fitness and weight training equipment, and others were working on plans for the performing arts facility improvements that start this month. We also completed the installation of additional digital technology as part of the continuing academic program upgrades.

As we kicked off the first week of classes, the rosters of both those who had made honors and high honors were announced and the first honorees for the year for the highest merit category were announced. We started the week celebrating the men’s hockey team’s winning of the St. Sebastian’s tournament and finished the week with a men’s basketball victory against MCI. Click here for more of a write-up on that.

This first weekend found several of us preparing to welcome our trustees to campus for the winter meeting. A major portion of the meeting was spent working through plans for the continued improvements in Ford Hall, the addition of new tennis courts and the plans for the restoration and the upgrading of the Fine Arts Building scheduled for this coming summer. We finished that meeting with the launching of a strategic planning process that will ultimately involve many in our community. We will be working on setting the strategic vision and creating a plan for the school during a series of meetings and workshops over the next year. I hope that you will contribute your input to this process if you have thoughts.

It is an exciting time to be at Winchendon. While we keep the external challenges in our focus, we are also committed to ensuring that 2009 is our most exciting yet and that our students have an exceptional Winchendon experience.