Meet Arrianna Proia, Bigelow’s Ward 1 School Committee Representative.

Elected to the Newton School Committee in the fall of 2025, she is a lifelong Newton resident and proud graduate of NPS. Professionally, she serves as a Community Organizer with the Charles River Watershed Association, where she works across dozens of municipalities to advance climate-resilient policies, manage grants, and collaborate with local and state officials.

The School Committee’s next public meeting is May 11th, @7pm.

Click here for a full calendar of School Committee events.

“The School Committee in each city and town and each regional school district shall have the power to select and to terminate the Superintendent; shall review and approve budgets for public education in the district, and shall establish educational goals and policies for the schools in the district, consistent with the requirements of law and state-wide goals and standards established by the Board of Education.”

Here is a link to School Committee Chair Alicia Piedalue’s message via ParentSquare on April 17th.

It is a summary of the path to this year’s budget and a thanks to the community for their feedback and advocacy as the Committee weighed difficult decisions throughout the process.

The Superintendent will share plans for the work that will be impacted by reductions at the June 15th public meeting.

Your voice matters to NPS! We are reaching out to learn more about your family’s experience with our schools. Your feedback helps us make sure every student gets a great education that prepares them for life after graduation.

Survey Details:

• Time: It takes about 15–20 minutes to complete.
• Device: You can use a computer, tablet, or smartphone.

Submit your responses by May 6, 2026, at 5:00 PM!

Join us today and learn more about next year’s school budget with the superintendent, Dr. Nolin. Advocate for Bigelow to receive equitable allocations!

Brown Middle School directions

7:00–8:00pm

The Spring Dance Galaxy Lights was a HUGE HIT!! 

Our generous Dance Organizers, Michelle Morgan and Heather Hanson created a fun, high-energy, and memorable evening for our students. You made the magic happen!

Our top-tier custodial team, Dave, Tony, and the entire crew, went above and beyond with planning, setup, and keeping everything running smoothly (even with all that middle school energy!).

Our Student Council Leaders, Madame Rossi, Mr. Leone, and Ms. Raso, led ticket sales and promoted the dance in school.

Our incredible administrators, Dr. Green, Mr. Mogensen, and Dr. J, were in the mix, supporting the night, and helping keep the “wild and crazy” just the right amount of fun.

Thanks to all of our parent volunteers, our students enjoyed a night they’ll remember fondly when they think of their middle school years. We couldn’t make events like this happen without all of you! Laura Goldworm, Nina Chan, Jordan Wu, Stacey Kazakoff-Eigen, Leiha Maldonado, Rachanee Nelson, Mandy Carozza, Juthamas Stern, Renata Ballesteros, Shannon Jackson, Margaret Silva, Victoria Peake and Amy Davis.

To all of our volunteers: your time, enthusiasm, and willingness to jump in wherever needed make all the difference.

This is a great opportunity to get involved, stay connected with our Bigelow community, get to know teachers, staff and families from other schools! Parents and guardians from all grades may join! We especially welcome incoming 6th grades to participate and learn more about middle school.

Please throw your hat in the ring by Friday, May 1st so we can prepare a slate to be voted on by all parents at our end-of-year PTO meeting (date TBD).

We have several PTO Board roles open for next year and we would love to have representation from all our feeder schools. Click here for more open roles.

Check out ALL the positions HERE to sign up or find out more about something new!

Yes, I want to get involved

In honor of National Teacher Appreciation Week (May 5th – 9th), the Bigelow PTO will host three luncheons for our dedicated teachers and staff.  Each lunch will be catered by families from each grade:

Monday, May 4th: 6th Grade Families Sign-Up

Wednesday, May 6th: 7th Grade Families Sign-Up

Friday, May 8th: 8th Grade Families Sign-Up

We are also accepting monetary donations to fund luncheon items. If you would prefer to donate money, the steps are:

1. Venmo @BigelowTreasurer and add note “[Grade] Teacher Appreciation Lunch”.
2. Sign up for an item in the grade-specific SignUpGenius link above. In the comments include “Venmo to Bigelow PTO [$ amount]”.
3. A PTO volunteer will cover that item for you the day of the luncheon. 

This will be our final staff appreciation event of the year. Let’s give our Bigelow staff a big thanks for all that they do!

If you have any questions, please contact:

6th grade: Heather Hanson heather.freshdesign@gmail.com or Jennifer Rosenthal at jrosenthal222@gmail.com

7th grade: Tara Raposa at taratmr@gmail.com

8th grade: Nisa Dailey at Nisa@okdailey.com

Last year’s restart of Bigelow’s traditional Ten Tables progressive dinner and fundraiser was such a success that we’re doing it again!

On Saturday, May 16, Guests & Hosts will join together for appetizers at one Bigelow family’s home and then split into smaller groups for dinner at a number of other families’ homes. This event is a wonderful night of community-building, and a great way to raise money and engagement to support our PTO.

With hosts signed up for the appetizer kick-off, we’re looking for 3–5 more dinner hosts to complete the event.

*More information will be shared soon on how to sign up as a Guest!

If you are interested in hosting one of the dinners, please email the PTO at bigelowbulldog@gmail.com, or the event chairs, Kathy Shields at kburdetteshields@yahoo.com or Amy Davis at amygdavis84@gmail.com.

Bigelow families are invited to walk together in this year’s Walk for Hunger, a meaningful Boston tradition supporting food access across Massachusetts.

Contact: Hai Ly Burk | 808-344-0841, ms_haily@yahoo.com

Learn more: https://projectbread.org/walk-for-hunger/about

When you register, choose “Join a Team” and select the BIGELOW BULLDOGS team from the registration page.

We’ll gather as a Bigelow group at 8:45 am by the EMBRACE statue in the Boston Common). If you’re able, wear purple so we can easily find one another!

All are welcome – students, families, and friends. It’s a great way to come together, get outside, and support an important cause! Please consider donating to Project Bread.