Public Comment Participation at Hybrid School Committee Meetings

PUBLIC COMMENT AT SCHOOL COMMITTEE MEETINGS - School Committee Policy BEDH

All regular and special meetings of the School Committee shall be open to the public. Executive sessions will be held only as prescribed by the Statutes of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

The School Committee desires individuals to attend its meetings so that they may become better acquainted with the operations and the programs of our local public schools. In addition, the Committee would like the opportunity to hear public comment.

Public comment is not a discussion, debate, or dialogue between individuals and the School Committee. It is an individual’s opportunity to express an opinion on issues within the School Committee’s authority.

Public Comment Under Hybrid Meeting Format

Under a hybrid meeting format, the Norwood School Committee will have two ways in which the public can access public comment:

Remote participation. Call the Superintendent’s Office at 781.762.6804 by noon on the day of the meeting to register and receive a meeting link that will be accessible for remote public comment only.
In-Person participation. Participants choosing this option can also call the Superintendent’s Office at 781.762.6804 by noon on the day of the meeting to register in advance to speak in person, or they can attend the meeting and register upon arrival. Public Comment is first come first served therefore pre-registration is encouraged.

During the meeting, all public comment participants, either online or in person will be called upon by the Chair, in chronological order based on their sign up.

Participants joining online will be muted until called upon by the Chair. While awaiting their turn to speak, participants should rely on the Google Meet audio to hear their name be called, as there may be a slight delay in the livestream or broadcast. When your name is called, if you are watching the meeting via livestream or broadcast, please mute your computer or television in order to prevent an echo from being broadcast into the virtual meeting chambers. You will have up to three minutes to speak to the School Committee.

Once your comment is completed, please mute yourself again. In the event you forget to mute yourself or do not stop at the end of your three minutes, you will be muted by the Chair.

After the public comment period is closed, online participants will be exited from the meeting but will continue to have live access to the meeting via NCM on cable and online as it is live-streamed. For the cable channel guide and online link, please visit: https://norwoodcommunitymedia.org/.

To ensure the ability of the School Committee to conduct the District's business in an orderly manner, the following rules and procedures are adopted:

At the start of each regularly scheduled School Committee meeting, individuals will sign in for an opportunity to speak during public comment. The public comment segment shall not exceed 30 minutes. All speakers are encouraged to present their remarks in a respectful manner
Speakers will be allowed up to three (3) minutes to present their material and must begin their comments by stating their name and city/town. The presiding Chair may permit extension of this time limit, in extenuating circumstances.
Topics for discussion should be limited to those items within the School Committee’s scope of authority. The authority of the School Committee primarily concerns the review and approval of the budget of the district’s public schools, the performance of the Superintendent, and the educational goals and policies of the district’s public schools. Comments and complaints regarding school personnel (apart from the Superintendent) or students are generally prohibited unless those comments and complaints concern matters within the scope of School Committee authority.
The Chair of the meeting, after a warning, reserves the right to terminate speech which is not constitutionally protected because it constitutes true threats that are likely to provoke a violent reaction and cause a breach of the peace, or incitement to imminent lawless conduct, or contains obscenities.
Written comments longer than three (3) minutes may be presented to the presiding Chair before or after the meeting. All remarks will be addressed through the Chair of the meeting. Comments made during the public comment portion of the meeting do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the School Committee.
Sign up instructions will be provided for those who wish to participate in Public Comment.

Information about Hybrid School Committee Meetings

Public can access the meeting in person at the Savage Center or live via NCM on cable and online as it is live-streamed. For the cable channel guide and online link, please visit: Norwood Community Media. Public participation for the public comment period can be accessed in two ways: (1) In person at the meeting (sign up in advance through Superintendent’s Office by noon the day of the meeting to pre-register, or sign in at the meeting); and (2) Call the Superintendent’s Office at 781.762.6804 by noon on the day of the meeting to register and receive a meeting link that will be accessible for public comment only.

School Committee Meeting Information, Agenda links, and Minutes links
Date	AGENDA Link (PDF)	TIME	LOCATION	Topic	Minutes Link (PDF)
May 6, 2026		7:00 PM	Savage Center	Regular Meeting	Legal Notice: Public Hearing on School Choice
April 29, 2026	April 29, 2026 Agenda	3:45 PM	REMOTE	Executive Session Administrative Assistants Negotiations	no minutes
April 15, 2026	April 15, 2026 Agenda	3:45 PM	Savage Center	Executive Session Administrative Assistants Negotiations	no minutes
April 8, 2026	April 8, 2026 Agenda	7:00 PM	Savage Center	Regular Meeting
March 30, 2026	March 30, 2026 Agenda	3:45 PM	Savage Center	Executive Session Administrative Assistants Negotiations	no minutes
March 25, 2026	March 25, 2026 Agenda: Workshop	7:45 PM	Savage Center	School Committee Workshop	no minutes
March 25, 2026	March 25, 2026 Agenda	7:00 PM	Savage Center	Budget Vote
March 26, 2026	March 23, 2026 Agenda	3:45 PM	Savage Center	Executive Session Administrative Assistants Negotiations	no minutes
March 18, 2026	March 18, 2026 Agenda	7:00PM	Savage Center	Regular Meeting	FY2027 Public Budget Hearing Notice - Public Budget Hearing is during the School Committee Meeting
March 17, 2026	March 17, 2026 Agenda	10:22 AM	NHS	Student Advisory Council	no minutes
March 4, 2026	March 4, 2026 Agenda	7:00 PM	Savage Center	Regular Meeting	no minutes
February 11, 2026	February 11, 2026 Agenda	7:00 PM	Savage Center	Regular Meeting	February 11, 2026 Minutes
January 28, 2026	January 28, 2026 Agenda	7:00 PM	Savage Center	Regular Meeting	January 28, 2026 Minutes
January 14, 2026	January 14, 2026 Agenda	7:00 PM	Savage Center	Regular Meeting	January 14, 2026 Minutes
January 14, 2026	January 14, 2026 Agenda: Workshop	6:00 PM	Savage Center	Workshop	no minutes
January 8, 2026	January 8, 2026 Agenda	10:22 AM	NHS	Student Advisory Council	no minutes
December 17, 2025	December 17, 2025 Agenda	7:00 PM	Savage Center	Regular Meeting	December 17, 2025 Minutes
December 3, 2025	December 3, 2025 Agenda: Workshop	8:45 PM	Savage Center	Workshop	no minutes
December 3, 2025	December 3, 2025 Agenda	7:00 PM	Savage Center	Regular Meeting	December 3, 2025 Minutes
November 5, 2025	November 5, 2025 Agenda	7:00 PM	Savage Center	Regular Meeting	November 5, 2025 Minutes
October 28, 2025	October 28, 2025 Agenda	10:22 AM	Norwood High School	Student Advisory Council	no minutes
October 22, 2025	October 22, 2025 Agenda	7:00 PM	Savage Center	Regular Meeting	October 22, 2025 Minutes
October 8, 2025	October 8, 2025 Agenda	8:15 PM	Savage Center	Workshop	no minutes
October 8, 2025	October 8, 2025 Agenda	7:00 PM	Savage Center	Regular Meeting	October 8, 2025 Minutes
September 24, 2025	September 24, 2025 Agenda	7:00 PM	Savage Center	Regular Meeting	September 24, 2025 Minutes
September 10, 2025	September 10, 2025 Agenda	7:00 PM	Savage Center	Regular Meeting	September 10, 2025 Minutes
July 30, 2025	July 30, 2025 Agenda	6:00 PM	REMOTE	Regular Meeting	July 30, 2025 Minutes
July 30, 2025		7:00 PM	REMOTE	Workshop	no minutes

School Committee Sub Committee Meeting Information and Agenda links
Date	Agenda link (pdf)	TIME	LOCATION	TOPIC
April 29, 2026	April 29, 2026 Agenda	12:30 PM	REMOTE	Budget Sub Committee
April 1, 2026	April 1, 2026 Agenda Budget	12:30 PM	REMOTE	Budget Sub Committee
April 1, 2026	April 1, 2026 Agenda Policy	9:00 AM	REMOTE	Policy Sub Committee
March 17, 2026	March 17, 2026 Agenda	10:22 AM	NHS Main Conference Room	Student Advisory Committee
March 11, 2026	March 11, 2026 Agenda	12:30 PM	REMOTE	Budget Sub Committee
February 27, 2026	February 27, 2026 Agenda	12:00 PM	REMOTE	Policy Sub Committee
February 25, 2026	February 25, 2026 Agenda	12:00 PM	REMOTE	Budget Sub Committee
February 4, 2026	February 4, 2026 Agenda	12:30 PM	REMOTE	Budget Sub Committee
January 21, 2026	January 21, 2026 Agenda	12:30 PM	REMOTE	Budget Sub Committee
January 8, 2026	January 8, 2026 Agenda	12:30 PM	REMOTE	Budget Sub Committee
January 6, 2026	January 6, 2026 Agenda	9:00 AM	REMOTE	Policy Sub Committee
December 10, 2025	December 10, 2025 Agenda	12:30 PM	REMOTE	Budget Sub Committee
November 25, 2025	November 25, 2025 Agenda	9:00 AM	REMOTE	Policy Sub Committee
October 29, 2025	October 29, 2025 Agenda	12:30 PM	REMOTE	Budget Sub Committee
October 17, 2025	October 14, 2025 Agenda	12:00 PM	REMOTE	Budget Sub Committee
October 1, 2025	October 1, 2025 Agenda	8:30 AM	REMOTE	Policy Sub Committee - DATE AND TIME CHANGE
September 17, 2025	September 17, 2025 Agenda	12:30 PM	REMOTE	Budget Sub Committee
September 5, 2025	September 5, 2025 Agenda	9:00 AM	REMOTE	Policy Sub Committee
July 29, 2025	July 29, 2025 Agenda	10:00 AM	REMOTE	Budget Sub Committee

Schedule, Agenda, and Minutes 2025-2026

Public Comment Participation at Hybrid School Committee Meetings

Use this link for a list of 2025-2026 School Committee Meetings - Updated 8/6/25

Information about Hybrid School Committee Meetings

Sub Committee Meetings 2025-2026

Information about remote sub committee meetings