Dear Editor, After last week’s historic votes and the overwhelming approval of the construction and financing of a new Wilmington High School, there are a lot of THANK YOU’s to go around! - Thank you to each member of the 25-person Wilmington High School 4.0 campaign committee (and their families):  Laura Ahern, Diane Allan, Dan Bamberg, Greg Bendel, Ginny Bonish, Michelle Bryan, Steve Bjork, Karen Campbell, Christine DeAmbrose, Melissa Doherty, Linda Ducharme, Diane Garrity, Dick Hayden, Lisa Johnson, Tricia Lambert, Joe Martiniello, Becky McGrath, Manny Mulas, Mike Newhouse, Judy O’Connell…

Dear Wilmington Community,My sincere thank you to the residents of Wilmington for coming out to vote in the election on December 6th and to Town Meeting on December 12th. Because of your support, the community will have a brand new high school. This new school will serve current students and future students for decades and will allow us the opportunity to provide the learning environment needed in order to teach skills for the 21st Century. The legacy you are helping to establish will benefit today's students and future generations of students.Again, thank you on behalf of the students, …

Dear Editor: As we enter the season where we are encouraged to give thanks and count our blessings, I wanted to take this opportunity to remind our community how lucky we are to be Wilmington residents. While many towns around us have to pay user fees for trash and recycling to be removed every week, Wilmington has no such fees. While many towns around us have to pay over and above their tax bills for their children to attend full day kindergarten, Wilmington has no such fees. While many towns around us have to pay user fees for their children to participate in after school activities, such …

Dear Editor,Education is so much more than a building. So let each YES vote for our new high school be a statement about what we value as a town and as individuals. And equally important, let your vote be a message to our educational leadership in Wilmington that we expect excellence too. Let our leadership know, “We support you every step of the way, but we want the bar raised and we need our children to receive a 21st Century education." Superintendent Joanne Benton and Wilmington's leaders have made solid, lasting improvements in our town. Programs and school staffing for our children have…

Dear Editor, As the parents of three kids in the Wilmington School system, we sometimes hear the argument that “buildings don’t educate” when the new high school proposal is being discussed.  Let’s be absolutely clear – while teachers educate, the facility in which the teachers educate absolutely matters.  The current Wilmington High School building has become an obstacle in the delivering of a quality education to its students.  According to state standards, WHS is approximately 20% too small, with virtually every aspect of the school undersized – classrooms are 15% too small; science labs …

It’s becoming increasingly more difficult to accumulate money for retirement.  High unemployment and low returns on 401k/403b investments are challenging savers and investors around the globe. It appears that there is fear in the stock market about the USA being able to repay the $15+ Trillion in debt that we’ve managed to accumulate over the past twenty or so years.  Europe is struggling under similar debt burdens. Investors have realized that the “gig” is up. It is going to be increasingly more difficult to spend money that is printed by governments versus money that’s being earned via tax …

Dear Editor,  To all my fellow recent WHS alumni who are home from college or grad school for Thanksgiving break: please know that YOU can have a say in the future of Wilmington High School.  After all, no one knows the need for a new high school more than you.  While things have changed greatly in our lives since graduation, much less has changed at Wilmington High School.  On a lighter note, Mr. Megysey still has his mustache; Ms. Peters still seemingly lives at the school; Mr. Kleponis is still, well, Mr. Kleponis; and the cafeteria chicken nuggets are still as popular as ever.  More …

To the Editor,I wanted to address skepticism expressed by some opposed to building a new high school with regard to the fact that renovating the existing building would cost the same, if not more, than building a new high school. The Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) is very concerned about cost effectiveness on projects they are asked to fund. In fact, every new construction project that is submitted to MSBA for its review and approval must be accompanied by an addition/renovation option. In Wilmington’s case, the Town conducted a full evaluation and cost estimate for the option…

To the taxpayers and parents of student athletes: The majority of residents I speak with all agree that a New High School is in the best interest of the community and students in our town. However 95% of those I speak with do not want the current structure at 159 Church St. demolished for a number commonsense reasons.   Both the town and the local media have failed to focus on the issues of greatest concern. The current High School proposal is to demolish a structurally sound $17,000,000 (Board of Assessor value) building that serves as a cap to a 77,000 gallon oil spill/plume. Petroleum …

Dear Editor, I am a freshman at Wilmington High School and I’m writing this letter on behalf of my classmates in support of a new high school. Entering the high school building is like taking a “step backwards” compared to the Middle School’s facilities and equipment. The classrooms are much smaller and two of my teachers share rooms with other teachers. The science labs are outdated and don’t have enough space or equipment. In some rooms there are still chalkboards instead of whiteboards. My backpack can barely fit into my locker and the hallways are crowded, dark, and dingy with low …

To The Editor: Both the town and the local media have done a good job keeping the community informed about the proposed new Wilmington High School project, as well as the process required to bring it to fruition.  We appreciate the attention and focus you have given this matter up to this point and the community looks forward to your continued comprehensive coverage.  By way of a simple reminder, in order to make the new high school a reality in Wilmington, the Town must first vote “YES” to the referendum question on the special election ballot on Tuesday, December 6.  A majority “YES” vote …

To the Editor: Since the onset of the feasibility studies with regard to a new Wilmington High School, since the very beginnings of conversations on the need for a new facility, I have noticed a significant omission in the “conversations” recently published: What will be the educational benefits for student learning and professional pedagogy by building and/or renovating the current Wilmington High School? Sure, we can argue the logistics of finance, tax increases, and reimbursements from the State. We can site the economic down-turn or the fluxuations in housing market cycles. We can point …

Dear Editor,  Wilmington High School was built in 1950. Over the past 60 years, the school has undergone 5 renovations. According to the Massachusetts School Building Authority, at only 158,500 square feet, the current Wilmington High School building is approximately 20% too small. Their standards dictate that the school should be at least 189,120 square feet.  Virtually every area of the building lacks the space to adequately educate our children. Classrooms are 15% too small, science labs are 30% too small, and the library/media center is nearly 20% too small. The auditorium is undersized …

Dear Editor: A few people seem to think that we should purchase the Sciarrapa Farm on Andover Street and build a new high school there.  Here are 10 reasons why we should not: The property is not for sale.  If the Town wants the property, it would have to take it by eminent domain.  With the legal process involved, it would take several years before the tax payers would know what it actually costs. Even if the farm were for sale, it would be very expensive.  The last time it was on the market, it went under agreement for approximately $7 million dollars.  The cost to purchase the land would …

Dear Editor, I am a 20-year Wilmington resident and a mother of two students in the Wilmington Public School system who believes that a new high school would benefit our children and our town as well. As a substitute teacher, a member of the Wilmington Educational Foundation, Wilmington School/Business Partnership, Shawsheen/West PAC, Wilmington High School Advisory Council and Director of the Wildcat Community Service Program, I advocate that a good education is a sound and important investment in our future.  Building a new school would enable Wilmington High School to meet accreditation …