Waltham School Committee Approves Valor Handbook Update, Hears Parents on Scheduling

WALTHAM -- July 9, 2026, Waltham parents demand a voice in high school schedule redesign before recommendations are finalized. Six residents addressed the School Committee at its July 9 meeting, all urging the body to push Superintendent Dr. Mendonza to include parents in the scheduling committee currently studying a possible shift from eight to seven courses per year at Waltham High School. Nicole Pache-Nicholas of Caldwell Road, whose daughter graduated this spring and whose younger child enters as a freshman, told the committee that barring parents from the scheduling committee while placing feedback opportunities after recommendations are developed "raises a serious concern about the integrity of the input process." Recent graduate Sierra Nicholas, citing University of Connecticut research on gifted underachievement, argued that access to four or five AP courses is "a need" for high-achieving students, not a want. The committee also voted unanimously to approve minor updates to the Valor High School student handbook and to adopt new AP World History: Modern textbooks, and voted to send a district classroom-space document to the Waltham City Council showing that several elementary schools have little or no room to absorb enrollment growth.