Littleton School Committee Trims Kindergarten Choice Seats, Approves 2022-23 Enrollment Plan

LITTLETON — April 14, 2022 — Littleton School Committee votes to trim kindergarten school choice seats and debut a new 24-7 mental health navigation platform. The committee voted unanimously at its April 14 meeting to approve projected school choice seat offerings for 2022-23, reducing kindergarten openings from five to three after concerns raised by absent member Justin about late summer enrollment surges that strained class sizes the prior year. Superintendent Dr. James Clenchy acknowledged the revenue trade-off — "if we don't match the number of seats that we have in the current year we'll be losing revenue" — but supported the compromise. The committee also received an update on Care Solace, a mental health care coordination service contracted earlier in April and already live, which logged 63 saved communications, two counselor-initiated warm handoffs, and 12 anonymous searches within days of launch. School social worker Wendy Snow described testing the platform herself at 9 p.m. and receiving a callback within 15 minutes. The committee rated Superintendent Clenchy proficient overall, with an exemplary mark in fiscal systems, and voted 3-0 on a roll call to enter executive session for contract negotiations.