Winchendon Elementary School Students Return to Full-Time Classes on April 5

In compliance with a March 5, 2021 statewide mandate from the Massachusetts Commissioner of Education, Winchendon Public Schools elementary grade students will return to full-day regular classes in classrooms as of April 5, Winchendon Schools Superintendant Joan Landers told the Courier.

The district is sending out surveys to school families. Parents may opt to keep their children at home on all-remote learning if they do not wish to send them to school. However, there will be no more hybrid classes. Parents may also have their children take school buses to class or transport them in another way.

Because work is still being done on the HVAC systems at Toy Town and Memorial schools, elementary grade students will continue to have class in the Murdock Middle High School building.

Middle school students will remain on hybrid learning until April 28, when they will return to full-day classes statewide. High School students will return to regular class schedules at a date after that.

Parents with questions or concerns should contact the Superintendant's office or their child's school.

Mount Wachusett Community College Launches Computer Science Degree

Signs Transfer Admissions Agreement with Fitchburg State University for both Computer Science and Computer Information Systems Degrees

GARDNER, MA - March 10, 2021 - Mount Wachusett Community College is pleased to announce the launch of its Computer Science degree for fall 2021 enrollment. In addition, MWCC Computer Information Systems and Computer Science students will be guaranteed admission to Fitchburg State University under a new agreement signed by the presidents of the two institutions.

MWCC's mission is to expand opportunity, equity and social justice by offering open-door admission to affordable programs for a diverse population of students. Computer science and the technologies it enables are used by virtually every industry to drive operations and inform decisions. In turn, these technologies provide numerous opportunities for economic growth, stability, and success for the workforce. In Central Massachusetts, the demand for computer science professionals is growing. Job growth for Computer Network Architects is growing at 8.18 percent, Web Developers at 13.24 percent, and Information Security Analysts at a staggering 31.51 percent according to data by the Commonwealth's Department of Unemployment Assistance, Economic Research Department.

"The addition of the Computer Science degree program and our partnership with Fitchburg State will afford students from varying backgrounds the opportunity to succeed, transfer and become valuable contributors to the economy of North Central Massachusetts," noted James Vander Hooven, President of Mount Wachusett Community College.

"Creating pathways for students to achieve their goals and pursue meaningful opportunities is central to Fitchburg State's mission," said Fitchburg State President Richard S. Lapidus. "Agreements like this pact with MWCC illustrate our shared commitment to serving this region's residents and businesses."

Students graduating from Mount Wachusett Community College in the Computer Science or Computer Information Systems program with a qualitative grade point average of 2.0 or greater may transfer to the corresponding Fitchburg State University program with between 62 and 75 transfer credits. Advancing on to earning a bachelor's degree will increase student's employability and earning potential in a growing field.

To learn more about MWCC's Computer Science and Computer Information Systems degree programs visit, mwcc.edu/programs.