Name: Deepika Sawhney
Office Sought: School Committee
e-mail address: Sawhney.deepika [at] gmail.com
phone number: 781-640-5870
Community Activities:
- Liaison (unofficial) for the sheltered families
- Liaison to the Article 97 working group
- Liaison to the EV school bus committee (amongst other Liaison appointments)
- Town meeting member precinct 6
- Participant in Visioning; Site Security and Safety; and Education Plan and Equity focus groups for the High School project
- Ad Hoc Transportation Committee Chair (successfully concluded December 2023)
- Member of IGIG: the Indian getting involved group of Lexington, focused on increasing participation in town governance
- Founder/chief volunteer of an annual essay writing competition for Lexington children “My truth Is…”
- Board Member of Partners In Democracy: committed to Democracy principles and education
- Member (and former Chair) of Hestia Fund Boston: A nonprofit that funds educational programs
- Founder/chief volunteer of the Trinjhan group: a sisterhood of Sikh-punjabi women of MA
- Government and outreach liaison for the Westborough Sikh gurudwara
- Den mother (completely unofficial) of Sikh families in Lexington
What do you foresee will be the major issues confronting the School Committee during the period of construction and transition to the new High School?
The build/renovation of the Lexington High School will be a complex operation which will require understanding the needs of:
- Current students and staff (about 2600 people)
- Abutting residents and organizations (homes, businesses, Hayden, & the Center Recreation Complex)
- Users of town center roads and the neighboring facilities
- Construction crews, materials and vehicles
- The fragile ecosystem of wetlands that surrounds the high school.
Managing all the above will be a complex undertaking requiring the coordination-cooperation of our school and municipal arms, and much generosity, and patience from our town residents.
Given that the school population of staff and students is most under the purview of a School Committee member, here are some of the challenges and opportunities I foresee.
Challenge: Provide seamless education for our students
While we imagine and build new infrastructure which will match the caliber and needs of our students, the education of our current students is of foremost priority.
It will require extraordinary expertise and teamwork. In addition, the aftereffects of Covid are still in our education system. Taking care of the academic and social emotional needs of our current students is where we need to put most effort. We are fortunate that we have a deep bench of administration-staff talent and experience. We can also rely on the many years of successful outcomes, and the learning contained thereof (both in academics and in building new schools).
Challenge: Mitigate the distractions and annoyances of an active construction site.
Within the 2300+ students at the high school, we have sub populations. These include after school clubs, sports teams, special education, LABBB (a collaborative with neighboring towns for education, life skills and transition services) and our Boston students. Our 200 staff manage daily inconveniences of parking, inclement weather and lack of office space and isolation from colleagues. The sub populations have different space and access needs from 6 am to midnight and often all days of the week.
We have heard from students and staff that LHS already feels like a big school. Inadequate infrastructure makes learning difficult. For example: the lack of ADA compliance for the mobility impaired, or just the spaces to have a quiet chat or reflection. These will be more challenging when construction noise and inconveniences are added.
The school administration will be attuned to the big picture, however, we need to create mechanisms to capture individual challenges and inconveniences. These need to be monitored and solved too.
Opportunity: Project based learning in an active construction site.
A big high school project is an amazing opportunity for student and adult learning, both through observation and active participation. The process already centers the student voice and agency. They are articulating nuances of user requirements which the adults cannot.
We are working on a program that will allow student interns to job shadow the many professionals. I am writing up a draft plan with our Superintendent with equity, student security and learning in mind. Meanwhile the focus group and Visioning exercises are engaging the adults. School-municipal staff, residents, caregivers and well-wishers are all giving generously of their time and input to further enhance our final design. We need to reach out to stakeholders who are unable to participate due to personal constraints. We need to ‘push’ information out to invite their comments, and continue this engagement far beyond the design phase.
Opportunity: Build a cohesive community through combined effort
In early 2022, I spoke with Prof Marshall Ganz, Senior Lecturer in Leadership, Organizing and Civil Society at the Kennedy School of Government. I was concerned that an expensive, and lengthy, high school project could create division in our town: The enthusiasm of a ‘YES’ campaign matched emphatically by the energy of a ‘NO’ movement; the needs of the students being viewed in opposition to seniors’ and other residents’; while the staff and boards try to manage the strain.
Prof. Ganz gave me sage advice: It’s important to create a shared understanding with a common goal. I would extend it: it's important to listen to all feedback, even that which makes us uncomfortable. Aligning different stakeholder imperatives will be difficult but dialogue and compromise is necessary.
While the area is an active construction site, outreach and messaging of the shared purpose is key. Celebrating mini milestones with residents and inviting feedback will build shared ownership.
There is no doubt we will have an exemplary building in the end. In addition, if each resident feels a warm glow and thinks “I helped build it!” then we will have really succeeded.
Challenge & an Opportunity: Keep the ecosystem robust and thriving.
We are all responsible for the environment. The high school is sited in a fragile ecosystem surrounded by wetlands and a culverted stream. Vine Brook flows across town from the Old Reservoir to the Butterfield aquifer on the Lexington-Burlington border.
We already have policies that ensure optimal electrical energy usage and a healthy building. But the design must take into account the impact of a tall building in the proximity of wetlands. For example: through channeling heat exhaust from air conditioning units, impervious surfaces allowing for efficient water drainage, and use of suitable glass windows to mitigate bird strike deaths, amongst other considerations.
Building/demolition/use of structures can cause noise, air, water, soil and light pollution. Materials generated through demolition become landfill somewhere. Trees need to be cut, and runoff can impact wetlands. Given the sensitivity of the environment, and the size of the project, extra care will need to be exercised.
Opportunities for research and monitoring ecosystems can be student initiatives. Thinking outside the box may yield surprising solutions. For example: If some pollution is unavoidable, how can ecosystems across Lexington be made more robust to mitigate localized harm. We can reach out to local universities to brainstorm ideas such as uses for the waste materials from construction.
In Conclusion: a question for all of us
We must do this together, and we are fortunate to have the resources. Lexington always leads the nation, so can we build the high school and create goodwill through this process?
