The Swellesley Report

Since 2005: More than you really want to know about Wellesley, Mass.

Sports

Wellesley middle & high school runners to compete at pre-Boston Marathon races

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BAA logoA handful of Wellesley Public Schools student-athletes have been selected to run on Saturday, April 18 in the BAA Middle School 1k and BAA Invitational Scholastic Mile races on the streets around the Boston Marathon finish line.

Boys 1k race

Fleet Taylor, Wellesley Middle School 8th grader. Personal best Mile 5:44. Fishing is his hidden talent, and the mile is his favorite distance to run.

Girls 1k race (event record is 3:14.05 by Abigail Beggans of Wellesley in 2022)

Cora Gibby, Wellesley Middle School 6th grader. Personal best mile is 6:31: She achieved her PB this year at the Harvard Friends and Family kids meet. The 5K is her favorite distance to run.

Maren Tamburelli, Wellesley Middle School 7th grader. She also skis and swims.

Boys Invitational Mile

Sami Juma, Wellesley High School senior. Mile personal best is 4:27.91 . He ran a 15:45 5K (his favorite distance to run), at the Bay State Invitational. He also plays the piano and enjoys 12x400m workouts.

Alex Bonnette, Wellesley High School senior. Mile personal best is 4:32. ompeted at the Bay State cross country championships in 2025. His favorite workout is the 6×800, and his hidden talent is playing the saxophone

Girls Invitational Mile

Eloise Crissman, Wellesley High School junior. Mile personal best is 5:48.10. Eloise’s hidden talent is that she can do a headstand. She also completed a half marathon last spring.

Courtney Edmonds, Wellesley High School senior. Mile personal best is 6:00.4. Courtney’s hidden talent is that she can hold a plank for 11 minutes. She achieved her personal best in the mile during her junior season.

The schedule:

11:00 AM    Girls Middle School 1K Race Start

11:10 AM    Boys Middle School 1K Race Start

11:25 AM    Girls Scholastic Mile Race Start

11:35 AM    Boys Scholastic Mile Race Start

The youth races will be followed by professional runner 1-mile races.

More: Boston Marathon 2026—Wellesley guide

     

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Education

Help Wellesley middle schoolers with Civics Action Projects by taking online surveys

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From Adam Blumer, Wellesley Middle School Social Studies Department Head:

Across the state, all 8th graders take part in Civics Action Projects, where student groups pick an issue they want to work on at the school, local, or state level and develop strategies to try to make change happen. As part of this, we teach students how to create simple surveys to get data on how people feel about their topic and their possible goals/strategies for change. While this is still very much a developing skill, students benefit from getting rich data from an authentic audience to help shape their ultimate proposals at our Civics Fair. 

With this in mind, please consider helping out our 8th graders with their Civics Action Projects. If you want to fill out any (or all!) of these surveys, please fill them out by Tuesday, April 7. 

Thank you! If you have any questions about the surveys or the Civics Action Project, please contact Adam Blumer, WMS Social Studies Department Head, at blumera@wellesleyps.org

Community Member-Oriented Surveys

Topic/General SubjectTarget Audience Link to Google FormTeamCivics Teacher
Homework for WMS studentsParents of WMS studentsClick hereWTaylor
Air conditioning at WPSParents of WMS students, members of the wider Wellesley communityClick hereWTaylor
WMS start timeParents of WMS students, members of the wider Wellesley communityClick hereWTaylor
Increasing voter turnout in Wellesley (A)Parents of WMS students, members of the wider Wellesley communityClick hereMChute
Improved pediatric medical services for families in financial need Parents of WMS students, members of the wider Wellesley communityClick hereMChute
Increasing voter turnout and awareness in Wellesley (B) All students and Parents of WMS students, members of the wider Wellesley community  Click here M Chute
Creating positive change at Morses Pond by hosting a fishing tournament All students and Parents of WMS students, members of the wider Wellesley community Click hereMChute
Creating a financial literacy elective class at WMSAll students and Parents of WMS students, members of the wider Wellesley community Click hereMChute
Increasing voter turn out in WellesleyParents of WMS students, members of the wider Wellesley community Click hereMChute
Using unused land in WellesleyAll students and Parents of WMS students, members of the wider Wellesley community Click hereMChute
Rising sea levels in MassachusettsAll students and Parents of WMS students, members of the wider Wellesley community Click hereMChute
WMS Ropes Course RedesignAll students and Parents of WMS students, members of the wider Wellesley community Click hereMChute
Food insecurity in MassachusettsAll students and Parents of WMS students, members of the wider Wellesley community Click hereMChute
Beautifying WMS and schoolsAll students and Parents of WMS students, members of the wider Wellesley community Click hereMChute
Youth employment8th and 9th gradersClick hereWTaylor
Composting in WellesleyWellesley residentsClick hereWTaylor
Trash Pickup Wellesley residentsClick hereWMSEichner
Passing Periods WMS Students & Teachers & ParentsClick hereWMSEichner
LitterWellesley communityClick hereWMSEichner
Lunch TablesWMS ParentsClick hereWMSEichner
Voter TurnoutWellesley Residents (Electorate)Click hereSHardwick
Centennial Park DevelopmentWellesley CommunityClick hereSHardwick
Financial Literacy Classes in WPSWPS CommunityClick hereSHardwick
Recess at WMSParents of WMS studentsClick hereWTaylor
Pollution in WellesleyWellesley CommunityClick hereSHardwick

Please send tips, photos, ideas to theswellesleyreport@gmail.com

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Education

Wellesley Middle School Civics Project looking for volunteers

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8th graders in Wellesley participate in a Civics Project where groups pick a school, town, or state issue they think could be improved and work on ways to advocate for a specific change and/or to raise awareness about the issue.

Here’s a list of topics students have chosen and are just now getting started researching. Department Head Adam Blumer is looking for volunteers who might be willing to answer some basic questions or give advice to students. If you are willing to be a contact on a particular issue, please let him know on this form.

You don’t need to be an expert in any way or be involved in local government—just be willing to give some basic information or point students to resources (online or real life) that you know of to help build their knowledge and shape their project.

If you volunteer, at some point in the next week or two you might get an email from a group asking for information or clarification on something they’re learning about. The goal is to avoid having the same adult field requests from multiple groups, so the lift should be manageable.

If you have questions or need clarification, please reach out to Adam at Blumera@wellesleyps.org

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Wellesley youths running in Boston Marathon weekend races

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One of the great elements of the Boston Marathon weekend is the BAA Invitational race series that takes place this year on Saturday, April 19, in Copley Square.

The Invitational Mile for high schoolers and Middle School 1K races feature boys and girls from the cities and towns of the Boston Marathon course. Young runners also take part in the B.A.A. Relay Challenge.

A separate Invitational Mile on Saturday is for professional runners from around the world.

In addition to being part of an exciting competition, student-athletes get some great swag.

Here are the bios of Wellesley’s young runners, provided by the Boston Athletic Association (if any proud moms/dads/caretakers read this and want to share pics from the event with us, please do: theswellesleyreport@gmail.com

Middle School runners:

Xavier Cortis, Wellesley, Grade 8 – 1.5 mile PB: 9:01. Wellesley Middle School. Proud of setting a new mile PR during the 2024 track season. Enjoys long runs with friends, racing the 10K, baking and cooking.

Georg Heerdegen Jepsen, Wellesley, Grade 8 – 5K PB: 21:00. Wellesley Middle School. Focused on constantly improving his kick; plays soccer, enjoys the 5K distance and telling stories.

Anna Heerdegen Jepsen, Wellesley, Grade 6 – 1.5 Mile PB: 5 minutes. Wellesley Middle School. Beyond running does gymnastics, can do a roundoff back handspring, and enjoys jumping on her trampoline. Brother is also racing the Middle School Boys 1K.

Maddie Mantak, Wellesley, Grade 7 – 1.5 Mile PB: 10:23. Wellesley Middle School. Enjoy running and can play the ukulele; proudest moment is finishing second in a cross country meet.

High school runners:

Ben Aronson, Wellesley, Mile PB: 4:32 — Wellesley High School, Grade 12. Proudest athletic accomplishment is breaking 5 minutes in the mile freshman year. Hidden talent is playing chess, and his biggest fan is his mom.

Brian Mix, Wellesley, Mile PB: 4:37.90 — Wellesley High School, Grade 12. Favorite distance to race is the 800m. Other than running, he enjoys rock climbing. He’e run 1:27 for 600m.

Jolie Chen, Wellesley, Mile PB: 6:33.9 — Wellesley High School, Grade 11. Proudest accomplishment is setting a 21:26 5K PR at the Bay State Conference Championships. Does 6 styles of dance and biggest fan is the Wellesley High distance team!

Emily Bannon, Wellesley, Mile PB: 5:37 — Wellesley High School, Grade 12. Proud of running a 4×8 leg while injured and not getting passed.  Hidden talent is scooping ice cream perfectly, and favorite fan is older sister.

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Wellesley mourns passing of former longtime middle school performing arts administrative assistant

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Carol Hardiman, the longtime administrative assistant for the Wellesley Middle School Performing Arts Department, passed away on April 13 after a long illness.

Carol Marie Hardiman (Whicker), formerly of Framingham, had moved to Bluffton, S.C. She is survived by her husband, Tom, their children and grandchildren, and beloved dog Coco.

According to Hardiman’s obituary, her jobs at the middle school and the Learning Center for Deaf Children in Framingham “fed her love of the arts and inspired her to write poetry and Children’s stories.”

Henry Platt, the retired longtime band director at the middle school, said Hardiman was “the first contact person for our department for many years and touched many lives in Wellesley.”

Wellesley Middle School holds annual French Fête

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By Hanna Zhu. Hanna is a 6th grader at Wellesley Middle School and a member of the Bradford Junior. Hannah has covered several topics while a member of the club, and this is her first story for the Swellesley Report. 

Cheese, croissants, French pastries, and games. What could be better? The French Fête is an annual event at Wellesley Middle School celebrating the culture of French speaking countries. There are games, and more importantly, food! The French Fête is organized by French teachers Madame Blouwolff and Madame Abdelmoula, together with the WMS PTO and many parent volunteers.

french fete
French teachers and co-organizers, Madame Abdelmoula and Madame Blouwolff.

 

The French Fête was first hosted about 15 years ago, when the parents of some French students saw the event for Chinese (now Lunar) New Year. They decided they wanted to host an event similar to the new year celebration, except for French. 

This year, it was hosted on Wednesday, March 12, after school in the cafeteria. It is usually somewhere between April and March, as a fun break for students. That time of year can be particularly stressful for students, as it is when 8th grade students choose their classes for high school, and it is around the time of the MCAS tests.

7th grade French students performed a song in French, and there were dance competitions for French students in each grade.  

New this year, some families volunteered to set up stations about various French cultures. This year, there were stations about Haiti and Louisiana, with a focus on New Orleans. Like in years past, there were also games like French Twister, French Charades, mini-bowling from Quebec, match the monument from Paris, and match the French artist. There was also a station set up where students could take pictures as the Mona Lisa. 

frenchfete
The Louisiana table

 

In addition to the games, there were pastries from France – some donated by Le Petit Four and others made by local pastry chef and WMS parent Lisa Sewall. There were croissants, crepes, and madeleines, just to name a few. Aside from the pastries, there were also cheese tasting stations set up around the cafeteria, with a variety of cheeses such as babybel and brie. 

In order to be able to get food, students had to either visit all of the cheese stations and get stamps for every cheese in their ‘passport’, or participate in games and stations. 

The French Fête is a great opportunity for everyone at WMS to learn about French culture and traditions, or just to eat French pastries. Again, it is an annual event, so students are encouraged to attend, whether for the first time or not. 

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Wellesley in Bloom starts May 2!

Wellesley in Bloom starts May 2!