BOSTON - It was the news Stoneham officials had been waiting to hear since 2013.

Wednesday in Boston the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) said yes to helping the town build a new high school. The news came after five failed attempts that created frustration but no solutions for a school desperately in need of help. All that frustration was forgotten by 10:45 a.m. when the MSBA board voted unanimously in support of Stoneham. Officially, the board voted to invite Stoneham High School into the MSBA's Eligibility Period. During the 270-day Eligibility Period, the MSBA will work with the District to determine the District's financial and community readiness to enter the MSBA Capital Pipeline.

"The Eligibility Period is a critical step in the MSBA's process of evaluating potential work on Stoneham High School," stated Executive Director Jack McCarthy. "We look forward to our

continued partnership with the District as it enters the Eligibility Period." Stoneham High School was one of 12 schools to receive MSBA approval, four of which were high school projects (Revere High School, David Prouty High School, Bartlett Junior/Senior High School, and Stoneham).



"We're just ecstatic for Stoneham," said Superintendent John Macero, one of seven officials representing Stoneham at the meeting. "This is a great opportunity for out kids, and we can now start to plan what our school can look like for the 21st century." Macero was joined by high school principal Donna Cargill, School Committee members Nicole Nial, Jaime Wallace and chair Rachel Meredith-Warren, Select Board chair Shelly MacNeill, and State Representative Michael Day.

"This is a really exciting opportunity for Stoneham and Stoneham public schools," said MacNeill, a former School Committee member. "We've waited a long time for this. I'm confident that the town will support this project going forward. There's a real need and I'm looking forward to the many educational opportunities the new building will afford for our students."



Stoneham High School opened in the fall of 1968 as a junior high school and remained a junior high until 1981.

