The Concord School Committee will review 2026 Youth Risk Behavior Survey results for Concord Middle School on Wednesday, Oct. 21. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. at the Ellen Garrison Building at the CMS library, with a Zoom option available, according to the committee's agenda.

The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), a biennial survey measuring student well-being and school climate, is allotted 20 minutes on the agenda alongside CMS academic data. A separate 20-minute block covers academic data for the district's elementary schools.

The committee's Climate and Culture Working Group flagged the YRBS as a key quantitative tool during its summer review, according to Aug. 26 joint meeting minutes. That working group proposed three dedicated regional school committee sessions per year to review student well-being, with the first tentatively planned for October or November.

Budget vote and solar update

Committee members are scheduled to vote on fiscal year 2027 Concord Public Schools quarterly budget transfers, a 10-minute agenda item.

The meeting's final discussion item is a five-minute update on the CMS Solar project, the effort to install solar panels on the Ellen Garrison Building's roof. The building was designed as net-zero ready, with the Concord Municipal Light Plant (CMLP) leading the push for a rooftop photovoltaic system.

The project shifted course after the district did not receive a $1.4 million Green School Works grant, as Concord Bridge reported Oct. 5. CMLP pivoted to a proposed 20-year power-purchase agreement with Solect Energy Development LLC, under which the developer would finance, build and own the panels while CMLP buys the electricity.

Committee Chair Sandeep Pisharody voiced support for rooftop solar at the Sept. 23 meeting but urged caution. "I don't want to run into a 20-year decision in haste," Pisharody said, according to Concord Bridge. Members raised questions about roof warranty protections and maintenance responsibilities.

Turtle recognition

The committee will recognize Alcott Elementary School's role in a Blanding's turtle conservation program. A turtle named Small Fry, raised at Alcott 16 years ago, returned to Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge in Concord to lay eggs, according to GBH News. Zoo New England's program has helped the refuge's Blanding's turtle population grow from about 55 adults to about 300 over 22 years.

After the public agenda, the committee will enter executive session to discuss collective bargaining strategy with the Concord Teachers Association (CTA) education support professionals. The next scheduled meeting is a workshop on Tuesday, Oct. 27, at 6:15 p.m.