Westfield High School

Join us for our next Westfield Education to Business Alliance (WE2BA) meeting and learn how your business can partner with Westfield Public Schools to support students and develop our future workforce!

📅 Tuesday, November 10, 2026
⏰ 8:00 a.m.
📍 Reed Institute at Mestek
152 Notre Dame Street, Westfield, MA

🔧 Westfield Technical Academy staff will share opportunities for businesses to employ students through cooperative education.

🎓 Westfield High School staff will highlight opportunities for internships, job shadows, and other work-based learning experiences.

✅ All businesses are welcome to attend!

📧 For more information, contact Stefan Czaporowski at s.czaporowski@schoolsofwestfield.org or Amanda Brodkin at amanda@westfieldbiz.org.

Harvest traditions are a part of every community, and Westfield is no different.

This Saturday, families will attend Westfield on Weekends’ 10th annual PumpkinFest at Westfield Middle School Athletic Fields, behind Amelia Park, off South Broad Street, rain or shine, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The event is free admission with live performances, games, activities, costumed characters, strolling performers, craft/local vendors, food trucks, pumpkin carving/decorating, trunk or treat and much more.

This year, WOW has a new layout featuring themed villages for families to enjoy: Westfield G&E and Whip City Fiber’s “Autumn Arcade”, Home Depot’s “Homer’s Harvest Workshop,” “Make Some Magic” with TruNorth Bank, KidzBiz Village where young entrepreneurs ages 7-17 showcase their own businesses, products, crafts and services.

There will also be the Peaceful Low-Sensory Pumpkin Grove, a place where folks who want to take a break from the activities can find a calm, quiet space to enjoy the festival at their own pace.

https://www.masslive.com/westfieldnews/2026/10/wows-pumpkinfest-returns-with-updated-layout.html

This week on Superintendent’s Spotlight, we welcomed staff and students from Westfield High School to learn about the exciting ways students are exploring their career interests through internships, job shadowing, and other work-based learning opportunities! 💼🌟

We also had a delicious visit from Westfield Technical Academy’s Culinary Arts Department, who helped us celebrate National Pierogi Day with some tasty treats! 🥟👨‍🍳

A big thank you to our students and staff for joining us, and thank you for watching!

#AchievingExcellenceTogether #CareerReadiness #workbasedlearning #NationalPierogiDay

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8TsG_gi1qg

Please click below for the latest newsletter from Westfield High School. Thank you! https://app.smore.com/n/rxth0

This week on Superintendent’s Spotlight, we welcomed students from Westfield High School and Westfield Technical Academy to talk about their experiences with Early College—including taking college-level courses and earning college credits while still in high school.

Our friends from Westfield Technical Academy also stopped by to help us celebrate National Pumpkin Spice Day with some delicious homemade pumpkin cheesecake!

Thanks for watching and for helping us celebrate the great opportunities available to our students! 🎓🎃🍰

#AchievingExcellenceTogether

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7GXAsjvrFc

City of Westfield New Ordinance regarding E-Bikes, Scooters, Mopeds & Skateboards.

It’s a big year for the Bombers.

With 22 seniors and a new turf stadium, Westfield has all the ingredients to rebound after back-to-back 4-6 seasons. The Bombers got off to a promising start in their new stadium debut Friday, when they cruised to a 55-12 win over Fitchburg.

Westfield’s speed on the outside will certainly be worth the price of admission this fall. Junior QB Aiden Purdy, who went for 325 yards and five TDs in the win over Fitchburg, found receivers David Berdecia and Cole Russell early and often, while tailback Adrian Colon also ran for more than 100 yards and two scores.

https://www.masslive.com/highschoolsports/2026/09/week-1-winners-5-western-mass-football-teams-that-made-a-statement.html

James Laverty has just started his fourth year as a school safety attendant at Highland Elementary School through a Veterans Services program.

Director of Veterans Services Julie Barnes said the volunteer program started four years ago in elementary schools that didn’t have school resource officers from the Police Department. Currently, Westfield High School and Westfield Technical Academy each have an SRO assigned, and Westfield Middle School and Westfield Intermediate School share an SRO.

At the time, Barnes met with state Sen. John Velis and Superintendent Stefan Czaporowski to discuss implementing the veterans’ volunteer program. In return for their volunteer work, veterans who work 100 hours in the schools can get a $1,500 tax abatement.

Director of Operations and Safety Christopher Rogers provides onboarding for all volunteers, who are all CORI-checked and fingerprinted. According to Rogers, the veteran's program is designed to identify and deter potential problems and foster a sense of security by having an extra level of protection in the schools.

Interested veteran volunteers should contact Barnes at 413-572-6247. Program guidelines and a volunteer application are also available on the city website under Veterans Services. Barnes said veterans must have served on active duty to qualify for the abatement program.

Heidi Cote, coordinator of Volunteers in Public Schools, said there are many volunteer opportunities in the schools throughout the year for the public at large, including at special events, where extra hands are always needed.

Cote said there is currently a big need for cafeteria support at both Highland Elementary and Westfield River Elementary. She said there are three lunches a day with recess between them, and volunteers who can come in for an hour or two are most welcome. “Consistency is best,” Cote said. Email heidi.cote@schoolsofwestfield.org to sign up. Anyone with questions should call Cote at 413-572-6463, ext. 61417.

https://www.masslive.com/westfieldnews/2026/09/veterans-who-volunteer-in-the-schools-receive-tax-abatement.html

On Sept. 8, Chef Eric Rogers, Westfield Technical Academy culinary department head, visited the transition services program at its new home at 390 Southampton Road to discuss the commercial kitchen with students and staff.

Special education teacher Carolyn Busiere said there are 24 young men and women in the program this year, and 390 Southampton Road is a great new location. “It’s quite the upgrade,” she said.

The transition program is part of the Westfield Public Schools. It gives students ages 18 to 21 who are still entitled to services the support and opportunity to achieve their goals by offering continuing education opportunities, assistance with employment and workplace readiness, and community-based opportunities and support.

390 Southampton Road is also on the bus route, and several participants said they took the bus to get there. Outside, one student was waiting for a bus to Westfield State University, where he is taking classes.

“Today, Chef Rogers from WTA has been nice enough to train our clients and staff on individual appliances,” Busiere said on Tuesday.

She said many of the students in the program are interested in cooking and have taken culinary courses in high school. Several also work or have worked in kitchens at Shaker Farms, Noble Hospital and Westfield State, and two are in the culinary program at Holyoke Community College and are ServSafe certified.

Besides the commercial kitchen, new touchscreen displays for visual learners are being installed. There is an on-site apartment for mastering life skills and budgeting. There is also a community room, a meeting room, a technology room for studying and a recreation room in development.

“We’ll be gardening; we have a large backyard,” Busiere said.

Another great new addition is a van. “We got them a van so they can go out and visit in the community. We worked with Westfield Technical Academy to work that out; it’s one of theirs that wasn’t being used. They saw the importance of the transition program and made it happen. We’re very grateful to them,” Jendrysik said.

“It’s a great facility. The kids are excited. They’re going to have a recreation room. There are so many different opportunities,” Jendrysik said.

https://www.masslive.com/westfieldnews/2026/09/wta-chef-tours-390-southampton-road-commercial-kitchen.html

The Westfield Technical Academy topped Mohawk Trail 168-180 behind freshman Jakob Elmer who fired a 2- over 38, tying Mohawk’s Connor Bergeron for medalist honores. Fellow freshman Tyler LaCasse, who tallied a 4-over 40, also helped lead the way for the Tigers.

Elmer played the final seven holes one under to card his 38, a team best so far on the year, while LaCasse’s 40 tied the previous team best on the season.

Josh Elmer and Chris Pederson each carded 45s to round out WTA’s top scorers.

Westfield golf defeats Northampton

Medalis Nathan Jarvis shot an even par score of 35 to lead Westfield to its first win of the season, 156-164.

Treygan Lemanski (39), Danny Romanelli (40) and Jonas Miller rounded out the top scorers for Westfield.

https://www.masslive.com/westfieldnews/2026/09/wta-westfield-high-golf-squads-earn-victories.html

Student-athletes from various sports who will play on the new athletic complex when it opens got a first look and feel on Sept. 2. Teams will start to practice on the field next week. The grand opening and ribbon cutting for the stadium is scheduled for Oct. 2, a delay of a few weeks due to the late arrival of some materials.

Chief Procurement Officer Tammy Tefft, who oversaw the project for the city, spoke to the athletes before they walked on the field for the first time. “Welcome to the new athletic complex. This is your field,” she said, introducing Mayor Michael McCabe and Westfield G&E General Manager Thomas Flaherty, who she said continue to put the project forward.

Tefft said the stadium is not complete. “We just added a ticket booth, storage shed and sod, and we’re a little behind schedule.” She said while the stadium remains closed to the public, there will be opportunities for the teams to practice on the field beginning next week, but all other areas are still restricted. Rules for the field include no dragging things, no vehicles and no animals or pets.

After the visit, Tefft said the delay is mostly due to the late arrival of the masonry for the concession building which houses the bathrooms, which is being built by General Contracting Solutions. “The arrival of the masonry block was delayed, through no fault of theirs. That is the active construction on the site. A lot of the inability to feel comfortable opening is the lack of actual bathrooms on the site,” Tefft said. She said the contractor has been working double time to get it finished, weekends and nights.

Tefft said the overall project of the three fields, including the two fields at Boardman, one artificial and one natural grass, has gone well. “The project on the whole has gone very smoothly. The contractor Mountain View Landscapes has done a phenomenal job with the three fields. Boardman is up and running, and soccer and field hockey are practicing on it since Aug. 24,” she said.

Tefft said Mountain View added a second set of bleachers to the complex. “All of that they rolled with us and continued to move the project forward. If the masonry had been able to arrive on time, the concession stand and bathrooms would have been able to open on time,” she said.

As for the late additions of the ticket booth and storage shed, which weren’t in the original plans, Tefft said, “We were under budget, and so we found some additional things to enhance the whole complex for the students and the fans, that we weren’t sure we could afford in the beginning. The athletic director was very keen on some of those changes.” She said the whole project is still under the appropriation.

“We are still continuing to work to have everything checklisted and done. We’re excited to see the kids being able to practice on Tuesday,” Tefft said. “A couple of weeks to have this complex where it should be is to me phenomenal.”

Through a partnership with Westfield Gas & Electric/Whip City Fiber, the City of Westfield and Westfield Public Schools, the new facilities include a lighted track, a stadium with an all-sport turf field and refurbished girls athletic and Boardman fields at Westfield High School. Funding is being provided from the Whip City Fiber division of WG&E, which pledged to give $1 million annually, for a total of $11 million, in addition to its annual payment in lieu of taxes to the city.

https://www.masslive.com/westfieldnews/2026/09/student-athletes-get-first-look-at-stadium-field.html

Please join us for Open House on Thursday, September 10th.

Westfield EATS, Westfield Public Schools Food Services, has announced a new partnership with My School Menus that offers interactive online menus to make it easier for families, students and staff to see what’s being served each day.

“My School Menus is a program that we’ve teamed up with to help us get all of the menus and pertinent information out to parents,” said Food Services Director Rachel Kania. She said parents can now scroll through the daily menu items and see pictures of the food, nutritional facts and ingredients, which is especially important for families of children with allergies, she added.

“Now we can have all of that information right at the fingertips of parents, who can go online and see all of the options available every day,” she said.

Kania said Westfield EATS gets its food from local farms and partnerships. For example, ground beef comes from North Elm Butcher Block, which grinds it fresh that day. Lettuce and produce come from local farms, and fruit from Mountain Orchard Farms in Granville.

Previously, Kania had to keep track of all the recipes, ingredients and nutritional information by hand on an Excel spreadsheet. She said her staff spent the summer transferring the information to My School Menus.

“To be honest with you, it was a pretty big undertaking. We had to enter every ingredient for every recipe we have here. It took us two months to enter over the summer,” she said. “Now parents can see what we can see, make their own decisions and navigate the menu safely.”

On the menu site, there is a drop-down list for allergies. For example, if an egg allergy is indicated on that list, any items containing egg will be crossed off the menu.

Kania said some medical conditions also require nutritional information. For a child with diabetes, parents can now see a carbohydrate count, so they know how much insulin is needed for their child. “This helps everybody, from nurses to parents to us; it’s a great program,” she said.

Kania said parents can either navigate menus on their own with their children or utilize a menu from a registered dietitian. Food Services has a dietitian on staff who has been with the department for 25 years. The dietitian may be reached at 413-572-6493 or by visiting the Food Services office in Suite B10 in City Hall at 59 Court St.

The new online menus for Westfield EATS may be accessed at: menus.healthepro.com/organizations/3724

“It’s really a wealth of information at the parents’ fingertips, which we’re so excited about,” Kania said.

https://www.masslive.com/westfieldnews/2026/09/westfield-food-services-offers-new-interactive-menus-for-parents-to-safeguard-kids-choices.html

Freshman Orientation will be held this Wednesday, August 26, 2026 at Westfield High School. We look forward to welcoming the Class of 2030!!

District teachers will take their turn at summer enrichment during a three-day curriculum summit at Westfield Intermediate School from Aug. 17-19.

Topics at this year’s summit will include the role of lead teachers, building student discourse and whether and how to use approved artificial intelligence tools in the classroom.

https://www.masslive.com/westfieldnews/2026/08/westfield-teachers-take-a-turn-at-summer-enrichment.html

Superintendent Stefan Czaporowski and Mayor Michael McCabe are asking the public to stay off the new athletic fields at Westfield High School while they are still under construction.

Czaporowski said the city asked the school district to get the word out due to the increase in trespassing at the site. He said that some people have pushed through the fencing and gates to use the track, causing concern and even some confrontations between members of the public and the general contractor’s staff.

“What’s happening is people are going in there. It’s an active construction site, and I don’t want anybody getting hurt,” Czaporowski said.

A similar message was sent by McCabe’s office, asking the public to respect the No Trespassing signs. “Although construction is progressing, the project has not yet been completed or accepted by the City and Westfield Public Schools. Until that time, the site remains under the control of the contractor and is closed to the public,” the city said.

“Unauthorized access to the construction site presents safety and liability concerns and may damage the playing surface or other project components before installation is complete,” the city continued. “The area is posted No Trespassing, and those restrictions remain in effect until the project has been officially completed and opened.”

Christopher Rogers, director of operations and safety for Westfield Public Schools, said, at this time, no teams, coaches, players, or community members are permitted on the field for the safety of everyone involved and the protection of the new playing surface and surrounding infrastructure.

“We know everyone is eager to get out on the new field, and we share that excitement. However, entering the site before the project is complete could delay construction, damage the new facility, or create unnecessary safety risks,” Rogers said.

“Thank you for your cooperation and support as we work to complete this outstanding facility for our students and the Westfield community,” said Rogers.

https://www.masslive.com/westfieldnews/2026/07/public-asked-to-stay-off-westfield-athletic-fields-amid-ongoing-construction.html

For the third year in a row, Armbrook Village residents teamed up with Westfield High School students at the end of the school year for the “Past Meets Present” initiative.

“This intergenerational program allows today’s seniors and students to connect and learn from one another’s experiences,” said Armbrook Director of Community Relations Jayda Handzel.

This year, 26 freshmen in social studies teacher Nicole Hamel’s AP history class invited 12 seniors from Armbrook to come to the school over several visits and bring objects from their lives that were important to them. The seniors were paired up with students who wrote about the artifacts and the history and importance behind them.

Between high school trophies and keepsakes from the 1994 Paris Olympic Games, the Westfield students were deeply drawn to not only which items each senior brought in, but also the personal meaning that they held, Handzel said.

Students then got their chance to present to seniors, faculty, and family in a museum-style exhibit, in which each student shared what they learned from their conversations with the seniors. Not only were students able to enhance their history knowledge, but seniors also learned about their neighbors’ past experiences, contributing to Armbrook Village’s goal of building connection and community, she said.

The Past Meets Present Initiative took off in 2024, when Armbrook Village partnered with Westfield High School’s AP History class, taught by Nicole Hamel, to bring their Dementia Friendly training to younger generations. In an effort to promote understanding and compassion toward those living with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, Armbrook Village worked to make Westfield the first dementia friendly city on the east coast in 2014. Since then, Armbrook has hosted numerous trainings for students, healthcare workers and the general public.

“The Past Meets Present Project cultivates a sense of purpose within our residents. Not only does it positively affect our residents, but it also has a lasting impact on the students, teaching them empathy, patience, and a deeper understanding of how the things that they learn about in textbooks actually were real-life experiences,” Handzel said.

https://www.masslive.com/westfieldnews/2026/07/armbrook-village-seniors-and-westfield-high-students-share-stories-mementos.html