Watertown School Committee receives no-confidence petition over special education director

WATERTOWN -- June 1, 2026, Watertown School Committee receives a 231-signature no-confidence petition against its Director of Student Services. Parent Suzanne Brueggemann submitted the petition at the June 1 meeting at Lowell Elementary School, asking the committee to place a formal no-confidence vote on its next agenda; she said the signatures were gathered in fewer than 10 days and that additional supporters declined to sign out of fear of retaliation. Superintendent Cynthia Galston simultaneously unveiled a transition plan targeting a February 2027 hire date for a new director, following Director Dr. Damaris's announced retirement effective June 2027, and all five speaking committee members endorsed using an outside search firm. Member Lisa Kavoccia asked that the June 22nd agenda include a formal response to the petition, saying "some real harm has been done" and that the committee must "go up to the rails of what we can do." Multiple parents cited the Athena K-12 external review's finding of "administrative gatekeeping" and described adversarial IEP meetings, unreported staff changes, and internal emails they said showed district leadership dismissing a family in crisis.