September 9, 2025 By Carol Britton Meyer
Supt. of Schools Katie Roberts is looking forward to a successful 2025-2026 school year – “filled with learning, growth, and collaboration.”
This year marks her 29th in the Hingham Public Schools and her second in the role of superintendent.
“After a busy few weeks of leadership meetings and final building preparations, we were thrilled to welcome students and staff back to campus,” she told the Hingham Anchor. “During the opening days of school, I made rounds to each of the buildings and felt the positive energy as students and staff reconnected and quickly established routines.”
The HPS leadership team, educators, and staff remain committed to partnering with families to create inclusive learning environments where every student has the opportunity to thrive. The 2025-2028 HPS Strategic Plan (https://www.hinghamschools.org/page/strategic-plan/) will guide and support this work.
“The finalized strategic plan, which will guide the district’s evolution and continuous improvement over the next three years, represents the culmination of months of collaborative work and integrates feedback from district data, community surveys, and focus groups,” Roberts explained.
At its core, the strategic plan outlines a “commitment to innovation, inclusivity, and excellence in education and is centered around the growth and success of every student,” she said. “We look forward to bringing this strategic vision to life over the next three school years.”
Portrait of a Learner
This year, HPS will also continue to build momentum on the HPS Portrait of a Learner initiative, (https://www.hinghamschools.org/page/portrait-of-a-learner), which supports students in becoming creative problem solvers, effective communicators, responsible citizens, skillful collaborators and mindful individuals.
“Through both curricular and extra curricular offerings, students will experience opportunities to develop the skills and competencies for success in academic, career and community settings,” Roberts said.
The first full year in the new Foster Elementary School building will be marked with an official ribbon cutting ceremony on Monday, September 15.
“The new Foster building is such a wonderful learning environment and has allowed us to deepen our specialized programming, including expansion of the integrated PreK program,” Roberts said. “We will also be opening the Hingham High School DOCK wellness center this week, thanks to the support of the Hingham Sports Partnership and the generosity of many private and corporate donors and cannot wait to see students enjoying the benefits of this new wellness space.”
“Thinking Classrooms”
Roberts also expressed appreciation for the Hingham Education Foundation, which furnished at the middle and high schools several new “Thinking Classrooms” – a teaching philosophy and approach that encourages active participation, critical thinking, and problem-solving – to support state-of-the-art math instruction (https://hinghameducation.org/thinking-classrooms/).
“We’ve had very positive feedback from students and staff on the transformation of these innovative mathematics learning spaces,” she said.
School safety efforts
When asked for an update on the school district’s ongoing school safety efforts, Roberts explained that one of the most important leadership meetings that HPS hosts during the summer months is the leadership team’s annual “Safety Summit” with the Hingham Police and Fire departments.
“We review safety plans and procedures and run through a number of different safety scenarios,” Roberts said. The district safety committee then meets monthly throughout the year to continue to refine safety protocols. “We are grateful for the ongoing support of the Hingham Police and Fire departments throughout the year as we conduct safety drills and maintain strong lines of communication with both departments.”