At a School Committee meeting held on December 4, Swampscott High School Principal Emily Zotto outlined a plan centered on “excellence, opportunity and community,” describing steps to boost student engagement, increase family partnerships and sharpen the school’s academic profile.
The priorities go deeper than simple encouragement. Facing competition from nearby private and charter schools, the district is launching new outreach efforts, including expanding clubs program, redesigning open houses focused on “recruiting back” families, and eliminating class ranks. Zotto said these changes aim to boost enrollment, enhance college readiness, and give students a stronger voice in mental-health discussions.
“The purpose is to give you a quick overview of new events and activities as part of my initiative around excellence, opportunity, and community,” Zotto said. “Tonight I really want to focus on the culture of belonging and creating opportunities for increased family engagement and partnership.”
Zotto said one of her major goals this year has been being physically present across the building and strengthening communication with families.
“You’ve heard me talk about visibility, communication through our weekly bulletins and social media posts,” she said. “We’re out in the hallways during passing time, in and out of classrooms all day, and at drop-off and dismissal.”
The high school has expanded its roster of clubs and student activities, she said, while strengthening community partnerships.
“We’ve expanded club opportunities for students and held several clubs and activities fairs,” Zotto said. “We’re working with the senior center on a mental health conference in March to bring more student voices into that space…There is so much pride and joy in the school and at all of the events.”
Zotto described this fall’s open house as a strategic effort to “recruit back” families who may be considering private or charter options.
“Many private and charter schools locally have a huge open house and the goal is recruitment and enrollment,” she said. “Similarly, we want to invite as many families in, whether they’re rising ninth graders or anyone in Swampscott.”
Her goal was to elevate the experience beyond a typical tour.
“My vision was to have an event experience, not just shuffling people through a few designated areas,” she said. “We asked our faculty and staff to come up with ideas for what they wanted to present in their department.”
“It was designed to show off all of the opportunities we have available to students,” Zotto added. “The students were the ones doing the showcasing and the work, which made it exceptionally fun.”
She noted that competition among schools is about “the same dollars.” Zotto recalled speaking to several families whose children attend the Pingree School in South Hamilton and now want to switch.
“I talked to families with kids at Pingree School who said they wanted to bring them back after seeing what we offer here,” she said.
Zotto also highlighted several academic metrics, including a major shift in how the school reports GPA.
“There were some material changes with the way we did GPA, and we made the decision to remove rank,” she said. “When you remove rank, college admission offices have to focus more on the value of the GPA and the courses students are taking…As a former counselor, that was a huge win for our students.”
Last year, the high school administered 603 AP tests to 271 students. About 80% of the overall student body takes at least on AP course, and 80% of the students who took the tests scored a three or higher, according to Zotto.
“In my opinion, things are going great. We’re having a ton of fun,” she said. “There’s a lot of excellence happening during the day and a lot of joy and happiness in this building.”
