Cohasset School Committee Elects Evans Chair, Accepts $101,210 CEF Gift

COHASSET -- May 20, 2026, Cohasset School Committee reorganizes under new chair Corey Evans and accepts a $101,210 grant from the Cohasset Education Foundation. Evans was elected chair for the 2026-2027 academic year on a 3-0-1 vote (abstaining from his own nomination), with Craig McClellan elected vice chair and Lance Dial re-elected secretary; all votes were unanimous or near-unanimous among four members present. The CEF grant, anchored by a $100,000 anonymous technology donation, will fund $46,000 in secondary school technology, project-based learning professional development for teachers, middle school belonging and STEM initiatives, a jazz artist-in-residence, and a Deer Hill writing program. Superintendent Dr. Sarah Shannon also disclosed a 30-plus-member school building committee roster, including new Town Manager Michelle Leary, Select Board member Will Ashton, five student representatives, and a dozen construction and architecture professionals, due to the Massachusetts School Building Authority by June 1 as part of the eligibility phase for a potential middle and high school construction project. The district's current uncommitted budget balance stands at just over $2,000 on a roughly $26 million budget, with $55,000 in salary savings available to absorb any end-of-year shortfall.