Rehoboth: The Year in Review

The year was notable for some administrative changes for the Dighton-Rehoboth Regional School District.

Dighton-Rehoboth High School Principal Gail DeCecco resigned last June. The district hired Jacqueline Ash, a veteran of the Pawtucket school system, to be the new Principal. DeCecco had previously served as assistant principal for four years.

“It is a loss for our community as she has accomplished a great deal in just one year at the helm,” Superintendent Bill Runey said of DeCecco. “She is leaving DR a better place than she found it.”

Arnold Chamanlal and Dustin Demers were hired as the new Assistant Principals at the high school.

The district’s business administrator Robert Baxter resigned in July. Baxter had been working for the district since October 2021. He had previously served as Director of Finance and Operations for the Warwick, Rhode Island school district.

There hasn’t been a replacement hired for that position.

Residents mourned the loss of former selectwoman Lorraine Botts, former Dighton-Rehoboth school committee member David Katseff, former Animal Control Officer Jane Foster, and Brad Marshall, a longtime employee of the Council on Aging.

Botts, who passed away in March, had also served as president of the Rehoboth Senior Center, and had been serving as an officer for Rehoboth’s Legion Post 302 Auxiliary Committee.

Katseff, who passed away in July, had spent 31 years as a member on the Dighton-Rehoboth School Committee, in addition to being a member of the Massachusetts Association of School Committees, the Rhode Island Business Group on Health, Rhode Island Health Insurance Advisory Council, plus local and national professional industry associations and Friday Group.

Foster “gave a lot to this town,” said Selectman Rob Johnson. “She will be sadly missed.”

“Many of our seniors remember his dedication in providing them with help to better understand Medicaid, Medicare, and health insurance questions by providing one on one counseling and information,” Selectman George Solas said of Marshall.

Voters once again rejected a debt exclusion, which is a temporary tax increase, to pay for the town’s share of the $305 million Bristol-Plymouth Regional Technical School building project.

Selectman Michael Deignan said with the admission of Freetown to the Bristol Plymouth District, “the anticipated debt schedule for Rehoboth has been revised downward. Our maximum payment is now anticipated to be under $500,000 per year.”

According to the revised debt schedule provided by Deignan on November 3, the town will be paying a share of 4.21 percent. The town’s contribution will be $98,000 for fiscal year 2024. The amount being contributed to the building project will increase to a high of $473,000 for every fiscal year from 2029 until 2052. 

Work began in September on the redesign of the intersection of Rt.44/118. The roadway, which has been the site of several crashes, is being converted into a traffic roundabout.

The $4 million project will involve utility pole upgrades, drainage improvements, roadway lighting, pedestrian and bicycle accommodations, and traffic signal removal, according to District 5 Highway Division of MassDOT.

The project will be carried out in four stages, each with its own long-term Traffic Management Plan. Drivers who are traveling through the area were advised to expect delays, reduce speed, and to use caution.