The bags are packed, the lunches made, the nametags freshly printed and the rooms clean and ready to welcome kids back—today is the first day of school for Needham students. To get ready for the big day, Patch met up with Needham Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Daniel Gutekanst earlier this week to talk about the what’s new for the 2011-12 school year. Along with providing an update on summer building projects at Newman Elementary School and Pollard Middle School, Gutekanst talked about his staff and the work ahead in the coming year. How is the turnover this year—do you have more or less …

It’s still located at 1155 Central Ave., but Newman Elementary School will look a lot different when students arrive for their first day of the 2011-12 year on Thursday. The building has been undergoing renovations and will continue to be revamped over the coming year, so in the interim, students and staff will be doing their work in a temporary school constructed out of a network of modular units that are so neatly put together, it’s hard to imagine it’s not a real school building. As Needham Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Daniel Gutekanst puts it: “These aren’t the modular units your …

It's back-to-school time, and that means we will start seeing those yellow school buses around Needham again. Whether you're planning your morning wake-up, finding out when to meet the kids in the afternoon or just want to avoid getting behind the bus during your commute through town, you'll want to check out the following information. Below are the 2011-12 bus routes for Needham Public Schools, as published on the district Web site. Click on your route below to view the schedule or click on the PDFs in the photo gallery to the right to view or print the schedules. But first, here is a quick …

If you’ve got children in the Needham Public Schools, don’t let those early releases, school holidays or days off sneak up on you. Plan ahead by adding important dates from the 2011-12 district calendar to your Blackberry, iPhone planner or good old-fashioned wall calendar. View the calendar on the school Web site or right here on Patch as a PDF. Here are a few of the highlights from the upcoming school year:    FIRST & LAST DAYS First day of school for grades 1-12: Thursday, Sept. 8 First day of kindergarten: Friday, Sept. 9 First day of preschool and Kindergarten After-School Enrichment (…