Willie Ross School for the Deaf to Host Legislative Breakfast on April 1

LONGMEADOW — Willie Ross School for the Deaf (WRSD) will host a legislative breakfast on Friday, April 1 from 10 to 11:30 a.m. WRSD students will help serve the breakfast and will meet with local elected officials. The breakfast will take place on the second floor of the Cooley Administration Building on the Willie Ross campus, 32 Norway St., Longmeadow.

The following legislators have confirmed their attendance to the breakfast: state Sen. Adam Gomez; state Reps. Brian Ashe, Michael Finn, Angelo Puppolo Jr., and Jake Oliveira; East Longmeadow Selectman Connor O’Shea; and Longmeadow Selectmen Marc Strange and Thomas Lachiusa. Seven members of the WRSD Board of Trustees will also be in attendance.

A breakfast program will be held, followed by a tour of the school’s Londmeadow campus. WRSD recently completed a $2.5 million renovation of its campus, which included an added second story to its administration building that features new space for interpreters, an updated audiology center, a redesigned main entrance, improved wheelchair access, new space for the school’s Work Study Program, and upgraded administrative technology.

Ashe, along with state Sen. Eric Lesser, helped secure state funding for the school’s recently completed campus renovation and expansion. The legislative breakfast has previously been an annual event for WRSD, but was not held in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Our staff and students are always happy to meet our local legislators and help them see our campus and the work we do,” said Bert Carter, president and CEO of WRSD. “This year, we will be especially proud to show the legislative delegation our newly renovated Sidney M. Cooley Administration Building and the enhancements to our campus for our school population and upgrades to our audiology services that are available to the general public. This also represents an opportunity for the Willie Ross community to thank our elected representatives for their continued support for the school.”