Assistant Principal Carl Robidoux stood at the entrance of Dartmouth Middle School to greet and direct the approximately 975 students as they poured in for the first day of the 2016-2017 school year on September 1.

About 302 sixth graders—new to the middle school—funneled into the auditorium to begin their two-day orientation program. Robidoux said the program will feature tours of the school and team-building workshops to help students get to know each other.

“The kids come from a number of elementary schools, so we take the opportunity whenever we can to help them get to know each other,” said Darren Doane, the school’s principal.

After the morning rush to get students situated, Doane said that the opening day had gone smoothly.

At nearby Quinn Elementary, a quiet early morning gave way to a parade of 12 school buses, and 620 students began their new school year.

“Students will be learning a lot of building-wide routines and getting to know their classmates and teachers [in the first week],” said Principal Kyle Grandfield.

At Dartmouth High School, Principal John Gould said the opening day for his 1,077 students went off without a hitch. He spent the morning meeting with each grade level to help students get to know the school and its mission.

“It was probably the smoothest opening day since I’ve been here,” Gould said, who started at the high school in 2014.

Dartmouth Public Schools Superintendent Bonny Gifford, who had visited every school except Potter and DeMello on September 1, said that for the most part, the first day of school was problem-free.

“Today went really well. At every school I went to, kids were smiling and seemed to be excited,” Gifford said.

She added that the only problem she noticed was minor traffic delays, likely caused by a combination of the rain, more bus routes, and the Padanaram causeway closure.