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Date: 2/15/2018
WEST SPRINGFIELD – On Feb. 2, the Massachusetts State Senate agreed to give funding to West Springfield and other school districts to help with the influx of Puerto Rican and U.S. Virgin Island evacuee students living in city hotels and motels.
In the wake of Hurricane Maria, the $15 million supplemental funding bill was passed as an urgent response to the need of school districts across the state after adding hundreds of new students to their classrooms. The West Springfield School Committee is set to receive $150,000 of that money.
“I am more than pleased that this funding was included in the supplemental budget,” said state Sen. James T. Welch in a statement. “Our communities welcomed these students and families and it is important that they receive adequate reimbursement and funding going forward to support the students. As a delegation, we have been in touch with the Administration to be sure this was a priority. We will continue to stay in touch to be sure the funds go where they are most needed.”
Since around October, hundreds of evacuees have moved to Greater Springfield, a well-established Latino community. Because of the vast number of hotels and motels in West Springfield, many of which are funded through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)’s Transitional Shelter Assistance program, the city has become a hot spot for displaced Puerto Rican families.
West Springfield currently has 148 homeless students, according to the School Committee, 84 of whom are evacuees. About 70 of the evacuees are living in city hotels or motels, while the remaining 14 are living in local housing or doubling up with family.
Massachusetts state law requires municipalities to educate the homeless students living in hotels within their respective districts. Because of this law, combined with the abundance of city hotels, West Springfield schools are overwhelmed by the sudden influx of students, said District 4 Councilor Daniel M. O’Brien.
“We’re bursting at the seams, nobody prepared to take in this many new students midyear,” he said. “We’ve had a homeless population before, but it’s never been an emergency like this – it’s almost like an immigration wave. You have an unprecedented number of people coming in and it has a rippling effect on all the services.”
Larger cities like Springfield and Holyoke, which have estimated populations of around 155,000 and 40,000, are better suited to handle more students, he said. However, smaller communities like West Springfield, with a population of 28,000, have reached their limit.
O’Brien submitted a home-rule petition to the state in January to propose a “population-based cap” for emergency situations in which homeless students living in city hotels can be more evenly distributed to the schools throughout the region.
Superintendent Michael J. Richard said he is pleased with the proposed additional funding.
“We are very happy with the additional staff that have been added. The students are acclimating nicely and the teachers are actively engaging them in acquiring the English language,” he said. “We are so fortunate that the West Springfield community has welcomed these students with open arms, and we are equally grateful that we have been able to give these students access to the education that they rightfully deserve.”
Richard said the district plans to use the money to support eight new staff members.
The funding amount was proposed by Gov. Charlie Baker and was later passed by the State House of Representatives on Jan. 31. The funding bill will now go to Gov. Baker’s desk for his signature.