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Date: 6/16/2021
HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – During the public comment period at the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School Committee meeting on June 10, a resident addressed the committee to express “grave concern” over the idea of critical race theory (CRT) being taught in schools. CRT is the study of race, racism and power examined through the perspectives of economics, jurisprudence, history and other political science lenses. HWRSD has not stated any plans to adopt the theory.
The resident quoted a teacher from a different district who quit their job because they thought CRT in the curriculum was harmful. She also quoted James Lindsay, an author and critic of the modern social justice movement and “wokeness.” The resident asked rhetorically if children should have to “walk on eggshells” for fear of being called racists and if children of color should be taught that they are “oppressed.” The comments came on the heels of several conversations on Wilbraham’s community Facebook page over the past few weeks. She asked the committee to declare its position on implementing CRT.
Chair Sherrill Caruana answered the comments by saying the committee stands with the state’s curriculum frameworks and quoted from those documents.
“All Massachusetts students will be educated in the histories of the commonwealth, the United States, and the world. They will be prepared to make informed civic choices and assume their responsibility for strengthening equality, justice and liberty in and beyond the United States,” Caruana quoted.
“I urge you, if you’re concerned about the education your children are receiving, to read the frameworks,” Caruana said. She noted that she had read all of the more than 500 comments on the site. And said, “most didn’t have a clue as to what is being taught in our classrooms.”
School Committee member Sean Kennedy thanked everyone for coming and urged them to attend meetings, whether or not “hot button” issues were up for discussion.
Superintendent Albert Ganem noted that there will be public forums on creating the district’s strategic plan and welcomed parents who want to be involved in what their children are being taught to attend. He said parents, students, teachers and paraprofessionals will be able to contribute opinions on the curriculum.
The strategic plan, as described by Mac Reed of the Massachusetts Association of Regional Schools (MARS), “is an overarching goal for the next five years.” He called it a “roadmap” for what direction the district wishes to go. A strategic plan is consulted when designing curricula, drafting a budget and making other large-scale decisions.
Reed agreed with Ganem that the group of 15 to 20 people who are brought together to create the plan will need to be “very representative” of the district’s communities.
MARS suggested that an equity audit be a part of the plan, though the committee has been exploring an audit as a separate project. Caruana expressed that she is not sold on embedding the audit in the strategic plan, since “one will inform the other.”
School Committee member Bill Bontempi voiced the possibility that the communities may not even want an audit done. Kennedy responded, “No one asked for a seven-year plan, but we’re moving forward.” Bontempi disputed that idea.
Caruana stated that it would be “irresponsible” to not follow through on the data from the diversity, equity and inclusion trainings the district conducted earlier this year.
Of the audit, Kennedy said, “It might be scary for some, I think it will be cheered on by others, but in the end, we’re all brothers and sisters in this community.”
Bontempi pushed back against Kennedy’s assertion that people may fear the results of an audit. He said that walking on eggshells, “is not a perception. It’s a reality.” He shared that a teacher in the district had said he was a racist for making the same statements as other committee members who were not labeled similarly.
“I don’t think any fear is imaginary,” Kennedy assured his colleague. “But sometimes fear is fear.”
Ganem steered the conversation back to neutral ground. He said he would like to see how other districts have done their audits and that he is inclined to focus on the strategic plan first.
Special Education Programs
The committee discussed creating more programs to address the needs of special education students currently educated out of district (OOD). Director of Finance and Operations Aaron Osborne said that the programs must change as the needs of the students change. Right now, he said, the “epidemic” facing schools is anxiety, and “students need a safe place for them to go when they’re struggling.”
Vice Chair Maura Ryan suggested tapping the Lower Pioneer Valley Educational Collaborative (LPVEC) since many of the districts in the area are facing the same challenges. Committee member Michelle Emirzian noted that the collaborative already runs a program based in West Springfield.
Osborne told the committee investing in programs now will save money in the long term. For example, he said, bringing back three or four students whose OOD placement costs the district $100,000 each, will save the district $400,000 each year. Osborne added, “You have to be willing to make the investment and see what happens.”
Devices returned
All Chromebooks have been returned by seniors and only one charger is missing. Osborne said 80 percent were returned at an assembly that had been conducted, in part, for that purpose. The rest “trickled in,” he said. If a student were to not return a Chromebook, Osborne said that devices can be tracked via GPS or “bricked,” which would render it unusable until returned to the schools.
Brand Retires
Nurse Coordinator Teri Brand has retired. Ganem praised the work she’s done throughout the pandemic. Brand said that “caring for others took center stage” in the past year and wants that focus to continue. The Stony Hill School Nurse Kiara Fryer was named to the coordinator position. Caruana noted that Fryer’s leadership at Stony Hill has been vital to that school’s success.
The superintendent also took a moment to celebrate the zero active cases of COVID-19 in the school district.
Heatwave
Ganem defended his decision to keep the schools open during the heatwave that encompassed the June 7 and June 8 school days. While the district considered dismissing students early, Ganem said that the “tough decision” to keep students in schools was made after considering that not all students have access to air conditioning or pools at home and many parents were working and did not expect to need childcare. He added that the temperature in classrooms was monitored throughout the day.
Kindergarten Enrollment
While still early in the enrollment period for new kindergarten students, classes are already filling up. Mile Tree Elementary School has seven classrooms and 123 kindergarten students for the upcoming year, while Green Meadows School has two classrooms with 40 children, already five more than the 2020-2021 numbers. Mile Tree is 69 students shy of current year enrollment levels. Ganem noted that there is physical space at both schools to add an additional classroom.
Administration Change
Ganem announced a change in administration for the upcoming year. Soule Road School Principal Lisa Curtin has accepted the Director of Instruction and Curriculum position, while Tom Mazza, who has been in that position for one year will take the principal job that Curtin is vacating. Ganem said both people are happy with the switch.
Committee member Patrick Kiernan called the move “concerning” and noted that the director of instruction and curriculum position has been “rotating” for the past three years. Ganem told Kiernan that it's a tough job and he has confidence that the right people are in the right jobs with this switch.
Accepting Students and Programs
The committee voted to accept the five individuals still on the student choice waitlist into the 2021-2022 school year at Minnechaug Regional High School. They also voted to accept the program of middle school studies, which includes a grant-funded Project Lead the Way and Wilbraham Middle School. Green Meadows already had program, which states that it uses “activity-, project-, and problem-based instruction” that is designed to let students solve real-world problems.