Last Night At School Committee

Latest Episodes:

Ep. 68, Last Night @ School Committee: 8/31 Meeting Recap Sep 01, 2022

Show notes

Last night’s meeting was the last School Committee meeting of the summer – the last meeting before students go back to school next week. However, for the second time in a row, there was no quorum. For much of the meeting, there was only one other member besides the Chair. The official meeting lasted just fifteen minutes, with a quorum of members voting on a few action items before continuing to other agenda items that did not require a quorum.

The majority of the meeting was spent discussing back-to-school updates for students, families and community members. As the district prepares for students to return to school, Acting Superintendent Drew Echelson and his team discussed transportation, staff vacancies, COVID-19 safety and more. With the continued shutdown of the Orange Line, Dr. Echelson emphasized that students would not be penalized for being late due to transportation issues and mentioned alternative transportation options for students, including free access to the Commuter Rail and additional bus routes. He also shared that the district is still facing 400 key vacancies in advance of reopening next week, more than half of which are educators as well as key roles like safety officers and bus monitors. With the majority of the Committee absent for these presentations, there were few questions and the meeting was adjourned.

School begins next Thursday, September 8 for students in grades 1-12, and Monday, September 12 for students in pre-k and kindergarten. The next School Committee meeting will take place on Wednesday, September 14.

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Ep. 67, Last Night @ School Committee: 8/10 Meeting Recap Aug 11, 2022

Show notes

Last night was a short meeting, and it began with three unanimous votes: one to approve athletics association membership for several Boston high schools, one to approve $11 million in grants, and one to approve a contract for incoming Superintendent Mary Skipper. Superintendent Skipper’s contract includes a start date of September 26, an annual salary of $300,000, and a new clause allowing for mutual separation in light of recent turnover at the superintendent position. The details of this clause will be shared at a later date when the full contract is made public. School Committee members applauded the contract and noted that the salary is aligned with other recent prominent hires the City has made for the positions of Police Commissioner and Fire Commissioner.

Following these votes, the meeting continued with the Acting Superintendent’s Report, in which Dr. Echelson discussed preparedness efforts for the start of school in just a few weeks, the district’s work to address school transportation in light of the MBTA’s recent Orange Line closure, and COVID-19 safety protocols for the new school year. After a brief public comment period, the meeting concluded with a presentation on BPS’ work to meet the August 15 deadlines in its improvement agreement with the State Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), noting that it is on track to meet all nine of the process-oriented mandates required by Monday.

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Ep. 66, Last Night @ School Committee: 7/13 Meeting Recap Jul 14, 2022

Show notes

What happens at each Boston School Committee meeting has big implications for our students and our city. In “Last Night @ School Committee,” Jill Shah and Ross Wilson recap the highlights of each meeting, provide commentary and context, and shine a light on the decisions our leaders are making.

Last night was a short meeting and the first featuring Acting Superintendent Drew Echelson. Chair Jeri Robinson began by noting that discussions are still underway regarding contracts for Dr. Echelson and new superintendent Mary Skipper, and that more information will be shared at a future meeting.

Dr. Echelson next shared his Acting Superintendent’s Report, which included an update on how the district is preparing for the mandates laid out in its agreement with the State Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) in areas including transportation, special education, and more. He announced that he will be creating several new positions within the Central Office, including the promotion of the current Senior Executive Director of Data and Accountability to the newly-created position of Assistant Superintendent of Data, Strategy, and Implementation.

The meeting continued with just eight public comments, followed by unanimous votes approving charter renewals for three Horace Mann Charter Schools and athletics association membership for eight Boston schools. The meeting concluded with a free-flowing discussion of School Committee processes and procedures – a discussion that did not reach a clear resolution on reforms or next steps.

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Ep. 65, Last Night @ School Committee: 6/29 Meeting Recap Jun 30, 2022

Show notes

Last night was a big night for Boston Public Schools, culminating in the selection of Somerville Superintendent Mary Skipper as the next Superintendent of Boston Public Schools.

The meeting began with the Superintendent’s Report, which included a discussion of the agreement reached earlier this week between BPS and the State Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) to avert a takeover. The agreement includes key provisions for students and families, including a redesign of special education and ELL services, a guarantee of at least 95% on-time bus arrival, and a new data auditor appointed by the State who will have full access to BPS data. Superintendent Cassellius also discussed the report on the Mission Hill investigation, which she said would be released in the coming weeks despite a deadline of June 30, and she shared that the “Green New Deal” for BPS facilities would be beginning its 18-month development process. In response to a question about what environmental targets are being set that make this initiative “green,” the Superintendent shared that the third-party vendor the district will hire to oversee this plan will make those determinations.

After a public comment period in which dozens of community members shared their preference for who should be the next superintendent, the meeting moved on to two votes. The first vote was to appoint Dr. Drew Echelson as Acting Superintendent. Despite an objection to the 11th-hour nature of this vote – just one day before Superintendent Cassellius’ last day – Dr. Echelson was approved unanimously. The main event last night was a discussion and vote on the next permanent superintendent of BPS. Each School Committee member discussed the merits of the candidates and the reasoning behind their choice, with the ultimate result being a close 4-3 vote in favor of Mary Skipper over Dr. Tommy Welch.

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Ep. 64, Last Night @ School Committee: 6/21 Meeting Recap Jun 22, 2022

Show notes

Last night’s meeting began with the Superintendent’s Report, which included data on summer program enrollment and a preview of a report coming next week on federal ESSER relief money spending. Notably, the report did not include an update on negotiations with the State Department of Elementary and Secondary Education over their audit of BPS, but when questioned on this, the Superintendent noted that negotiations are ongoing and an update will be shared next week.

The meeting continued with an update on the superintendent search, in which Search Committee Co-Chair Pam Eddinger shared that two of the four finalists recently withdrew from consideration, resulting in the announcement of Mary Skipper and Dr. Tommy Welch as the two finalists. The reasons for these withdrawals were not given, and members of the School Committee expressed disappointment with the outcome of this process but pledged to continue forward.

Following a public comment period with numerous comments about the merger of the Russell and Clap Elementary Schools, there was a vote to approve two side letters of agreement with the bus drivers union that School Committee members were told were integral to approval of a new contract. These letters were unanimously approved. The meeting concluded with a report on the new exam school policy that was lacking in key data, as well as reports from Horace Mann Charter School leaders seeking renewals.

Public interviews for Mary Skipper and Tommy Welch will be held on Thursday and Friday, respectively, with a vote by the School Committee during their next meeting on Wednesday, June 29.

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Ep. 63, Last Night @ School Committee: 6/8 Meeting Recap Jun 09, 2022

Show notes

Last night’s meeting began with an update on the superintendent search timeline filled with uncertain dates and unclear processes. Chair Jeri Robinson announced that two or three finalists will be announced next week or the week after, there will be public interviews with the finalists likely the week of the June 20th with specific dates and times to come later, and there may or may not be an interim superintendent that may or may not need to be approved by the School Committee.

The meeting continued with the Superintendent’s Report, in which Superintendent Cassellius announced that she will be lifting the mask mandate for the final two weeks of school, celebrated the passage of the BPS budget by the Boston City Council, and lauded the “Green New Deal” for school facilities. While there was no discussion of what environmental initiatives would be a part of this effort, it was announced that another BPS building audit would take place over the next year – more than halfway through the current BuildBPS process – and that the plan includes mergers of at least six schools into three. Next, the School Committee approved a new bus drivers contract without any public discussion or disclosure of the contract, and the Committee approved renewals for five BPS innovation schools.

The next School Committee meeting is currently scheduled for Wednesday, June 22 at 5pm, although it was announced last night that this may be moved based on the superintendent interview timeline.

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Ep. 62, Last Night @ School Committee: 5/25 Meeting Recap May 26, 2022

Show notes

Last night’s meeting began with a discussion of the highly critical state review of Boston Public Schools, coming on the heels of a State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) hearing on the state report on Tuesday. District leaders highlighted the positives in the report while downplaying the criticisms. The Superintendent’s report last night also included discussion of BPS school safety measures, a new food contract with City Fresh, a bus drivers agreement, and the announcement of a Green New Deal for Boston Public Schools – positive developments awaiting further detail.

The meeting continued with an interesting conversation about what role the School Committee is meant to play in the state receivership discussions, and then a public comment period with heartbreaking testimony about the damning state report and the ways in which BPS has failed students with disabilities.

The meeting concluded with votes to refrain from joining the Massachusetts School Choice Plan and to reduce the number of school days at UP Academy from 185 to 180. Finally, we heard an update on the superintendent search process, which noted that approximately 8 of the 34 candidates will receive a first-round interview next week, with second-round interviews the following week, public sessions the week after that, and an offer by the end of June. This ambitious timeline led to a telling back-and-forth about the likelihood of appointing an interim superintendent.

The next School Committee meeting will take place Wednesday, June 8 at 5pm.

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Boston Superintendent Search: Superintendent Brenda Cassellius (2019-2022) May 25, 2022

Show notes

The City of Boston has a new mayor, and Mayor Wu and her appointed school committee have begun a search for a new Superintendent of Boston Public Schools. Boston has had 6 superintendents in 16 years - three of whom served Interim roles - and all who worked tirelessly on behalf of students, families and staff to improve aspects of BPS.

What type of leader does BPS need now? What are the city’s priorities for our public school system? Who can be successful in the role? What can Bostonians do to make the next Superintendent’s term impactful and successful?

In this special series of “Last Night at School Committee,” we bring together more than a dozen community leaders, as well as all 6 superintendents from the last 16 years, and ask them to weigh in on these questions.

In this episode, Jill and Ross are joined by current Boston Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Cassellius, who has served since 2019 and will be leaving BPS at the end of this school year.

To learn more and view the full series, please visit BostonSuperintendent.com

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Boston Superintendent Search: Interim Superintendent Laura Perille (2018-2019) May 24, 2022

Show notes

In the previous episode of this special series, Jill and Ross were joined by Tommy Chang. In this episode, Jill and Ross are joined by Laura Perille, who served as Interim Superintendent of Boston Public Schools from 2018 to 2019.

To learn more and view the full series, please visit BostonSuperintendent.com

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Boston Superintendent Search: Superintendent Tommy Chang (2015-2018) May 23, 2022

Show notes

In the previous episode of this special series, Jill and Ross were joined by John McDonough. In this episode, Jill and Ross are joined by Tommy Chang, who served as Superintendent of Boston Public Schools from 2015 to 2018.

To learn more and view the full series, please visit BostonSuperintendent.com

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