FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MONDAY, JANUARY 6, 2024
CONTACT: PRESS@BTU.ORG
BOSTON TEACHERS UNION STATEMENT RE: LATEST BOSTON PUBLIC SCHOOL CLOSURES
EDUCATORS CALL FOR FOCUS TO SHIFT TOWARD CONSTRUCTION OF NEW FACILITIES AND IMPLEMENTATION OF “COMMUNITY HUB SCHOOL MODEL”
BOSTON, MA – This evening, the Boston Teachers Union released a statement in response to the announcement put forward by Boston Public School (BPS) officials which said that BPS will be closing four schools within the district. BPS has closed 35 schools since 2002, and 16 in the 10 years from 2015-2025. This announcement will bring the total to 20 schools closed in the last 16 years. From 2018 and projecting through 2027, the town of Brookline, with only nine schools, will have built approximately the same number of new schools as Boston, with 116 schools. Since 1980, only eight of Boston’s 23 neighborhoods have seen a new building built. Approximately 96 BPS schools lack ventilation systems that provide fresh air to the building.
From the Boston Teachers Union:
“For far too long, many students in Boston have been denied equitable access to modern, sustainable, well-ventilated, and learning-centered school buildings like those that students in other districts benefit from.
School closures are always disruptive to students and communities. District officials must ensure that school closures, regardless of their rationale, are paired with a more aggressive and detailed commitment to the construction and renovation of new, modern, world-class learning environments for our students.
To achieve the stated goals of the district’s own long-term facility plan – to ensure a “high quality student experience close to home” – it is imperative that the district commit to completing the construction of at least three buildings annually and should detail such a plan to the public in the coming weeks, not years.
The conversation cannot be simply about whether to retain or close poorly crumbling and dilapidated buildings – the conversation must be about how soon the district can complete the construction and renovations necessary to provide high-quality learning environments for every single BPS student, without exception.
The Community Hub School model is a proven strategy that creates a high-quality experience for all students, and these closures should be more motivation for the district to further embrace the Community Hub School model currently in place in 20 BPS schools and supported by a growing number of BPS families and educators.”
Additional Background from the Boston Teachers Union regarding school facility conditions and closures:
Sadly, BPS buildings have suffered from neglect and inadequate facilities for decades.
In their long-term facilities plan published in December of 2023, Boston Public School officials claimed their goal was: “For every student and every family to have access to what the BPS community defines as the High-Quality Student Experience close to home.”
Unfortunately, today’s announcement of the closure of four Boston Public Schools will continue a pattern of disruption for students and families in Boston without any clear explanation for how it brings us closer to the stated goal above. BPS has closed 35 schools since 2002, and 16 in the last 10 years. This will make 21 schools closed in 16 years. The district cannot rely on closures alone to achieve success.
Prior to the merging or closure of a school, BPS should be in a position to provide a modern facility ready for students in the affected schools. BPS should prioritize the stability and preservation of communities, and minimize disruption. That should be done by prioritizing construction and renovations, swing spaces, staffing support, and wraparound services (such as community hub schools) before, during, and after such changes.
Some facts on BPS facilities:
- 74 out of 124 current BPS school buildings were built before 1940 and 36 buildings are more than 100 years old.
- Since 2000, only seven new school buildings have been constructed, and one more is in progress.
- Meanwhile, in that same time period, Boston has closed at least 35 schools.
- From 2018 and projecting through 2027, the town of Brookline, with only nine schools, will have built approximately the same number of new schools as Boston, with 116 schools.
- Since 1980, only 8 of Boston’s 23 neighborhoods have seen a new building built.
- 96 schools lack ventilation systems that provide fresh air to the building.
Boston’s students deserve modern, renovated, well-ventilated, and sustainably powered new buildings with appropriate and adequate spaces for a wide-ranging curriculum, as well as built-in spaces for counseling, special education services, and other necessary services. Along with new buildings, schools should embrace the Community Hub School model, and provide a range of services for students and families that engage the community and contribute to student learning success and stable neighborhoods.
In this moment, it is also important to recognize that two of the schools slated for closure have suffered from failed “market-based” education reforms that have devastated Boston and other urban districts for over 20 years now. The Dever School was placed under state receivership in 2012, despite protests from the school community. Rather than listen to families and students, DESE’s receivers immediately cut the dual language program and imposed a much longer school day with less pay for educators, resulting in endless staff turnover. Excel High School is the final remaining small school from South Boston HS when Bill Gates offered gobs of money to Boston if BPS would break their high schools up. Sadly, BPS took the deal and broke up four of its comprehensive high schools (Dorchester HS, Hyde Park HS, West Roxbury HS and South Boston HS) into small schools. Gates later admitted that move was a mistake, and the students of Boston were the guinea pigs that suffered from these failed education reforms imposed upon them by the district and private interests.
When top-down, private sector driven reforms cause harm to school communities, especially school communities that are predominantly Black and Latino, what is the city’s obligation? The city must repair the harm done and to do right by the students, families, and educators that have been trying their best under terrible facilities conditions. There needs to be a great investment in public school infrastructure to ensure that Boston – which has a much higher percentage of students with special needs and IEPs – is able to provide quality facilities to its students, rather than making an impossible and unsustainable set of choices between the amount and quality of resources within a building, and the quality of the building itself.
According to BPS’ building quality analysis, 78% of BPS buildings are missing at least 2 out of 4 categories of what BPS considers a “BPS High-Quality Student Experience”
Historically, school mergers and closures have had a disproportionate impact on Black and brown students, English language learners, and students with disabilities. The recently announced closures beg the question of, what other steps will be taken to ensure the students in the closed schools receive the kind of high-quality student experience called for in the BPS long-term facilities plan.
Boston students and families need a long-term plan and it needs to be publicly discussed and debated. We need many brand new or completely renovated buildings.
BPS has built only 7 new schools in the past 25 years. Between 2018-2027, Boston, with 116 schools, will have built approximately the same number of new schools as the town of Brookline, with only 9 schools. On a proportional basis, this would be the equivalent of Boston building 64 new schools in ten years. If some of our buildings are inadequate, a new building or complete renovation of an existing building should be in place before students are moved. School closures are always disruptive and harm students and communities. If the closure results in a new building with improved educational programming, that new facility and improved programming must be in place before the school is closed. For more, please see the Boston Teachers Union resolution below, passed by vote of the membership in May 2024:
BTU Resolution on BPS School Facilities Planning
(5/22/24)
- WHEREAS, Boston Public Schools buildings have suffered from neglect and inadequate facilities for decades.
- 74 out of 124 current BPS school buildings were built before 1940 and 36 buildings are more than 100 years old.
- Since 2000, only six new school buildings have been constructed, and two more are in progress.
- Meanwhile, in that same time period, Boston has closed at least 35 schools.
- Since 1980, only 7 of Boston’s 23 neighborhoods have seen a new building built.
- 96 schools lack ventilation systems that provide fresh air to the building.
- WHEREAS, BPS has announced multiple school closures, mergers, or reconfigurations over the past ten years without a plan for new or updated facilities and without meaningful community participation, advanced planning, or public processes.
- WHEREAS, BPS has shown a repeated lack of commitment to upgrading facilities to schools experiencing grade re-configurations or mergers.
- WHEREAS, Students deserve modern, renovated, well-ventilated, and sustainably powered buildings and students are advocating for such through MASSCOSH/Teens Lead @ Work Student Demands.
- WHEREAS, According to BPS’ building quality analysis, 78% of BPS buildings are missing at least 2 out of 4 categories of what BPS considers a “BPS High-Quality Student Experience”
- WHEREAS, historically, school mergers and closures have had a disproportionate impact on Black and brown students, English language learners, and students with disabilities.
- WHEREAS, A Boston Globe report found that districts with a majority white student population got about $10,000 per student for school projects, the Globe found, while districts made up mostly of students of color got about $6,400 per student.”
Be it resolved that the BTU calls for Boston Public Schools and the City of Boston to prioritize new construction and school renovation independent of proposals to merge or close schools. The BTU calls for Boston to commit to at least 3 new or fully renovated school buildings annually until all schools are up-to-date. Changes in grades or school structure (i.e. mergers) should have a clear and direct benefit to existing communities through renovated or new facilities. Prior to the merging of a school, BPS must have a modern facility ready for students in the affected schools. BPS should prioritize the stability and preservation of communities, and minimize disruption, through renovations, swing spaces, staffing support, and wraparound services (such as community hub schools) before, during, and after changes.
To ensure that changes to schools are grounded in school communities’ own knowledge and understanding of their own context, and that changes actually lead to improved conditions, the BTU calls for BPS to make its decision-making process transparent and grounded in partnership with communities. This should include:
- Meeting and partnering with communities for input prior to any proposal, decision-making, or announcement
- Full implementation of the Racial Equity Tool as part of the proposal-process
- Proposals for school changes should be made at least two years in advance of any change, in order for students, families, and staff to be able to make informed school decisions; BPS must meet with BTU to complete all bargaining obligations prior to contractual staffing deadlines or extend the excessing deadlines for impacted staff.
Students, educators, and communities deserve buildings designed to meet the needs of students today and tomorrow. The BTU endorses the MASSCOSH/Teens Lead @ Work Student Demands for renovated and sustainable buildings, and the staffing and resources to provide the teaching and learning conditions students deserve. This includes bringing all school facilities to ADA compliance, and designed for sensory comfort. The BTU calls for student and educator voice in the design and building process, so that facilities are built with needed spaces (such as science labs, counseling spaces, arts and athletics, and libraries) and to ensure that facilities are funded and staffed for students to have access to those spaces and resources.
Be it further resolved that the Executive Board School Facilities Sub-Committee will meet with the Organizing Team and members from impacted schools to develop a protocol for supporting schools facing school changes (such as closures and mergers). These steps may include meeting with faculty senates, creating a staff and community survey, and identifying community demands. The BTU will center the voices and priorities of our members, students, and families in impacted school communities to shape our collective response to district proposals. This should also include steps for supporting school communities after facility decisions have been made, such as by helping to identify and advocate for needed resources and supports through transition processes and holding the district accountable for promised investments and renovations.
The BTU shall explore opportunities to build relationships with community allies, such as by developing a shared set of priorities and vision with community partners, and contributing to coalition work where there are shared interests and priorities.
Be it further resolved the BTU shall explore further strategies to advance statewide legislation that would increase the capacity, racial equity and speed of new school facility construction. The BTU has previously endorsed HB441/SB251 An Act Modernizing School Construction, which, using the aforementioned principles, establishes a commission to reform the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA).