The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education met twice in June: once for a special meeting specifically on the recently released report of the graduation council, and once for their regular business meeting. The agenda for both meetings can be found here; a recording of the evening meeting on the graduation report is here; the recording of the regular meeting is here. The following covers only the business meeting.
The regular meeting opened with public comment. Comments were made on the proposed interpretation and translation regulations; on the graduation report; on a coming Holocaust Museum; and on the Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter School, including by a parent expressing concerns regarding the school’s governace..
Opening comments from the Secretary and Commissioner largely were about recent visits to schools. Commissioner Martinez announced that UP Academy Holland will exit state receivership this school year, however. As the Dever School is closing at the end of this school year, there will be no longer be any schools in state receivership (though two districts remain in state receivership).
Early in the meeting, there was also recognition of DESE General Counsel Rhoda Schneider, who will retire this summer. She has been the General Counsel for the Department for over 48 years and has worked at the Department for over 50 years. She was honored with the Mitchell Chester Award.
The Board first received the annual report of the State Student Advisory Council presented by Isabella Chamberlain, recent Hudson High School graduate. She outlined the work of the Council at the state and regional level.
She then outlined the three areas of recommendation from the SSAC this year, all within the realm of wellness as follows:
- on bullying: recommend adoption of standardized definitions and reporting processes; increasing access to trusted adult; and expanding education and awareness
- on emotional well being: comprehensive approaches to emotional development and well-being implemented by all districts; more flex block time and designated mental health days; stronger sense of student belonging, importance of sleep
- on nutrition: building relationships with local farms; investing in training and resources for food service staff; plan menus and test recipes to reflect cultural diversity of communities
There was interest among members of the Board in finding ways to better integrate the work of the SSAC with the Board itself as well as work in districts.
The Board next moved to the report on civics requested by Chair Craven, which opened with information from iCivics.The Board also received the results of the “We Declare!” contest; the winning videos from Boston, Brockton, and Amesbury can be viewed at the link. DESE staff then updated on civics in the classroom, including photos from the recent civic project showcases. The Board did express support for Massachusetts being among the states to pilot the NAEP civics test.
The Board unanimously adopted, without substantial discussion, recommended updates to the regulations on special education, to conform to state law. This did include some changes incorporated from public comment.
The Board next took up the proposed regulations regarding interpretation and translation. This also took note of some of the public comment submitted, including removing the requirement that machine-generated translation be reviewed prior to sharing if it is not directly regarding the rights of students. Commissioner Martinez introduced the discussion by speaking of the balance of the needs of students with the budgetary constraints of districts. These concerns were particularly flagged by Kristen Smidy and Matt Hills on the Board. Both the Commissioner and others spoke of working out some of the concerns in upcoming guidance, sparking a round of discussion about guidance and implementation. Martinez spoke of the Department learning with districts, “we don’t just put our regs and say ‘good luck everyone!'” He said “this will not be the last time that we are asked from the legislature to” put into place “with no money, with little money,” commenting further that it was “very disappointing to see so many things passed this year without resources.” Speaking of districts, he said, “every time we implement regulations…let’s make sure…[the districts] help us understand it.” Mary Ann Stewart asked if the Department was putting in any language regarding the violation of privacy of using open machine translation for student services, asking, “are we universally using closed loop services so there aren’t going to be unintended consequences?” The response was that those of “higher quality” would be “lifted up” in the guidance. The regulations passed unanimously.
The Board next turned to the proposed exiting of three conditions and imposition of a new one, all regarding governance by the board of the Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter School. The recommendation of the Commissioner was that all three conditions previously imposed were met, but a new one also focused on governance be imposed. It is expected that the charter school will apply for a renewal of its charter next year. The Board raised questions of if in fact the conditions had all been met–could the Board report on a transportation plan they had not themselves accepted?–as if indeed the conditions were met. As summarized by Marty West, “They seem to have met the letter of the law, I think we’re having a conversation of if they have met the spirit of the law,” adding that the new condition “is an attempt to meet the spirit of the law.” Recognizing that this matter will be back before them upon the application for renewal, the Board voted 7-3 to approve the recommendations.
The Board approved the calendar of meetings for next year.