Medford Letter: Why I Voted No On Hybrid School Reopening

MEDFORD, MA — The following letter to the editor was submitted by School Committee member Melanie McLaughlin.

Dear Editor,

I am writing both as a School Committee member and Medford parent regarding the reasons I chose to vote no on the recent proposed staggered-hybrid return to school plan for Medford Public Schools.

While I understand the vote was 6-1 and the motion was passed by a majority vote I feel compelled to share with the community my reasons for voting against this proposed plan:

Medford Public Schools, the School Committee and a School ReOpening Task Force worked together over the past month engaging multiple stakeholders in proposed plans for our schools. We sought community input from families and caregivers, teachers, administrators, school committee members and business owners who committed an inordinate amount of volunteer time and effort in bringing plans forward to present to the community on the Special School Committee meeting 8/7/2020. The commitment from the community to participate in the Task Force was significant; members took valuable time away from paid employment, their families, planned vacations, etc. We requested a specific focus on equity as the Task Force was put together - resulting in ensured diverse representation from many community volunteers.

It was a complete surprise to learn late evening on 8/5/2020 that a new plan was being offered with a fully flushed out School Committee motion and detailed dates for moving the new plan (staggered hybrid approach) forward without the knowledge of the Task Force, other school committee members or the community at large. This plan called for a staggered hybrid approach to enrollment of children in our public schools based on their grades with significant dates attached to implementation of policy in the plan and no detailed explanation as to how these decisions were arrived at.

During the 8/6 School Committee meeting and after MTA union president, Charlene Douglas introduced the teacher union concerns regarding safety a PowerPoint presentation explaining the new plan was shared for the first time with the community and other stakeholders. Community members were not allowed input into the plan before a motion to vote on the plan was called. No members of the Remote Task Force were made aware of the new plan prior to the meeting. The Teacher's Union, families, caregivers and students were not made aware of the new plan being proposed and voted on by the District in this meeting.

I feel disappointed that we had worked so hard at ensuring community stakeholder input and building relationships only to feel like that effort had been wasted in a moment of not allowing the community, teachers and students input into the proposed new hybrid / staggered plan.

During the meeting I requested on multiple occasions that the community have an opportunity to speak. It was a full four hours into the meeting and long after a vote had occurred that the first community member was allowed an opportunity to voice their concerns.

As a new School Committee member I have committed myself to advocating for every child and family in our community. I feel communication, transparency and honesty is paramount to building stakeholder engagement and community involvement. I also feel strongly that the proposed hybrid / staggered plan does not address equity for every child. Our community needs to feel their opinion matters and that they are invested in public education in Medford. This proposed plan and the process for presenting it did not encourage the solidarity in moving our district forward that is so clearly needed right now.

I hope we can work together to rebuild trust in the community and that our families, caregivers, teachers and staff will continue to volunteer and to voice their opinion and concerns so that we may work collaboratively in ensuring Medford public schools are safe, equitable and consistent in offering the best public education for every child. It truly does take a village.

Sincerely,

Melanie McLaughlin

Ed.M.Member

Medford School Committee