QUEST on Facebook:
Here's a recording of last week's Town Hall on BPS facilities, organized by the BuildBPS/Green New Deal Stakeholders Coalition. Lots of info was shared about the history of facilities planning in the district and individual school facilities.
And the data spreadsheets that were shared at the meeting can be found here: docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1K-RjdpY5420bWL2G_LSeINayFaEh1viyp27nZKvyfz8/edit#gid=0 ... See MoreSee Less
Great to see almost 100 people at Thursday's Town Hall on facilities, put on by the BuildBPS/Green New Deal Stakeholders Coalition.
As the meeting was going on, families from 4 school communities got letters about grade configuration changes/closure, all for the 2025-26 year:
- The Gardner will change from prek-8 to preK-6
- The Hernandez will change from prek-8 to prek-6
- The West Zone Early Learning Center will close/merge into the Hennigan; it is currently in the same building but a stand alone school
- And the Hennigan will change from a K-8 to a prek-6
These changes will be officially announced at School Committee on May 22nd and voted on on Monday, June 17th.
See the data project of the Stakeholders Coalition to learn more about the state of other schools. ... See MoreSee Less
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Come talk BPS facilities planning TONIGHT!!! ... See MoreSee Less
Breaking the Cycle: From Promises to Action in BPS Facilities
📢 Join Our Virtual Town Hall: "Breaking the Cycle: From Promises to Action in BPS Facilities" 📢 Date: Thursday, May 9, 2024 Time: 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM ET Location: Zoom Register At: bit.ly/BPSFacil...0 CommentsComment on Facebook
Is your school a potential target for merger or closure? The BuildBPS/Green New Deal Stakeholders Coalition shares some BPS clues. ... See MoreSee Less
Is your school a possible target for merger or closure?
A new spreadsheet from a community coalition can help parents gauge the risk and push for an open, equitable plan0 CommentsComment on Facebook
Advocacy for Quality, Equity, and Transparency Within the Boston Public Schools System
Boston school facilities data project
Have you heard rumors that BPS is planning to merge and close schools in the district?Â
In 2023, Boston Public Schools embarked on a project called Reimagine School Funding, seeking to update its school funding policy in a collaborative way. BPS invited a variety of stakeholders and personnel to work on the project, including a steering committee, a principal working group, a funding policy design working group, and consultants, sixty people in all.
At the end of the yearlong process, a report was written making recommendations and reviewing intended impact. To date, the report has not been released publicly, despite requests. QUEST believes that the work of the Project should be made public and in the interest of transparency, is releasing the report here.
We especially applaud the recommendations of the committee that BPS “collect and make available all revenue information by school, inclusive of philanthropy, fundraising, and other private sources” (page 28), echoing QUEST’s ongoing work on equity in funding and private fundraising in schools.
NOTE: When the Reimagine School Funding project was announced, QUEST asked to bring our historical knowledge and equity perspective to the new plan through a seat on the working group. Our participation was denied.
Current issues QUEST is focused on:
Facilities, Resources and School Closings
Quality education requires a commitment by the school district to the efficient, sustained, and equitable use of resources.
Privatization of Education
Public education, including its physical facilities, is a public good that should be under community control.
Student Assignment
All students should have equitable access to quality school options through a transparent and accessible system of school assignment.
ABOUT QUEST
QUEST (Quality Education for Every Student) is a volunteer grassroots organization of parents with children in Boston Public Schools. Founded in 2012, the group initially came together over concerns about the inequities of proposed changes to the BPS assignment system. We continue to ask how education policies and practices can help to dismantle past oppression, increase opportunity, and provide greater access to quality education for all.
Copyright © 2018 QUEST
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