cityofboston.gov

Mayor Thomas M. Menino and Boston Public Schools (BPS) Superintendent Carol R. Johnson today announced the next phase of Improving School Choice community meetings regarding the overhaul of BPS student assignment. This phase of the engagement process will focus on sharing feedback received from the parents, students, and community members during the first phase of the process.

Since March BPS has gathered input during 21 public meetings and online surveys in eight languages, engaging more than 2,000 people. This is nearly triple the amount of feedback received at this point when a task force examined this issue in 2004.

“This next phase of community engagement will give us all a chance to see what our families and community value in their schools, and where they want to see changes,” said Mayor Menino. “The school department has gone to great lengths to gather input from a wide variety of Bostonians. The information and feedback that has been gathered will go a long way in informing how we create a student assignment system that works for our city’s kids.”

The current online survey (available at: www.bostonpublicschools.org/choice) will be open all summer and future community meetings will solicit more feedback and ideas from members of the community.

The next phase of community meetings will begin with these meetings:

Sunday, June 24

1:00pm-3:00pm

St. Peter’s Parish Teen Center

278 Bowdoin Street

Dorchester

Wednesday, June 27

6:00pm-8:00pm

Ohrenberger School

175 West Boundary Road

West Roxbury

Thursday, June 28

6:00pm-8:00pm

John D O’Bryant School of Math and Science

55 Malcolm X Blvd.

Roxbury

In January, during his State of the City address Mayor Menino directed Superintendent Johnson to undertake a process that will lead to a new student assignment plan that allows students in grades K-8 to attend schools closer to home.

Mayor Menino and Superintendent Johnson appointed an External Advisory Committee tasked with helping inform BPS leadership as to what a new system should look like.

BPS will use community feedback to develop proposals for a new student assignment plan this summer. This fall, BPS and the External Advisory Committee will analyze the drafts, solicit more feedback and develop a final proposal. The School Committee is expected to vote on a plan this winter.

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