A wave of students, parents and staff urged the Northampton School Committee on June 12 to address a “scheduling crisis” at Northampton High School after this spring’s staffing reductions left dozens of rising seniors without on-campus third-period classes.

The committee heard more than a dozen public comments from high school students, parents and employees describing seniors told they face an open third-period or must take classes at Smith College or asynchronous courses that remove them from the high school for significant parts of the day.

The issue, students said, is a direct effect of last year’s budget cuts and the district’s inability to run additional class sections. Student union president Artis Vaughn, who identified himself as the newly elected president of the student union, said he was “kicked out of honors Spanish 5 because the school is unable to run 2 sections and unable to switch me into any other classes because it would create a whole third period second semester.” Vaughn added that many colleges require four years of language, and losing a year could harm admissions chances.

Student representative (NHS) said scheduling “is the realization of many of our concerns regarding the recent and proposed budget cuts,” and reported “more than 75” students affected by holes or conflicting singleton classes. The student representative told the committee: “NHS needs more teachers so that students are able to take NHS classes while they are enrolled at NHS.”

Several students and parents described the practical burdens of the temporary solution offered by guidance counselors: taking one or more Smith College classes off campus or evening/night courses. Parent Lisa Papadimitriou said asking students to take multiple college courses off campus relies on family resources many do not have, and “assumes that they have a car. It assumes that they don't have to care for younger siblings. It assumes that they don't have an after-school job.”

Educators and paraprofessionals also spoke. A paraeducator at Northampton High School described students “upset, crying, not knowing what to do,” and said, “It is not Smith College's job to educate high school students in Northampton. That is our job.” Others pointed to students with IEPs among those squeezed by the schedule, raising equity and special-education access concerns.

Why it matters: multiple speakers said the scheduling gaps threaten college competitiveness for honor and AP students, disrupt school community participation, and impose transportation and caregiving burdens when students must leave the building for classes. Committee members acknowledged the urgency during discussion of the budget and one-time fund requests later in the meeting.

Committee response and next steps: the committee debated reallocating recently identified city-side savings and state-aid changes to address high-school staffing needs. The board approved an amended motion that directed the superintendent to move quickly to restore staffing at NHS: the motion authorized the superintendent to “restore 2 positions at the high school immediately and fund the school garden program,” and requested that remaining identified funds be returned to the committee at a special meeting on June 25 for decisions about additional allocations. The motion passed on a roll-call vote.

What is unresolved: parents and students asked for rapid hiring so schedules can be set before fall; they also asked for broader remedies to prevent recurring cuts that shrink course offerings. Committee members said additional funding discussions will continue at the June 25 special meeting and during August budget conversations.

The committee’s vote count and details on the emergency allocation appear in the separate “Votes at a glance” summary published with this package.

"This huge problem could be solved by hiring the teachers that NHS needs," one student told the committee. "Our teachers can't even teach all of the students at NHS."