Students, parents and staff say Northampton High schedule gaps stem from teacher cuts; committee authorizes temporary staffing

Students, parents and staff told the Northampton School Committee on June 12 that recent staffing cuts have left rising Northampton High School seniors and other students unable to take desired classes, damaging college competitiveness and school community cohesion.

At the meeting, the two student representatives reported a “scheduling crisis” at Northampton High School (NHS): many seniors face an empty slot in period 3 because the school cannot run enough class sections. Student speakers described being offered asynchronous college classes or reduced course loads, being placed in classes not on their alternate lists, or being told to take multiple courses off-site at Smith College for the semester.

Artis Mann, introduced himself as “the newly elected president of the student union,” and said he was removed from Honors Spanish 5 because the school could not run two sections. “Most colleges I’m looking at require four years of a foreign language,” Mann said. “Being unable to take it would harm my admissions process.”

Students and parents said the problem disproportionately…