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BPS–Boston Police MOU not yet signed as data and incident policies are revised; district describes safety staffing
Summary
District officials told councilors the memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Boston Police is pending because BPS updated its data and student incident policies; officials described a safety services structure including about 79 safety officers, an Office of Emergency Management and a Community Connectors program.
Councilors asked about safety staffing, the MOU with Boston Police, and what would change when the MOU is signed. The superintendent told the committee the MOU is not yet signed because the district had to update its internal data policy and student incident policy before finalizing the interagency agreement. "It is not yet [signed] because we had to take before school committee changes to our data policy," the superintendent said, adding the MOU language was outdated and required community engagement and policy updates.
The superintendent described the BPS safety services structure: an executive director of safety services oversees three divisions — a safety specialist division with about 79 officers, an Office of Emergency Management with a director and four staff, and the Community Connectors Program with a director and 18–19 staff. He said the MOU "codifies our current working relationship" with Boston Police and does not substantially alter operational practice; district staff emphasized that arrests on BPS property would be made by Boston Police under current reform-era rules.
Councilors asked whether officers have arrest authority; the superintendent said changes in state police reform mean BPS security does not make arrests and that Boston Police would handle arrests on school grounds. The superintendent named Izzie Marrero as the current chief of BPS security.
