Equity policy draws support from Conex Latina as teachers and parents raise concerns about services for multilingual learners

Policy 1050 — a proposed equity policy intended to require equity-review tools for all new or revised district policies — received a first reading and preliminary approval at the Newport School Committee meeting after months of stakeholder input.

Conex Latina representatives urged the committee to pass the policy as a roadmap for consistent, equitable decision-making. Marisa Portillo, speaking in Spanish as a Conex Latina representative, listed the group's work: parent advocacy workshops, helping families enroll and obtain health insurance, and bringing parent and family voices into the district's strategic planning process. Rebecca Gomez, also with Conex Latina, told the committee the policy’s requirement that subsequent policies include an equity-assessment tool is the “most crucial part” and urged a Yes vote.

The first reading of Policy 1050 passed on a 5–2 vote. Miss Winslow, chair of the policy subcommittee, said the policy reflects roughly four years of drafting with students and community partners and is intended to align district practice with the strategic plan and the portrait of a graduate.

Public commenters and classroom teachers, however, told the committee they worried about day-to-day implementation and whether students who are multilingual learners (MLLs) are being served. Thompson Middle School teacher Kate Dell said students designated for English language development (ELD) services previously received three periods per day with an ELD teacher; she said that arrangement was reduced this year to one embedded period in social studies, leaving those students without the targeted instruction they need. Dell said the change had “taken apart” a model that previously produced measurable student growth.

Another teacher, Tina Brownell, said recent directions to deliver intervention time inside general-education blocks (reducing core instruction time) will make it harder to deliver the research-based additional instruction students need and will overwhelm teachers, who must administer assessments, plan interventions and progress-monitor frequently.

Mary Nordby, a school staff member, said she has filed a formal complaint and met with human resources about what she described as an inappropriate racial comment by the district’s MLL director; she told the committee she has seen no resolution to date and pledged to continue pursuing the matter. Nordby referenced a recent state report on youth mental health and said schools must respond promptly to discrimination and harassment.

Committee members and administrators agreed on the need to socialize the policy and to seek feedback from students and staff. During the meeting members discussed using crew periods at the high school and a Google form or other survey tools to gather student and teacher feedback before final adoption. The committee directed the superintendent to arrange for further rollout and feedback collection.

The committee’s action was a first reading; the policy will return for a second reading and final approval at a later meeting. Committee members said they view the policy as a long-term roadmap that will require training, facilitation and time to change staff mindsets and practice.

The committee did not issue a final public finding on the complaint Nordby described; she said HR has met with her but the issue remained unresolved at the time of her remarks. The committee acknowledged the complaint and the need for prompt, effective follow-up.

Next steps: the policy returns for a subsequent vote after continued community and student feedback; the district said it will follow up on the discrimination complaint through HR.