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Community groups urge Worcester Public Schools to restore standalone equity office
Summary
Multiple speakers — including the Latino Education Institute, the Worcester NAACP and the YWCA Central Mass — protested a proposed move to place the director of equity under Human Resources, arguing the change would reduce authority for equity work and harm students of color.
Several community leaders told the School Committee they oppose a proposed reorganization that would move the district’s Director of Equity into Human Resources as an assistant‑director role, saying the shift diminishes accountability and institutional visibility for equity work.
"Eliminating or reducing the visibility and authority of this office sends the wrong message," said Maria Hunos, executive director of the Latino Education Institute, who told the committee she believed the standalone Office of Equity may be effectively dismantled as of July 2027. Hunos said the office was a clear institutional commitment in the district’s strategic plan and asked which office will now be responsible for the plan’s equity and culture priorities.
Jennifer Safford, vice president of the Worcester NAACP and a parent, said the director role has been essential to coordinating efforts on representation, disciplinary disparities and student supports. "Eliminating or weakening this role would signal a retreat from the district’s stated commitments to equity," Safford said.
Etel, a former District 5 city councilor who identified herself as a Worcester Public Schools parent, told the committee the role is not auxiliary: it is essential to supporting educators and students, especially amid recent racial incidents. Evelyn Cabera, chief program officer at YWCA Central Mass, told the committee that a director‑level position carries the authority to influence policy, strategic planning, hiring and family engagement, and that downgrading it will reduce the office’s ability to shape districtwide practice.
No district official offered a detailed public response during the hearing explaining the rationale for the reorganization beyond references in the FY27 organizational chart. Commenters asked the committee to reverse course or clarify how translation services, student supports and accountability structures will be sustained.
What happens next: community groups urged the School Committee and superintendent to restore the office’s staffing and reporting lines or present a clear plan for how equity priorities will be maintained in the new structure.
