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Foxborough committee approves one-year STEM pilot in grades 1–2 after elementary Spanish staffing shortfall
Summary
After principals reported they could not fill two part-time elementary Spanish positions, the Foxborough School Committee voted 5-0 to pilot a STEM special in grades 1–2 for the 2026–27 school year, shifting FTEs to maintain Spanish in grades 3–4 while the pilot is reviewed.
The Foxborough School Committee on June 24 voted unanimously to pilot a STEM special in grades 1–2 for the 2026–27 school year, replacing the district's current elementary Spanish special temporarily while the district addresses staffing shortages.
Parents and teachers urged the committee to preserve early-language instruction. "I did just learn ... that we will be discontinuing Spanish to 1st and 2nd grade this upcoming fall," parent Anna Percavo told the committee during public comment, saying her child had thrived in the current program. Longtime Spanish teacher Lee Ritchie said the proposal felt like "a bomb" after a curriculum review and questioned why the district had not pursued a full-time hire: "It's unreasonable to expect qualified applicants to be willing to work part time in 2026."
District principals who brought the proposal said the change was driven by a persistent inability to find certified candidates for two elementary Spanish vacancies. The principals reported the district posted the Taylor opening five times and received 17 applicants, four of whom were certified; two candidates they had favored accepted full-time offers in other districts. "In lieu of world language programs in grade 1 and 2, the elementary program we are proposing will pilot a STEM special," one presenting principal said, explaining that STEM-certified instructors are more common and that the pilot would allow the district to meet contractual obligations for teachers' daily 40-minute prep periods.
Administrators described how the district would reconfigure FTEs to preserve Spanish at upper elementary grades: the combined Spanish FTE across buildings currently equaled about 2.3, and the proposal would move one 0.9 position toward a full-time (1.0) role and establish a 1.5 configuration to cover grades 3–4 while the STEM pilot fills the earlier-grade special. The committee was told the pilot would last one year, through 2026–27, and be reviewed afterward to determine whether staffing conditions allow restoring K–2 language instruction.
A committee member moved the motion "that the school committee [change] the instructional program for the 26–27 school year in lieu of world language program in grades 1 to 2. The elementary program will pilot a STEM special." The motion was seconded and approved by a 5–0 vote.
The vote was framed as a temporary, pragmatic response to a hiring challenge rather than a judgment on the value of language learning; presenters said world language instruction would continue in grades 3 and 4 and that the district will again propose a STEM specialist through the budget process next year if the committee wishes to continue or expand STEM beyond the pilot.
Next steps: the pilot will be implemented for the 2026–27 school year and reviewed at the end of that year. The committee did not adopt any language about permanently removing early-language instruction, and administrators said they would continue recruiting and re-evaluating staffing options.
Provenance: The discussion and vote on the STEM pilot were presented and approved during the public meeting (topic introduced at SEG 274 and concluded with the motion and vote at SEG 511–521).
