“On the one hand, we are so aware of the needs of our students and the desire to support them robustly with as many teachers and support as possible,” Mayor Ruthanne Fuller said. “On the other hand, using one-time money for ongoing costs creates a real problem for the following year.”
Newton Public Schools (NPS) may use recently allocated American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to restore some proposed job cuts, said Liam Hurley, NPS assistant superintendent and chief financial and administrative officer, at a Newton School Committee meeting on Wednesday.
“We are in lifeboats and we’re watching the Titanic sink,” Newton teacher Kim Smith said. “We’re asking you for help, and for you to tell us to just grin and bear it and get creative is unacceptable.”
“Everyone in Newton cares so much about their children’s education—how could we support them taking anything away?” a teaching assistant said.
Some citizens voiced objections, including a parent with an immunocompromised child, among others.
Newton North hired Turner as its principal in 2016. Since then, the high school of more than 2,000 students has endured a pandemic and shifts in the country’s political climate.
Students of Newton Public Schools (NPS) returned for the first day of the school year on Sept. 9. The day marked the return of fully in-person classes since March 2020 due to COVID-19.
The first day of school on Sept. 16 looked different from years past in Newton Public Schools. The reopening of the district involved a combination of in-person classes and remote learning, depending on students’ age groups.
