Brookline Educators Union Decries School Committee Strategy

Press release from the Brookline Educators Union:

May 30, 2020

By focusing on cuts rather than revenue, the Brookline School Committee has failed in its obligation to protect schools.

“The School Committee is content to accept an austerity narrative and put in place a plan that will be devastating for students and unduly harsh for dedicated educators,” said Brookline Educators Union President Jessica Wender-Shubow. She said the members of the union have made their position clear: “None of us without all of us.”

Since the start of the coronavirus crisis, the committee has failed to engage educators in meaningful dialogue around remote learning and the future of public education in Brookline.

“The BEU understands that the committee has a contractual obligation to inform members of a layoff. However, ,” Wender-Shubow said. “If the committee had worked more closely with the BEU, the community would better understand that there is no possible way for our public schools to reopen and be successful with these staff cuts.”

The BEU maintains that student needs will be greater and demand more staff and resources as the community moves toward reopening schools when it is safe to do so.

The committee has paid lip service to revenue sources, but it has not engaged with the BEU or potential coalition partners to fight for the funding we know our students need.

“There is still tremendous wealth in the country, in the state and in the community,” she said. “A fair share of that wealth needs to be used to support the public good.”

Municipal and state budgets need to be bolstered with federal action, such as passage of the HEROES Act, Wender-Shubow said, adding that the committee, the union and community partners need to work together on a campaign to secure the funding schools need.

“If the committee is serious about its role in providing the best possible public education for our community, it will join us to advocate for our students rather than accepting the claim that Brookline cannot afford high quality public education,” Wender-Shubow said.

This press release was produced by the Brookline Educators Union. The views expressed here are the author's own.