Framingham Elected Officials On Bid To Remove Police From Schools

FRAMINGHAM, MA — A forum last week focused on police in Framingham schools attracted dozens of local residents, including some members of the City Council and School Committee.

The forum, hosted by the group Framingham Families for Racial Equity in Education (FFREE), highlighted a push to remove school resource officers, with some local students saying they feel threatened by the presence of school resource officers (SROs).

But elected officials who attended the forum have differing opinions about whether SROs should be removed — or if the school district should continue work reforming the program.

In Framingham, the city funds the $241,000 SRO program, which means Councilors and Mayor Yvonne Spicer might be able to change the program during the annual budget process. Worcester is moving toward SRO removal in 2022, which will likely be handled during budget deliberations this spring. That city's SROs would be transferred back to regular policing details, according to city leaders.

The Framingham School Committee submitted its proposed budget to Spicer in March, and the SRO appropriation from the city was left intact. Superintendent Robert Tremblay and police officials have met with FFREE and the high school Black Student Union about SRO removal, but the district has so far focused on revising the SRO program.

According to a city spokeswoman, Spicer is set to meet with Tremblay following the April vacation week, and the SRO program will be up for discussion.

In a November memo to city and police leaders, Tremblay highlighted 10 steps the district took this fall, including a new committee comprised of students, staff, parents and SROs that will review the program annually, and banning the use of police powers to handle discipline issues. The district has mostly been unable to test those changes due to the pandemic.

Massachusetts no longer requires school districts to maintain an SRO program following a new police reform bill signed by Gov. Charlie Baker in December. Framingham's SRO program is guided by a memorandum of understanding (MOU), which is supposed to be reviewed at the end of each school year.

Patch reached out to local officials who attended the FFREE forum to ask what they think about removing SROs. Here's what they told us. (District 1 School Committee member Beverly Hugo and District 5 Councilor Robert Case attended but did not immediately respond to a request for comment).

District 5 School Committee member Priscila Sousa

"I attended the FFREE event because the discussion around SROs is of extreme importance and needs to be ongoing. As chair of the Equity Diversity and Inclusion Subcommittee, I participated in the process of bringing this discussion to the School Committee last year. I wholeheartedly believe and hope that was not the only time this discussion is on our agenda.

"We made several recommendations to the SRO program in the schools, but COVID delayed students returning to the buildings, which means no data to evaluate the changes yet. Data will be vital to continue driving this process and, as noted in the presentation, Framingham has left much to be desired in that area.

"I’m hopeful this will change, and we will keep making changes, whether it is tweaking the program or eliminating the SROs altogether. As a school committee member, I was heartbroken by the student testimonies shared in the event and don’t want any Framingham student to leave our hallways carrying that level of trauma.

"It is imperative, however, we have a solution that works for Framingham students and staff. There are a lot of external pressures from across the country and they don’t have the individual needs of our student body in mind — that’s our job."

District 2 City Councilor Cesar Stewart-Morales

"I attended the FFREE forum, 'Policing Pupils,' last week because I was interested in hearing the thoughts of the panelists on this subject, which has been a topic of conversation in many other local communities.

"FFREE is a well-respected group made up of current Framingham Public School parents that are working to bring awareness to some of the racial inequities that are observed within our public school system. The forum was well-run and provided an academic perspective on the matter as well as some very personal perspectives by FHS students. I believe that, as a community, we need to consider if police presence in our schools is necessary or if it is time for a different approach. The ultimate goal being that we want all of our students to feel safe when they attend Framingham Public Schools (FPS).

"I am looking forward to continuing the conversation with other city leaders and our community. I am also looking to Mayor Spicer, Superintendent Robert Tremblay, Assistant Superintendent Joseph Corazzini and Chief Lester Baker to lead FPS in making changes to the current policies regarding Student Resource Officers in Framingham. While I see the Worcester City Council approach of removing funding from the police department as a tool that is available to the Framingham City Council, I don’t consider it to be the best way to effect change in this area."

City Council Vice Chair Adam Steiner

"I did attend the forum organized by FFREE, and it was definitely a thoughtful discussion about this topic and I do think that racial justice needs to be part of the entirety of our budget deliberations, including with the Framingham Police and the school district. This conversation can build on the work that has already been done by school leadership in cooperation with community members and the Black Student Union at Framingham High School and other groups including FFREE.

"In fact, last month, I had a meeting with Superintendent Tremblay and Assistant Superintendent Corazzini to talk about their progress on the action steps ... I encouraged Dr. Tremblay and Mr. Corazzini to continue to engage with students of color and to ensure that progress is continual and not just in stops and starts. The key to me is that it is not just about removing SROs — it's about taking positive steps to fight racism in our schools.

"Local innovator and social justice warrior Brandale Randolph spoke to the Framingham Democrats last June and his charge was to ensure that our schools put forth a plan so that our schools are safe for all students. He said, 'It is not just about removing SRO's, it's about replacing them with a better safety net.' I took that suggestion to heart, and it is a charge that I will bring with me into the budget process."

District 7 Councilor Margareth Basilio Shepard

"I attended the FFREE forum to understand and learn more about the issue. As an educator I believe that police have no place inside a teaching institution and that our schools would most benefit from having educators and health professionals responsible for any need for disciplinary action.

"In Framingham, we have a culturally diverse student body and their family background needs to be considered to understand their behaviors and offer guidance as part of a broader educational process. Students needs to acquire social skills as much as they need to learn any other subject, maybe even more since their life literally depends on it.

"Police enforcement doesn’t exist to teach skills, police presence is an 'authority' that guarantees that unacceptable behavior will not be tolerated and will be punished by force. This is the way that theoretically our society keeps order, but in reality [there's evidence] this model is failing the underserved. School missions are to teach and to prepare students to be productive members of society. I don’t believe intimidation would achieve that."

District 9 Councilor Tracey Bryant

"Any time I get the chance to attend a FFREE forum or event, I’m going! There is always something I can learn or hear that unpacks more of the complexities of an issue. They are honest and their motivation is pure: They are simply fighting for the best educational environment for all children.

"While the blue uniform should represent safety and protection to all (except those engaged in or contemplating crime), it too often represents a stressful uncertainty at the very basic level of survival and acceptance. Obviously, this is not a conducive environment for learning and high achievement. I tend toward WIN/WIN solutions whenever possible, but my priority is to provide a safe, nurturing, self-esteem building environment for learning.

"SROs have not worked well in our high school. It has been said that they were being misused in direct contrast to the way they were intended to operate. Racism and misuse of the SROs has allowed some wrongdoing to go undetected, while making other students feel like they are being stalked. If the SROs continue to function as they have in the past at the high school, then they must go. Then we must return to the original solutions proposed by the experts, for which FFREE is advocating. If the victims of this unequal treatment are willing to give the SRO program another chance, then fine. I thank FFREE, Chief [Lester] Baker, the Black Student Union and Superintendent Tremblay for their ongoing work together. I am hopeful that we will progress toward a more fair, safe and inviting educational atmosphere for all the city’s children."