Department of Justice ends 9-year oversight of Worcester schools
The Department of Justice (DOJ) will stop monitoring how Worcester Public Schools (WPS) provides English as a Second Language, the school district announced Monday.
In a notification received on April 30 by WPS, the DOJ announced it would end the monitoring of the district, citing that WPS 'substantially complied with its obligations' as outlined in a 2016 legal agreement, according to WPS.
For the past nine years, WPS has been overseen by the DOJ over how the district offers English as a Second Language, according to the press release from Worcester Public Schools.
In 2016, the district entered an agreement with the federal government to address the concerns about the adequacy of the WPS instruction and services for English Learner students, according to the letter from the DOJ. This agreement was an update to a previous agreement the school signed with the DOJ in 2008.
English learners students are classified as students who are learning English or have limited to no proficiency in English, according to the DOJ in the 2016 agreement.
WPS had to provide reports to the federal government to demonstrate its efforts to comply with the agreement.
'The Worcester Public Schools has demonstrated that it has strong systems in place to ensure we are effectively providing English as a Second Language instruction for our scholars,' said Dr. Rachel H. Monárrez, superintendent of WPS, in the press release. 'Systems have been enhanced over the past three years specifically to not only provide required instructional services but to monitor them in a systematic and timely manner. I express my deep thanks to the many educators and administrators who have worked tirelessly to ensure our scholars are getting the education for which they are entitled.'
In addition to the news that the DOJ would cease its monitoring efforts, WPS announced there were increases in English Learner students who have proven mastery in the language.
These students are known as 'former' English Learner students.
A total of 10.9% of the student body in the 2024-25 school year are former English Learner students, according to the district — an increase from 9.4% from the 2021-22 school year.
The largest increase in students who became former English Learners is those in middle school, increasing from 4.9% to 8.4% in the same period.
In total, 32.2% of Worcester's student body are classified as English Learners, while 58.4% are labeled as having English not as their first language, according to the Massachusetts Department of Education.
'Speaking, reading and writing in more than one language is an asset to be celebrated,' Monárrez said. 'When children move on from English learner status, by demonstrating proficiency in English, they have access to more opportunities and courses while possessing the gift of multilingualism. This is a benefit to our scholars, community and future workforce advancement.'
Worcester man who killed and burned woman on rooftop asks for parole
'She made the world better': Funeral held for Molly McGovern, Rep. McGovern's daughter
When children get evicted, they lose homes, health, chance at education and a future
Read the original article on MassLive.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox News
an hour ago
- Fox News
Trump admin cracks down antisemitism as DOJ official exposes 'violent rhetoric' of radical protesters
The Trump administration has taken a more aggressive approach than its predecessor toward addressing the nationwide surge in antisemitic incidents, launching investigations, punishing elite universities, and intensifying its immigration enforcement practices. President Donald Trump, through his Department of Justice (DOJ) and other agencies, is using law-and-order tactics that his deputies say are necessary, but that critics say could constitute overreach. Harmeet Dhillon, the DOJ's assistant attorney general for the Civil Rights Division, told Fox News Digital she has not seen any "close cases" when it comes to weighing antisemitic behavior against First Amendment rights of those who oppose Israel or Judaism. "Criticizing the government of Israel is not what I'm typically seeing here," Dhillon said. "I'm seeing an intifada revolution. I'm seeing blocking Jewish students from crossing campuses and destroying property on campus, which is a crime. … Quiet, polite conversation and disagreement with Israeli policy is not really what's happening here. It's literally people saying Israel shouldn't exist — and bringing the revolution to the United States." Dhillon added that "that type of violent rhetoric has led to violent acts in our country." After Hamas's deadly terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, the FBI's hate crime statistics showed a sharp spike in anti-Jewish incidents in the U.S. The data runs through December 2023. Anti-Defamation League (ADL) data from 2024 and high-profile incidents this year suggest the trend is continuing. An Egyptian national in the U.S. illegally in Boulder, Colorado, is facing state and federal charges for allegedly injuring 15 people, including elderly victims and a dog last weekend with Molotov cocktails during a peaceful pro-Israel demonstration in support of hostages being held by Hamas terrorists in Gaza. Suspect Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, stated to authorities "he wanted to kill all Zionist people and wished they were all dead," according to an FBI affidavit. During the attack he allegedly yelled "free Palestine," the agent said. In May, Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, who worked at the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., were gunned down outside the Capitol Jewish Museum in D.C. Suspect Elias Rodriguez of Illinois shouted "free Palestine" as he was detained, and Interim U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro said her office is investigating the case as a hate crime and act of terrorism. In another incident, a man allegedly set fire to Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro's residence on the first night of Passover. Emergency call logs released by local authorities revealed that the suspect, Cody Balmer, invoked Palestine after the arson and blamed Shapiro, who is Jewish, for "having my friends killed." Tarek Bazrouk, who identified himself as a "Jew hater" and said Jewish people were "worthless," allegedly carried out a series of assaults on Jewish New Yorkers in 2024 and 2025, according to an indictment brought against him in May. Bazrouk wore a green headband that mimicked Hamas garb and a keffiyeh during the attacks, and he celebrated Hamas and Hizballah on his social media, according to federal authorities. Trump warned in an executive order at the start of his presidency that foreign nationals participating in "pro-jihadist protests" would be deported, and he specifically highlighted college campuses as being "infested with radicalism." Unlike the Biden administration, the Trump administration has since gone to war with elite universities, some of which have been roiled by disruptive pro-Palestinian protests that involve occupying academic buildings and installing encampments. Harvard and Columbia, in particular, are now engaged in litigation after Trump moved to freeze billions of dollars in federal funding for the universities and ban Harvard's foreign students. The embattled schools have been successful in winning temporary pauses to Trump's sanctions through the courts, but litigation is pending and legal experts have said they face an uphill battle. The Trump administration has zeroed in on non-citizen students and activists who it has accused of supporting Palestinian causes in ways it deems hostile to U.S. interests. Amid Trump's pursuit of visa and green card holders, Mahmoud Khalil's case has become a flashpoint. Khalil was arrested in March and detained after the administration accused him of violating immigration laws by engaging in anti-Israel activism. This week, Khalil said in court papers the administration's claims against him were "grotesque" and that his activism involved "protesting this Israeli government's indiscriminate killing of thousands of innocent Palestinians." Civil rights groups have warned that the government's hardliner posture risks violating free speech and protest rights. A coalition of 60 groups issued a joint statement this week on antisemitic hate crimes in which it warned the Trump administration not to over-correct because it would "make us all less safe." "As we condemn these heinous [antisemitic] acts and those who perpetrate hate and violence, we also recommit to ensuring that these events — and the legitimate fear in the Jewish community — are not exploited to justify inhumane immigration policies or to target Arab Americans and those who peacefully and nonviolently exercise their First Amendment rights in support of Palestinian human rights," the groups said. Dhillon told Fox News Digital: "It's not my responsibility to balance free speech issues on campus. It's my responsibility to enforce the federal civil rights laws. And my opinion, there's really no conflict." When he took office, Trump vowed in a string of executive orders to direct Attorney General Pam Bondi to "aggressively prosecute terroristic threats, arson, vandalism and violence against American Jews." Trump appointees at the DOJ then moved quickly to convene an antisemitism task force. Dhillon said there is also frequent communication between the White House, the DOJ, and Jewish leaders about addressing antisemitism. "We have heard from the Jewish community, and I've probably met with — I think there's at least two dozen rabbis who have my number on speed dial now. I literally sent three emails to rabbis in the last hour," she said. She said her division has opened several investigations involving land use for religious purposes under a law known as the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA), including five related to Judaism. The administration is also notifying Jewish communities of grants available for added security at synagogues, and she said campuses are a "significant focus" for her. After reports surfaced that Dhillon's shakeup in the Civil Rights Division led to a mass exodus of more than 100 attorneys leaving the division, she told the media she was unfazed by the departures and that her focus remains on launching the division's work toward combating antisemitism. Testing the limits of his subordinates and the courts, another top DOJ official, Emil Bove, launched an internal investigation into Columbia student protesters early this year. The probe caused concern among line attorneys, who felt it was flimsy and was also met with multiple reprimands from a magistrate judge, according to the New York Times. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement in May that the New York Times' story was false and fed to the newspaper "by a group of people who allowed antisemitism and support of Hamas terrorists to fester for years." Blanche confirmed the veracity of the investigation and said it involved, in part, a probe into a Hamas-linked image on Columbia University Apartheid Divest's social media.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Are the Epstein files still sealed? Here's what we know
The Brief Elon Musk claimed Donald Trump is named in the Epstein files, reigniting public interest and online speculation. The FBI says it's reviewing tens of thousands of Epstein-related materials but has not confirmed any names or release dates. Only partial records have been made public, and pressure is mounting on the DOJ to release more. LOS ANGELES - After years of speculation and partial disclosures, the Epstein files have returned to the national spotlight — this time because of Elon Musk. In a social media post Thursday, Musk accused former President Donald Trump of being named in the documents related to Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex offender whose high-profile associations have fueled conspiracy theories across the political spectrum. RELATED: Musk says 'Trump is in the Epstein files' as public feud escalates Musk offered no proof, but his claim immediately reignited public interest in the long-secret files. What exactly is in the Epstein files? Why haven't they been fully released? And is there any truth to the idea that names are being protected? What we know The government has acknowledged ongoing internal reviews of Epstein-related materials, but so far, only select records have been released. The term "Epstein files" refers to thousands of documents, videos, and investigative materials gathered by federal and state authorities across multiple cases tied to Epstein and his associates. Many court documents, particularly from Epstein's 2008 Florida case and the 2019 charges in New York, have been made public, but others remain sealed or redacted. Attorney General Pam Bondi said last month that the FBI is reviewing "tens of thousands" of Epstein-related videos and documents. Bondi said materials will be released once redactions are made to protect victims and ongoing investigations. FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Director Dan Bongino said in a Fox News interview that they've seen the full file and maintain Epstein died by suicide. They also said surveillance video from Epstein's cell will be released in the coming months. What we don't know Despite growing public pressure, key questions about the files — including who is named and when the material will be released — remain unanswered. No official source has confirmed that Trump appears in any Epstein-related documents. Musk did not specify which documents he was referring to or provide supporting material. The timeline for the full release of videos or unsealed documents has not been made public. The total scope of what the FBI or DOJ intends to keep classified — permanently or temporarily — remains unclear. The backstory Donald Trump built much of his political identity on promises to expose the "deep state" and reveal hidden truths — including, at times, alluding to Epstein. As president, he claimed his administration would declassify major troves of government records. While he did release over 63,000 pages tied to the JFK assassination, he has not fully followed through on releasing Epstein-related materials. The skepticism deepened after Trump's own FBI officials dismissed theories that Epstein was murdered. Patel and Bongino both asserted Epstein's death was a suicide, contradicting some of their earlier public skepticism. Online, Trump supporters and critics alike responded with frustration, asking why the administration, which has stacked agencies with loyalists, still hasn't produced answers. What they're saying "You know a suicide when you see one, and that's what that was," FBI Director Kash Patel told Fox News. "I have seen the whole file," Bongino added. "He killed himself." Their comments contradicted earlier statements Bongino made as a podcast host, when he suggested the government was covering up Epstein's death. Tucker Carlson echoed that sentiment on his show: "No matter who gets elected… the Epstein videos remain secret." Newsmax host Todd Starnes posted, "They told us for months leading up to the Election that it wasn't suicide. But now they tell us it was suicide. Pardon me, but what the heck is going on at DOJ?" Even some Trump allies questioned the silence. "If it's easy, why hasn't your administration found these criminals already?" one user posted on Trump's Truth Social platform. The other side Elon Musk's accusation came amid a personal and political falling out with Trump, whom he had supported just months earlier. After Musk blasted Trump's federal spending bill as "pork-filled," Trump threatened to pull billions in government contracts from Musk's companies. Musk responded by making the explosive Epstein claim — without documentation — on X. While many saw it as retaliation, the statement pushed the Epstein issue back into public view, and with it, longstanding demands for government transparency. What's next The DOJ has said more releases are coming — including possible surveillance footage from Epstein's jail — but hasn't provided a schedule. Bondi insists the delay is due to the need to protect victims, but some right-wing influencers and Trump supporters view the delay as stonewalling. There are no public plans to unseal the full list of names connected to Epstein's case files, despite repeated calls from across the political spectrum. Until more documents are released or the DOJ directly addresses Musk's accusation, public suspicion is likely to grow. The Source This article is based on reporting from the Associated Press and statements from Elon Musk and Donald Trump on social media. Quotes from FBI Director Kash Patel, Deputy Director Dan Bongino, and Attorney General Pam Bondi were taken from a recent Fox News interview. Additional commentary came from figures like Tucker Carlson and Todd Starnes, as well as publicly available court records and previous DOJ statements regarding the Epstein investigation.
Miami Herald
4 hours ago
- Miami Herald
A daughter with DACA, a mother without papers, and a goodbye they can't bear
Michelle Valdes' mom thinks she sees immigration agents everywhere: in the lobby of the building where she cares for elderly clients, at the local outlet mall, on downtown corners. The fear is constant. Driving to work, going to the store —just leaving the house feels too risky for her. At work, while she cooks and cleans in her clients' homes, she listens as stories of immigration detentions, deportations and constantly changing laws and policies play loudly in English from the TV. The 67-year-old undocumented Colombian national who has lived in the United States for more than a third of her life has stopped driving completely, opting for Uber, and ducking down in the backseat when she sees police officers. As a Jehovah's Witness, she has chosen not to do her door-to-door ministry and only attends church on Zoom. But what keeps her up at night these days is that she will soon go without seeing her daughter, likely for close to a decade. She is preparing to leave the United States after 23 years, leaving behind her 31-year-old daughter, a DACA recipient or 'Dreamer' who came to the United States when she was 8 and is still in the process of gaining her green card. Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, is a federal program that protects undocumented people who came to the U.S. as children from deportation. 'I don't want to feel like I'm going to be spending two months in some detention center in the middle of God knows where, where none of my family members see me,' she said in Spanish during an interview with the Herald. She asked not to use her name for this story because she fears she could be targeted. 'I'm done,' she said. Her daughter's immigration situation is also precarious, even though she is married to a U.S. citizen. His family, from Cuba, got lucky when they won the visa lottery. But her family did not have such luck. Valdes' family did what immigrants often do: They fled danger, asked for political asylum, hired lawyers and filed paperwork. And they lost. Last year, only 19.3% of Colombian asylum cases were approved, according to researchers at Syracuse University. Even in 2006, when violence was at a very high point in Colombia, only 32% of asylum cases were approved. Their family's story reveals the toll a constantly changing and exceedingly complicated immigration system has on families who tried to 'do the right thing' and legalize their status. Now, under President Trump's administration, which has ramped up enforcement and the optics around it, being undocumented has become even more hazardous. People who have been living and working in the shadows in the United States are now being forced to decide if the reward of seeking a better life is still worth the risk. And those who are following the rules are afraid the rules will keep changing. The mother has already started packing boxes. Denied asylum Valdes' mom had never heard of the American Dream. She said she had never even heard the phrase 'el sueño americano' before coming to the United States. The family fled Colombia in 2002, leaving behind comfort and status. Valdes' mother had been an architect in Cartagena, a city on the South American nation's Caribbean coast. The family had a driver, a cook and a nanny. But violence by the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia, the rebel group known as FARC, was encroaching on their lives: armed robbery at their home, threatening calls and the kidnapping of her cousin, a wealthy businessperson. The family was forced to pay a ransom for his release. The early 2000s in Colombia, under President Andrés Pastrana, were years of intense violence by guerrilla gangs such as the FARC, who targeted wealthier Colombians. 'They would just pick up anybody who they believed they could get money from,' said Valdes. Her aunt would often call Valdes' mom from Florida, telling her their family would be safer here. The family arrived on a tourist visa in 2002, found a lawyer and applied for asylum. It was denied in 2004. Under U.S. immigration policy, people who have suffered persecution due to factors such as race, religion, nationality, membership to a social group, or political opinion can apply for asylum. It must be filed within a year of arrival in the United States. Valdes' family's interview did not go well and they were placed in removal proceedings. They appealed and in 2006 took the case to the U.S. Board of Immigration Appeals. The family's asylum application claimed that Valdes' mom would be killed by the FARC guerilla gang if she returned to Colombia, in connection with her cousin's kidnapping. But the court ultimately found holes in her case, and said her fear is not well founded and that she failed to prove that she would be in danger if she returned to Colombia. Their final motion was denied in part because it was filed 45 days late, according to the court filing. Valdes was just 11 years old when the courts denied her family's final plea to stay in the United States. The family was issued removal orders. 'I feel like I made a mistake asking for asylum,' said Valdes' mother. 'I wasn't guided well because I was scared and didn't know what to do.' She says predatory lawyers charged her close to $40,000 but never told her the truth about her odds of winning the case. 'It's pure show,' she said in Spanish. 'I believed they would help, but they did nothing.' By then, Valdes and her brothers were attending public schools in West Palm Beach, a right undocumented children have because of a supreme court ruling which passed narrowly in the early '80s. 'I just kind of poured my whole life into school, just to kind of distract myself from other things going on in life, specifically with immigration,' she said. In fifth grade, she won the science fair. At Roosevelt Middle School she was in the pre-med program and the national junior honor society. She always had A's and B's in school. But when her middle school national honor society was invited to Australia, she had to stay behind, unable to travel because she was undocumented. At Suncoast Community High School, she was invited to sing in a choir concert in Europe, but again, she could not go. In 2007, ICE detained Valdes' parents and her eldest brother. Her other brother and Valdes were picked up from school and reunited with their parents at the ICE office. Valdes' mom said the officer told her that since the family had a removal order, they needed to deport at least one person to prove they completed their quota for the day. But to this day, Valdes and her mother can't fully explain why the father was deported but they were released. Was it luck? Did the ICE officers sympathize with their family? Then 13, Valdes remembers standing in the Miami immigration office as agents took her father away. 'He was wearing jeans, a tan coat and a gray-blue fisherman's hat,' she said. 'What I remember the most is that there was, like, some sort of feeling that I got, that I knew that I was never gonna see him again.' He was deported in January of 2007, when Valdes was in seventh grade. It was the only semester she ever failed in school, she said. Her father died at 69 in Colombia in 2022. A petition for him to get legal status and return to the U.S., filed on his behalf of his son from a previous marriage, was approved a year after his death, said Valdes. '17 years too late,' she said, in tears. DACA as a lifeline In 2012, Valdes and her mother were preparing to leave the United States for good. Flights were booked. Boxes mailed. Then, just 14 days before departure, President Obama announced the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. The program was meant to protect children like Valdes, who came to the U.S. at a young age. Valdes was 18. Her phone lit up with messages from people in her community who knew she was undocumented. She applied that October. As a 'Dreamer,' or DACA recipient, she's protected from deportation and able to work legally — but can't travel outside the country. Her two older brothers, Ricardo and Jean Paul, had already left the country by then. After attending public schools and graduating from high school, the brothers could not attend college or find work. So in 2011, they returned to Colombia, and their mother sent them money to attend university. They both still live there and haven't seen their mom in 14 years. Valdes' situation was slightly better, but without legal permanent residency, she didn't qualify for most scholarships. The one scholarship she did get was a $4,000 scholarship from the Global Education Center at Palm Beach State, but $1,500 was deducted in taxes because she was considered a foreign student. Starting in 2014, Florida universities provided in-state tuition waivers for undocumented students under certain conditions. But because Valdes didn't enroll in college within a year of graduating from high school, she lost access to the waiver. That waiver was recently canceled in Florida for undocumented students, and starting July 1, at least 6,500 DACA recipients in Florida enrolled in public universities will have to pay the out-of-state tuition rate. 'When people asked me what I wanted for my birthday, I would ask for money to pay my tuition,' she said. Throughout those years, people would come to Valdes asking for help filling out their work permit applications, DACA applications and other legal forms, and they would say, 'Wow, you are so good at it.' Although she never wanted to do anything law or immigration related, she kept getting pulled in that direction, and decided to get her paralegal certificate, Valdes said. She now works at an immigration law office. Her plan is to go to law school after getting hands on training. 'I always thought: When I turn 18, I'm an adult — 'why am I still tied to my mom's case?' ' she said. 'But nobody explained it.' At her job in the law office, she finally learned the full truth of her case. Her name is still listed on her mother's asylum application — the case that was denied in 2006. So she still had a final removal order connected to her name. That case, and its order of removal, still haunts her. Although she's married to a U.S. citizen, it will take her years to adjust her status to get a green card and permanent residency status. The process will involve her husband filing petitions and waivers explaining that it would be an extreme hardship for him if she were deported. Valdes will have to leave the country and re-enter. In all, the process could take around eight years. Former president Joe Biden had a program to help people like Valdes, whose family is of 'mixed-status' but the program was shut down by Republicans. Immigration attorneys say there are fewer and fewer pathways for people married to U.S. citizens to legalize their status. The roadblocks and complications frustrate Valdes to tears. Valdes said that it is not fair that 'under our immigration system, a child, at such a young age, has to suffer the consequences of the parents' mistakes.' 'No es justo, no es justo,' she said, crying. It's not fair. But immigration laws, enforcement and policies are changing every day. 'People say 'get in line, get in line, get in line,' and then you get in line, and it's like, 'Oh, too bad, you don't apply with that anymore, or we're just going to change the laws. Or, you know, you aged out, or you didn't submit by this day,' said Valdes. In the past weeks, ICE agents across the nation have even begun detaining people as they exit immigration courthouses. Some are individuals with final orders of deportation like Valdes and her mom. Just this week, the Supreme Court ruled that President Trump can revoke humanitarian parole for over 500,000 migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela. President Trump has spoken favorably of DACA recipients, but nonetheless, 'Dreamers' still have to reapply every two years, and there is no guarantee their right to legally be in the U.S. will not be revoked. Immigration attorneys say DACA could be the next program to be shut down by the Supreme Court. 'How shaky is DACA? How solid is it?' Valdes asked. Same fear, different country Valdes' mom says she now feels the same fear in the United States as she did in Colombia — maybe worse. 'I'm scared. Terrified,' she said. 'I'm constantly looking over my shoulder, always on alert.' For years, she tried to hold on. But after 23 years, she's tired of living in limbo. Valdes and her mom try not to think much about the fact that they are leaving each other, focusing more on the present and getting through each day. Valdes' mom says her ultimate goal was always for her daughter to get an education in the United States, and now that her daughter has a job, a husband, and is planting roots, she feels like she can go and let her daughter live her life. She left Colombia because she was 'tired of being followed. I was tired of being paranoid. I was tired of never being able to have my freedom, to just live, because I was always so scared. And fast forward, 23 years later, I'm just in the same boat in a different country,' she said. The hardest part for Valdes is imagining being pregnant and then giving birth without her mom by her side. But, she says, 'Now I tell her, I totally understand. It's your turn to finish living your life, Mom. I want her to be at peace, and I want her to rest.' As her mother prepares to leave, Michelle is left with the frustration of knowing that there's nothing she can do. 'I am still helpless. I still can't help her. I still can't help myself. It's a looming darkness you carry every day,' said Valdes.
