Latest news with #EnglishLanguageLearner
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Massachusetts millionaires tax is funding these public schools
EAST LONGMEADOW, Mass. (WWLP) – Over $1.3 billion in revenues from the Fair Share Amendment was secured to provide funding for public education and transportation across Massachusetts. The Fair Share Amendment, better known as the millionaires tax, was signed into law in 2022 and imposes a surtax on individual incomes that exceed $1 million. This year's budget included a $1.33 billion statewide package funded through revenues from the Fair Share Amendment. Senate working 'around the clock' on spending plans $248 million for special education reimbursements $100 million to expand technical education programs $50 million for capital improvements at regional transit authorities $25 million for micro-transit and 'Last Mile' transportation solutions for rural communities $82.5 million in Chapter 90 road funding allocated by road mileage, benefiting rural municipalities $175 million for deferred maintenance at public higher education institutions $25 million for K–3 literacy education $10 million for English Language Learner service expansions $50 million to help school districts manage construction cost overruns due to inflation and tariffs Massachusetts Senator Jacob Oliveira, who represents Hampden, Hampshire, and Worcester, announced that more than $750,000 of the Fair Share Amendment funding is allocated to public schools across his district. 'As a former School Committee member and a proud product of public education, I know firsthand the immense benefits to individuals and the region when we have the same access to opportunity as other areas of the Commonwealth. 'That means delivering both the funding and the infrastructure that our local schools and communities need. I'm proud to have helped to bring meaningful, regionally equitable investments home,' Senator Oliveira said. In a news release from Senator Oliveira, the following school districts are earmarked in the bill however, the final budget will be determined through negotiations between the House and Senate. $28,500 to Ludlow Public Schools for classroom technology upgrades $150,000 to East Longmeadow High School for gymnasium bleacher replacement $75,000 to Granby Public Schools to expand their Information Technology Pathway program $100,000 to Belcher School in Chicopee for critical HVAC system upgrades $30,000 to Old Mill Pond Elementary School in Palmer for accessible playground improvements $26,000 to Palmer High School for gymnasium upgrades $80,000 to South Hadley Public Schools for district-wide gym improvements $92,500 to the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District for technology upgrades $93,000 to Pathfinder Regional Vocational Technical High School to upgrade its horticultural vocational program $75,000 to Longmeadow Public Schools to modernize school security systems 'We are delivering on the promise of the Fair Share Amendment,' Oliveira said. 'This isn't just about a number on a spreadsheet—it's about real outcomes for our kids, for our educators, and for our regional economy. It's about making sure students from Palmer to South Hadley have the same high-quality facilities, programs, and support as anywhere else in the Commonwealth.' WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Federal threats cited in push for student immigrant protections
BOSTON (SHNS) – Education was the 'lifeline' towards stability and opportunity for Emily Romero Gonzalez, who moved to the U.S. at the age of three. 'I grew up undocumented, and knew from a young age that I was different from other students. I couldn't travel to visit my family in Peru, I didn't qualify for certain programs that my peers did, my parents and I couldn't own our own home, and I was constantly visiting lawyers' offices,' Romero Gonzalez, now an education advocate at Massachusetts Advocates for Children, recalled. 'But the one thing I knew that I had access to, no matter what, was school, was an education,' she added. Gonzalez and other education, immigrant and disability advocates are flagging urgent concerns about federal threats to education rights for immigrant and disabled students. Immigrant parents, attorneys and teachers told legislators at a hearing Tuesday that passing a bill codifying federal student protections into state law would help quell fears in immigrant and disability communities under the Trump administration, which has cracked down on its enforcement of illegal immigration and may look to adjust disability services policy since President Donald Trump took office in January. The Sen. Pavel Payano and Rep. Frank Moran bill (S 436 / H 650) would not add new legal protections, but would codify four different protections related to English Language Learners, immigrant students and students with disabilities established by federal statutes and guidance. 'One in eight Massachusetts students is an English Language Learner, and one in six Massachusetts students has a disability,' Payano said. 'Federal rollbacks threaten the rights that protect these children. By codifying these rights into state law, we ensure that Massachusetts continues to uphold equity and education, no matter what.' The bill would codify the right to public education for students regardless of their documentation status and codify provisions in special education law protecting students with disabilities from inequitable school suspensions or expulsions directly related to their disabilities. It would also codify federal guidance addressing needs of English Language learners with disabilities, along with those ensuring interpreters are provided by schools and are not just bilingual, but trained and qualified. Chief Deputy Attorney General Abby Taylor called on the state to codify the protections, harkening back to when Massachusetts codified the right to abortion five years ago, before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. 'In 2020, more than a year before the Supreme Court overturned 50 years of legal precedent when it issued the Dobbs decision, the Massachusetts Legislature took action, had the foresight, to pass the Roe Act and to codify abortion rights into statute,' Taylor said. 'Today, we find ourselves in a similar situation with a federal government that is hostile to civil rights and to longstanding protections for our students,' she continued. Taylor said the AG's office continues to uphold the federal laws still in place, but the office is flooded with concerns, especially in the context of changes and cuts to the Department of Education, some of which could impact student civil rights. President Donald Trump has filed an executive order to close the Department of Education and 'return authority' back to the states, which he said 'would provide children and their families the opportunity to escape a system that is failing them.' There has been discussion among Massachusetts elected officials, Attorney General Andrea Campbell included, about whether the United States is facing a constitutional crisis under the Trump administration. 'We drafted it out of concern based on what we were hearing during the election, and then given the outcome of the election, our concerns have only, I think, deepened since the inauguration,' said Diana Santiago, legal director at Massachusetts Advocates for Children. Representatives from groups like nonprofit Reimagining Migration and Mass. Advocates for Children spoke about threats specifically to Plyler v. Doe, the landmark 1982 U.S. Supreme Court case establishing that states must provide free K-12 education to all students, regardless of their immigration status. In New Jersey, Oklahoma and Texas, action challenging free public education for undocumented students has been recently proposed, and in Tennessee, recent action has been paused. The state of California has codified Doe. Numerous mothers of ELL students also spoke in Spanish, with English translators, about the aspect of the bill that would bolster translation services. Mothers talked about their experiences being unable to participate in their children's educations, or speak with their teachers, because of a lack of available and adequate translation services. Some of the mothers have students in Boston Public Schools, which states that it enrolls over 17,000 English Learner students, 31% of the district's total student population. Jessica Lander, the 2023 Massachusetts history teacher of the year, teaches immigrant students and spoke about the lack of access to translators for both teachers and parents. 'I see the ways in which our immigrant origin parents are excluded from [Individualized Education Program] meetings, which is absolutely not okay. And so ensuring that we have translators there, available, easily accessible, is really essential to ensuring equal access to education for our kids,' Lander said. Local News Headlines WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WWLP.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pedro Martinez selected as education commissioner
BOSTON (WWLP) – The search for a new Bay State education commissioner continued as the commission met on Tuesday to recommend their top choice of the final three candidates. The candidates were pulled from a pool of over 40 applicants, and three ultimately made it to the final interview round–assistant superintendent of Detroit public schools and former Chicago innovation chief Jack Elsey, former deputy commissioner of school programs in the Texas school system Lily Laux (LOX), and leader of Chicago public schools Pedro Martinez. Several Board members emphasized that any of the top candidates would greatly benefit Massachusetts. Congressman Neal discusses budget cuts by Trump administration at Veterans Roundtable in Ludlow 'I regret that we don't have a tri-partheid commissionership to solve the problem, but we don't,' said Holyoke's Michael Moriarty, a board member. Ultimately, the board selected Pedro Martinez, praising his deep understanding of education data, dedication to poor and marginalized children, extensive leadership experience, and personal story as an immigrant and English Language Learner. 'I give the edge to Pedro Martinez,' said Education Secretary Patrick Tutwiler. 'There is a proven track record of success in extraordinarily unideal context.' Two board members abstained from the final vote, throwing their support behind Lily Laux, both mentioning her understand of what Massachusetts needs and focus on literacy rates. The selected commissioner is set to begin their official duties this July. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
TN Rep. Hawk: Undocumented students bill may be dead for '25
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WJHL) — A controversial bill that would require Tennessee public school systems to determine all students' citizenship or legal status may be dead for the year, a Northeast Tennessee representative said Thursday. Investigation active after autistic child walks away from school, found by mom The bill, which would also allow school systems to charge tuition to undocumented students or deny them enrollment, is not on the House of Representatives calendar for next week. The legislative session is set to wrap up then. The measure passed the Senate 19-13 last week, with seven Republicans joining all six Democrats in voting against it. Rep. David Hawk said the fact that a fiscal cost is associated with the bill, and that no funds to support any of its costs were included in the budget passed Wednesday, greatly diminish chances of it going before the full house. 'Stranger things have happened,' Hawk told News Channel 11 when asked whether the bill sponsored by William Lamberth (R-Portland) might still make its way to a floor vote. 'I've seen bills come out from behind a budget document that I did not expect. I don't know what the 11th-hour machinations may be, because I haven't had this conversation with the sponsor of the legislation. But it doesn't look like that bill is going to move forward in this calendar year.' Bill that could bar undocumented students passes TN Senate 19-13 with 7 GOP 'no' votes The bill's fiscal note reckoned that up to $1.1 billion in federal education funding could be at risk if the federal government determined the measure violated federal law. Typically, legislators would look for assurances that cost would not come to fruition, or find funds to cover those costs in the event they did. 'We'll have pieces of legislation that will pop up from time to time that will say, if this bill passes, it could jeopardize federal funding,' Hawk said. 'We've seen that in transportation funding. We've seen it in Department of Human Services funding. 'It can do that, and the concerns are real. There are some realistic concerns that if you were to have to backfill that $1 billion with state funds, what does that look like?' Opponents, including some Republicans, have called the bill inhumane and said it would represent an unfunded mandate for school systems as they met requirements to document each enrolling student's legal status. They don't do that now, largely because the 1982 Plyler v Doe Supreme Court decision prohibited any public schools in the U.S. from denying a child education based their citizenship or legal residency status. Supporters, including Senate sponsor Bo Watson (R-Hixson), have acknowledged passage would likely lead to federal court battles and potentially to Tennessee arguing for a reversal of that decision. Watson and other supporters have said the cost of providing English Language Learner courses has risen exponentially in Tennessee and argued that undocumented students likely represent a large portion of that cost. They've touted the bill, which gives systems the option of charging tuition to undocumented students but doesn't mandate it, as a way for school systems to recoup some of that expense. PREVIOUS: Schools director speaks on undocumented students bill Public education groups from superintendents' organizations and the Tennessee School Boards Association to principals' organizations have publicly opposed the bill. Several local school leaders have told News Channel 11 they would not deny enrollment to any student who lived in their districts. Lamberth did not move for the bill to be advanced in any House Finance, Ways, and Means subcommittees this week. Most other bills that haven't yet passed moved through that subcommittee and through the full Finance, Ways, and Means committee and on to the full House calendar this week. That said, it's an open question whether President Donald Trump's administration would withhold federal education funding from Tennessee if the bill became law. 'I'm going to surmise that the sponsors of the legislation, the prime sponsor of the legislation and both the House and the Senate are having those conversations with our federal officials to see what the the realistic potential loss of revenue could be,' Hawk said. 'They may have got an answer that said, put a pause on it this year and see what we can do next year, so that could very well have played out.' Hawk was careful to note that whatever conversations might be taking place about the bill's future for this session don't include him. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
TN undocumented students bill passes another committee
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WJHL) — A bill to allow Tennessee public schools to charge tuition to children illegally in the U.S. or deny them enrollment passed another state Senate committee Tuesday, though again with multiple 'no' votes from Republican members. A new amendment to the bill appears to reinstitute a mandate that all state public school systems document the citizenship, visa or legal immigration status of each child seeking to enroll. A previous amendment from last week would have given school systems an option to not check that status and to continue serving all students regardless of legal status. The current bill does make the decision whether to deny enrollment or demand tuition optional for school districts. Senate Bill 0836, sponsored by Hixson Republican Bo Watson, passed the Senate Finance, Ways and Means Committee 7-4 and will now head to the Senate Calendar Committee. News Channel 11 emailed Watson's office Tuesday morning for clarification on the documentation issue but had not received a response by late Tuesday afternoon. We also requested an interview March 26 after Watson's previous amendment but did not receive a response. Sen. Jeff Yarbro (D-Nashville) was in Tuesday's meeting and told News Channel 11 in an afternoon Zoom call that he interpreted the amendment to mean school districts would be required to develop systems to document citizenship/legal status. 'Trying to determine as a matter of law what someone's immigration status is a thorny endeavor that usually requires a lot of expertise in both the way the documents work from other states and what the law says,' Yarbro said. He said if the law passes he expects school systems will need to seek outside legal counsel to enact it. 'It's going to be a massive expense that's genuinely an unfunded mandate,' Yarbro said. Yarbro's assessment contrasts with Watson's remarks during the committee meeting, during which he said school districts already collect the addition to Democrats London Lamar and Yarbro, Republican Senators Ferrell Haile and Page Walley voted against the bill. Watson, John Stevens, Joey Hensley, Jack Johnson, Bill Powers, Paul Rose and Ken Yager, all Republicans, voted in favor. Advocacy groups have expressed strong opposition to the bill, which would likely wind up in court if it becomes law due to its implicit challenge to the 1982 Plyler v Doe Supreme Court decision. That 5-4 ruling found that all children in the U.S., regardless of legal status, have a right to a free, public K-12 education. Monday, when the amended bill still made checking student status optional, Johnson City School Board Chairman Jonathan Kinnick told News Channel 11 the system would not set up such a system if it was optional. 'I can't imagine any system that would do that,' Kinnick said. 'I know for sure Johnson City will not.' Watson produced a chart showing sharply rising costs to provide English Language Learner (ELL) classes. Because school systems don't track the number of undocumented students they teach, he said he's using that as 'a correlation of what may be happening in the undocumented community.' 'I have long felt that we need to have a conversation about the costs imposed upon the citizens for funding ELL,' Watson said. Neither Walley nor Haile asked their fellow Republican Watson any questions before casting their 'no' votes, but Yarbro and Lamar had numerous questions and comments. Yarbro said he believed the bill would create significant administrative costs for school districts to set up documentation systems centered around citizenship verification. He added that school systems would likely keep most of their ELL staff in place to continue teaching what he estimated is the vast majority of ELL students with citizenship or legal status. 'If you talk to districts and think about what it means to convert all 1,800 public schools into institutions that review the citizenship status of every student every year, that is going to be massively expensive,' Yarbro said. Watson disagreed, though he said the Tennessee Department of Education's promulgation of rules regarding the process would provide the most specific answers to cost. He held up enrollment forms for the Metro Nashville Public Schools that ask for a birth certificate, passport, I-94 or other paperwork related to a person's place of birth after Lamar also expressed concerns about the difficulty people might have getting the required documentation. 'These things are already being required,' Watson said. 'I'm not adding anything to that. So the challenges that you describe would exist today.' Lamar asked Watson whether school systems 'will be required to call ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) if a student attempting to enroll can't show citizenship or legal status. Watson said the legislation doesn't address that. 'That would be considered in the rules and regulations that the Department of Education would promulgate relative to this legislation,' Watson said. Lamar said she didn't find that answer sufficient. 'I just want to point … to the dangers of how we're creating another avenue for law enforcement to come in and take children away based on something they cannot control,' she said. The fear of ICE entering schools is real enough that Johnson City Schools have at least prepared for that possibility, Kinnick told News Channel 11 Monday. 'We've already got protocols in place in case ICE shows up at the school,' Kinnick said. 'The administrators know what to do, to send them here to Central Office. The Central Office knows what to ask credential-wise and authority-wise. So we're prepared if anything strange does happen.' Yarbro said during Tuesday's meeting the legislation has 'a moral cost,' and said getting at the number of undocumented people in Tennessee could be done by penalizing companies that hire undocumented workers. 'That would at least be going after the people who are relying upon and in many cases profiting from undocumented labor,' he said. 'But instead we are in this legislation punishing kids. Children. For conduct that, regardless of what you think, here certainly isn't a 6-year-old and 7-year-old's fault. Depriving people of the ability to become literate, to learn the language of the country where they are living is … unconscionable.' Watson said schools that choose not to enroll students won't lose state funding for those slots. He said the state's other K-12 students would gain if undocumented ones pay tuition or aren't enrolled, 'to the extent that the per pupil funding for the students who are documented is increased, which increases what people have been screaming for across the state.' The bill has mostly been in Senate committees so far, and from those votes, it appears Senate Republicans will be at least somewhat split on it. Republicans, though, hold a 27-6 advantage in that chamber, and at least 11 of them would have to defect from a full Senate vote to defeat the bill. 'It's remarkably uncommon to see this level of opposition to a bill that's brought by leadership of the Republican party,' Yarbro told News Channel 11. Four out of 15 Republican senators in committees have cast 'no' votes on the bill, and three House Republicans (out of 14 voting) voted 'no' in an Education Committee meeting last week — including Sixth District Rep. Tim Hicks of Gray. 'I think that you've seen a lot of people who are motivated by their faith conviction, motivated by just their sense of what's right and wrong who are going to stand in opposition to this bill and think that this is a bridge just way too far,' Yarbro said. So far, in committee, the ratio has not equaled that 16-11 level. A total of 11 Republicans have voted yes in committee, and four have voted no: Haile, Walley, Mark Pody and Kerry Roberts. In addition to the seven who voted in favor Tuesday, Education Committee members Rusty Crowe of Johnson City, Dawn White, Bill Powers and Adam Lowe have cast yes votes. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
