Revere teachers ask for more support after escalating school fights

Revere teachers went over the School Committee’s head after a teacher was injured during a “massive brawl” last month, bringing their concerns to a City Committee meeting Monday night.

“I hear about incidents related to school safety happening all across our district,” said Revere Teachers Association co-president Jane Chapin, a seventh grade math teacher. “We are at a breaking point.”

The council heard from the RTA, the union that represents educators in the district. Teachers said a fight on the third day of school that sent a staff member to the hospital isn’t out of the norm at Revere High School.

Teachers described frequently breaking up hallway fights, handling classroom disruptions, and struggling from a lack of additional staffing support including paraprofessionals, social workers, and security guards.

“Last year, we saw more incidents of emotional distress, student dysregulation, and mental health crisis among students. But, we’ve been sounding the alarm for years,” Chapin said.

City Council may ask schools to look into hiring security staff

The City Council considered two motions to improve safety for teachers and students, including a feasibility study to hire a private security company or to add more school resource officers, or SROs, at Revere High School. They also briefly discussed looking into how much it would cost to install metal detectors.

After hearing from dozens of teachers, the council sent both measures to a committee to discuss further.

City Council President Anthony Cogliandro said he would support changing the language to include increased security measures throughout the entire district, not just the high school.

“Let’s start preventing fights, let’s start preventing drugs, let’s start preventing vaping, let’s start preventing all of that,” he said.

School Committee Vice Chair Jacqueline Monterroso asked the council to not pass either measure. She said they have the funding for SROs, but they are having difficulty hiring them.

“Instead, I urge you to be a partner with us and consider more constructive ways in providing support. For example, help us find funding to increase transportation … fund the city-sponsored after school program to provide more opportunities, become a mentor for a group of high school seniors and freshmen,” Monterroso said.

Cogliandro said that school issues are “well within the purview of the council.” Most of the council then voiced their support for the teachers.

“These are the concerns of the people that I speak to: students, teachers, and parents,” Cogliandro said. “We want to work together with the School Committee. This isn’t us telling them what to do, or vice versa. This is all of us coming together for the greater good of this community.”