February 21, 2025
Dear BSD Community,
Over the past several weeks, I have heard concerns from many different people in our community regarding recent actions at the federal level that contradict the Core Beliefs of our District which promote diversity, equity, and inclusion, as well as State and District policies. I want you to know I share those concerns. I am writing today to assure you that our State, City, and District policies and procedures continue to direct us to specifically program for and protect our community, especially those who have been most historically marginalized by white supremacy culture – including students of the Global Majority, students who identify as LGBTQIA+, and multilingual students, students with disabilities, and students who qualify for free and reduced lunch.
Three years ago, we co-constructed a strategic plan with our community, with the goal of making sure our District is “student centered and responsive to the full range of identities, abilities, cultures, and languages in our community, such that every student is challenged, empowered and engaged in their learning in our schools.” We remain steadfastly committed to our work to be student-centered, anti-racist, and anti-ableist, and our School Board policies continue to give us the ability to do this work with integrity. In fact, one of the main reasons I came to Burlington was that these policies which direct the District to reduce disparities mattered deeply to our community; this is the work I will continue to prioritize in my role as superintendent.
In the past two months, we have worked hard to take more steps to keep our community safe. At this point that has meant making our positions clear and taking tangible actions to protect our people as much as we possibly can. In this process, our goal has been to work with those community members who are most directly impacted and to take their lead in our approach. Because of this, I know our work has not always been clear to the broader community so I am sharing some of these actions below.
- Developed and published first-in-Vermont procedures for encounters with non-local law enforcement in schools after comparison with national models and consultation with BSD attorneys.
- Documented and solidified Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Procedures that we had been using internally for the past several years.
- Distributed Red Cards in a variety of languages to multilingual families and multilingual middle school and high school students.
- Clarified with our legal team the existing protection of being a school district in a Sanctuary City, meaning we will take all legal means to protect the status of all residents who are undocumented, without having to pass policies or resolutions specifically calling BSD a Sanctuary School District.
- Sent a direct message in multiple languages to all multilingual BSD families to remind them that schools are safe places, assure them that we want them here, and encourage them to continue sending their children to school.
- Hosted “Legacy and Light: A Celebration of Black Heritage & Excellence” and messaged our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and at the beginning of Black History Month.
- Shared Vermont Language Justice Project “Know Your Rights” videos with multilingual families through WhatsApp and other distribution networks.
- Launched a home-to-school initiative to provide some multilingual students with an additional layer of support on their journey to and from school.
- Began carefully monitoring attendance of multilingual students from vulnerable populations, identifying trends, and reaching out when concerns arise.
- Collaborated with Mayor Mulvaney-Stanek to coordinate efforts to support students and families.
- Working with Vermont Legal Aid, Multilingual Liaisons shared information with families about guardianship.
- Worked with Office of Refugee Resettlement and Refugee & Immigrant Service Providers Network to learn about ongoing efforts by local agencies (including Vermont Asylum Assistance Project) to provide support for vulnerable multilingual Vermont families.
- Collaborated with the Janet S. Munt Family Room to promote cross-agency collaboration by educators, healthcare providers, and others in support of vulnerable multilingual families in Burlington.
- Director of Programs for Multilingual Learners addressed a gathering of approximately 200 clients of USCRI Vermont to share school procedures, encourage attendance, and remind multilingual families that they are valued in BSD.
- Shared an extensive list of resources with BSD leadership and all faculty and staff via the Department of Multilingual Learners’ Jan-Feb Newsletter.
- Some staff members have registered to attend the Education Justice Coalition’s workshop (Supporting Immigrant Students and Families: Resources and Tools for School Workers… Check it out!)
- BSD Peer Mediators held a student-led restorative circle to talk about the impacts of the government transition on their learning and wellbeing
- In our January and February meetings, the Superintendent Student Advisory group gave me feedback on their concerns and what they need.
I know that there are and will be many things we still need to do, so please reach out if you have ideas, if you think we are missing anything, or if you would just like to connect. One of the greatest things about our community is how much we care about each other and come together when things are difficult. Thank you for your engagement and partnership.
Sincerely,
Tom
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Office of the Superintendent | Burlington School District
150 Colchester Avenue | Burlington, VT 05401
(office) 802.864.8474 | (fax) 802.864.8501 | www.bsdvt.org
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