At the risk of sounding trite, Barrington Public Schools once felt like a family. And while it is of course a school system and a workplace, it has lost the sense of humanity and collegiality that once truly set it apart from other institutions and school districts.”

Ben Fillo, Barrington teacher and NEAB President

We are listening to you. We hear you.”

Gina Bae, school committee chairwoman

Dozens of Barrington teachers, many of them wearing red shirts, attended the school committee meeting on Thursday night, Sept. 8, and shared their frustrations and concerns with the district’s leaders.

Some teachers spoke out against policies and protocols that have been created in the district without consideration or input from teachers.

Others talked about the administration’s decision to continue offering hybrid instruction to students who test positive with Covid-19, despite the problems with that delivery of education.

And some questioned the district’s move to add more pre-school classes at Primrose Hill School despite already-crowded classrooms there. 

After listening to the comments, Barrington School Committee Chairwoman Gina Bae did something rarely done during the public comment portion of school committee meetings: She responded.

Bae, speaking for herself and not the whole committee, said she appreciated the comments and the feedback from the educators.

“We are listening to you,” Bae said. “We hear you.”

Bae then offered an explanation about the policy that calls for the continuation of the hybrid model in Barrington schools.

“My understanding from the policy and what we thought was being presented, was that for students who are Covid-positive and out for five days and asymptomatic or well enough to be able to observe a class … the expectation wasn’t for hybrid instruction or to engage with the student, it was to have the camera on so the student could observe in the classroom if they feel well enough to attend,” Bae said.

Bae shared a story about her own daughter. She said that her daughter had tested positive twice during the last school year and was asymptomatic both times. 

“She was well enough to attend class, just couldn’t,” Bae said.

Currently the district is requiring any students who test positive to quarantine for five days; officials point to the guidance from the CDC. 

However, some teachers questioned why the district would create a policy that requires some students to view their classes via Zoom, while allowing other students who are home sick to rest and recuperate and not have to log in online.

Mary Roberts, who has taught in Barrington schools since 1989, asked administrators why the district is treating those illnesses differently. 

Other Barrington teachers, including Nahum Mitnik, said if a child is home sick they should be resting and recuperating, not trying to keep up with a class through Zoom.

Many teachers testified to the shortcomings of hybrid learning. They spoke as teachers and as parents, having, at times, watched their own children struggle with hybrid learning model. 

Katherine Schoppel, a teacher at Barrington High School, said that being on Zoom is not for the greater good — she said teachers are speaking out not because they do not want to teach through Zoom… “It’s because it’s not working,” she said. 

Ben Fillo, a BHS teacher and head of the local teachers union, shared a statement with members of the school committee and administrators. 

“Teachers in Barrington have, for some time now, lived and worked in this district in which there has been a growing divide between those who are in charge and those of us who work for you… Barrington teachers are exhausted by the feelings of negativity that continue to circulate around our community. They are discouraging because, after all, we are all here for the same purpose and with the same intent: to do what we feel is best for the children under our care,” Fillo said. “That this common ground exists is largely forgotten when district-wide educational decisions are continually made without the voice of important stakeholders. For veteran teachers specifically, this is an unwelcome shift. At the risk of sounding trite, Barrington Public Schools once felt like a family. And while it is of course a school system and a workplace, it has lost the sense of humanity and collegiality that once truly set it apart from other institutions and school districts.”

Fillo pointed to three specific issues that have deepened the divide between district leaders and the educators in Barrington: Use of the Canvas platform; the Right to Read requirements; and the vaccine mandates.

In his written statement, Fillo details the teachers’ frustrations with all three issues. Regarding the vaccine mandates, the statement mentions how Barrington remains the only the district in Rhode Island that opted to fire unvaccinated teachers rather than allow them to continue teaching while following certain other requirements. 

“Our vaccination policy was more strict than even that of the federal government,” the statement reads. “Before vaccinations were available, we were asked to provide private medical information about ourselves and our families (and we complied). We were asked to tell the district when we were traveling and to where (and we complied). 

“Many teachers have reported feeling uncomfortable with the level of personal information we have been asked to disclose, yet we have continually adhered to your requests. It is unfortunate to say, but the way in which employees have been treated regarding Covid vaccinations helps to illustrate the lack of respect afforded to Barrington teachers as a whole.”

Later in the meeting, following Bae’s statement, Mitnik and Fillo returned to the podium to speak. Mitnik said the teachers appreciated Bae’s comments, and that union leadership wants members of the school committee to be more involved in the negotiation process with the district. He said that change could lead to a more efficient process, one where people work together and not through one another.