►
Description
Dockets #0588-0596 - Fiscal Year 2021 Budget: Public Testimony Session
B
C
C
I'm
gaveling
this
meeting
of
the
Boston
City
Council's
Ways
and
Means
Committee.
To
order
for
the
record,
my
name
is
Kenzie
Bach,
the
district
8
city,
councilor
I'm.
Also
the
chair
of
the
City
Council's
Ways
and
Means
Committee
I'm
joined
here
today
by
my
colleagues,
councilor
Aneesa
sabe
George
at-large,
councillor
Matt
O'malley
for
district
6,
councillor
Kim
Janey
for
district
7
and
council
president
councillor
Ed
Flynn
for
district
2,
councillor
Lydia
Edwards
for
district
one
councillor,
Michele
Wu
at
large
and
councillor
Michael
Flaherty
at
large.
C
Thank
you
to
all
my
colleagues
for
joining
this
couple
of
hearing
is
being
recorded
and
live
streamed
at
Boston
gov,
slash,
City,
Council
TV.
It
will
be
rebroadcast
on
Comcast
channel
8,
RCN
channel
82
Verizon
channel
1964,
as
folks
who
have
been
watching
at
home
will
know.
By
now.
This
budget
review
is
a
six-week
process.
C
As
we
ask
our
questions
and
think
about
proposed
budget
amendments.
So
we
strongly
encourage
residents
at
home
to
take
a
moment
to
engage
in
this
process.
By
giving
testimony
for
the
record.
You
can
do
this
in
one
of
several
ways.
You
can
attend
virtual
hearings
like
this
one,
and
we
have
a
number
of
people
signed
up
to
speak
this
evening
and
even
if
you're
not
signed
up,
you
can
still
come
and
give
testimony.
If
you
go
to
the
public
notice
for
this
hearing
on
April
16th
at
6
p.m.
C
You
can,
whether
written
testimony
or
there
or
a
video
short
video
of
yourself
there's
a
way
as
well
online
on
the
City
Council
website
to
submit
a
two-minute
video
of
yourself
or
written
testimony,
and
you
can
also
informally
tweet
us
your
questions
using
the
hashtag
vos
budget,
vos
budget
and
so
for
more
information
on
the
council
budget
process
and
how
to
testify.
Please
visit
the
city
council's
budget
website
at
boston,
deca
of
slash,
Council,
FY,
21
budget.
C
So
now
today's
hearing
is
on
dockets
zero.
Five:
eight
eight
two:
zero
five:
nine
zero
orders
for
the
FY
21
operating
budget,
including
annual
appropriations
for
departmental
operations
for
the
school
department
and
for
other
post-employment
benefits,
docket
zero,
five,
nine
one:
two:
zero:
five:
nine
two
orders
for
capital
fund
transfer
appropriations,
dockets
zero,
five,
nine,
three:
two:
zero:
five:
nine
six
orders
for
the
capital
budget,
including
loan
orders
and
lease
purchase
agreements.
C
So
those
collectively
are
the
dockets
that
make
up
the
City
Council
budget.
Traditionally,
the
way
the
budget
is
under
status
as
having
three
parts:
the
Boston
Public
Schools
budget,
the
budget
operating
budget
for
all
other
departments
and
then
the
capital
budget,
where
we
borrow
for
long
term
projects
so
public.
Testimony
today
is
a
dedicated
public
testimony
hearing
there
won't
be
any
administration,
presentation
or-
or
you
know,
council
based
discussion.
The
point
is
really
for
us
to
hear
from
you
and
so,
and
people
are
welcome
to
testify
on
any
any
area
of
the
budget.
C
D
I,
thank
you
counselor
Bock,
and
this
is
my
first
time
participating
in
this
process
and
so
I'm
really
grateful
for
you
hosting
this
opportunity
for
people
to
speak
and
for
those
who
are
about
to
give
public
testimony.
This
is
what
democracy
looks
like
these
are
your
tax
dollars.
This
is
your
opportunity
to
hold
the
council
in
the
city
accountable
to
what
your
needs
are
and
and
ask
questions
and
applicate,
and
so
I
mean
II
the
people
to
this
discussion
and
the
opportunity
to
hear
the
voices
of
the
people
great.
E
F
You,
madam
chair
I,
will
be
brief,
because
it
is
obviously
important
that
we
hear
from
folks
who've
taken
the
time
out
of
this
incredibly
difficult
period.
To
weigh
in
this
is
the
opportunity
to
talk
about
issues
as
it
relates
to
anything
cost
in
public
schools,
city
services,
capital
projects
such
as
the
full
renovation
of
buildings
field
in
West
Roxbury.
F
This
is
the
opportunity
to
weigh
in
we're
delighted
to
represent
you
and
work
for
each
and
every
one
of
you
and
thank
you
to
the
chair
for
being
quite
nimble,
as
it
relates
to
the
budget
process
during
these
incredibly
difficult
times.
Best
wishes
to
everyone
who
is
watching
and
tuning
in.
Thank
you.
Thank.
B
Thank
you.
This
is
one
of
the
most
important
things
that
we
do
as
City
Council
is
being
good
stewards
of
the
city's
finances
and
I'm
grateful
that
you
have
created
space
for
the
public
to
come
in
and
weigh
in
in
a
different
kind
of
way,
where
we're
just
going
to
hear
from
them.
As
councillor
O'malley
said,
this
is
the
opportunity
due
to
weigh
in
with
your
thoughts
and
your
questions.
Our
city's
budget
is
valiant
and
so
I'm
grateful
for
the
opportunity
to
discuss
how
our
budget
will
help
all
of
us
in
Boston
living
Drive.
C
So
if
people
speak
in
their
own
language,
they're
welcome
to
do
so
in
this
process
and
we
will
get
it
translated
for
the
whole
council
and
I'll
just
say
also
that
if
you're
watching
I
want
to
reiterate
before
we
start,
but
if
you're
watching
this
at
home-
and
you
know
maybe
you're
watching
it
later-
and
this
moment
has
already
passed
the
time
to
testify-
has
not
passed
as
the
council
president
alluded
to.
There
will
be
opportunity
to
testify
after
every
hearing
and
also
we
are
taking
tests
of
testimony
submitted
over
email,
whether
video
or
written.
C
Thank
you
any
other
colleagues
wishing
to
speak
all
right,
seeing
none
we're
gonna
start
moving
into
public
testimony,
so
I
will
I
have
a
list
of
folks
who
have
signed
up
in
advance
and
I'll
start
by
recognizing
them,
and
so
what
I'll
do
is
I'll
I'll,
I'll,
say
aloud
sort
of
the
next
couple
folks,
so
that
you
know
that
it's
about
to
be
your
term
but
you'll
for
people
watching
and
waiting
in
the
in
the
Xoom
waiting
room
you'll
be
admitted
into
the
zoom
conference.
When
it's
your
turn
to
speak.
C
So
again,
I
would
just
remind
everybody
to
please
state
your
name
state,
your
residence
or
affiliation
and
just
keep
your
comments,
concise,
so
that
we
can
have
everybody
share
with
us
this
evening.
So
first
step
will
be
Tracy
Curtin
and
just
so
that
people
know
who's
on
deck,
Carlos,
Alvarez,
the
second
and
Carlos
Alvarez.
The
first
are
the
second
and
third
folks
on
the
list.
So
first
up
Tracy.
C
C
H
C
H
Good
evening,
city
councilor
is
my
name's
Tracy
Curran
and
I'm,
a
third
grade
teacher
at
the
PA
Shaw
Elementary
School
in
Mattapan.
Thank
you
so
much
for
taking
the
time
to
hear
our
testimonies
this
evening.
I
want
to
specifically
thank
counselor
Andrea
Campbell
for
coming
to
my
third
graders
zoom
rating
share
the
other
week
and
sharing
a
lot
of
words
of
support
and
inspiration
with
them.
She
is
our
school's
district
representative
and
it's
especially
important
for
the
kids
to
feel
that
kind
of
extra
love
and
support
during
these
difficult
times.
H
H
H
Next
year,
we
asked
that
we
received
the
additional
funding
back
into
our
budget
in
order
to
maintain
this
point:
five
FTE
specialist
position
for
school
year,
2021,
we're
writing
and
speaking
our
testimony
to
the
City
Council
to
voice
that
Mattapan
needs
great
schools,
including
not
just
a
surviving,
but
a
thriving
PA
Shaw,
and
this
is
not
a
one
school
issue.
This
is
a
Boston
Public,
Schools
equity
issue.
H
We've
worked
tirelessly
throughout
the
lifetime
of
our
school
to
provide
not
just
an
excellent,
not
just
excellent
instructional
support,
but
loving
and
responsive
social
emotional
support
for
whole
kids
and
whole
families.
We
ask
you
tonight
and
in
the
coming
weeks
to
turn
your
attention
to
the
PHR.
We
will
continue
to
speak
up
to
make
sure
that
the
school
community
we
love
continues
to
thrive
for
our
families
and
our
entire
staff.
Thank
you
so
much
for
your
support.
Thank.
C
C
C
H
I
I
Today,
I
will
be
reading
like
test
Tony
from
my
school.
Let's
get
on
with
that
when
my
name
is
crows,
Alvarez
and
I
third
grader
at
the
pho
elementary
school
I
want
to
start
by
counsel.
It's
been
handled,
hambo
for
coming
to
our
red
and
orange
pencil
Kendall
and
in
other
City
County
I
think
it
isn't
fair
our
schools.
I
We
need
our
resources
that
those
school
is
closed,
bringing
our
resources
to
be
fresh
and
ready
for
us.
We
open
up
at
the
school
on
May,
4th,
20
and
also
from
there.
What
if
we
come
back
or-
and
you
didn't
have
the
science
program
that
we
have
now
this
might
happen.
I
may
be
an
eighth,
but
much
more
than
that.
But
in
me,
if
I
have
to
protest,
you
keep
my
school's
research
and
materials
up
and
I
wanna.
I
A
My
son
has
had
the
pleasure
of
attending
a
PhD
from
k12
the
third
grade.
He
has
excelled
socially
and
academically
in
so
many
ways.
God
is
an
environment
where
students
feel
free
to
learn
and
express
them.
The
teachers
and
staff
are
caring.
I
really
take
pride
in
teaching
the
students
with
so
many
budget
cuts
I'm
afraid
that
the
school
will
no
longer
be
able
to
provide
a
learning
environment
where
children
can
expel
cutting
music
and
science.
Another
staff
will
take
away
the
subjects
that
my
son
and
other
children
have
expelled.
A
Yet
taking
away
these
opportunities
at
an
early
age
will
deprive
them
of
a
well-rounded
early
education
and
may
lag,
and
they
may
lag
behind
other
students
when
they
move
on
from
this
job.
I'm,
proud
that
my
son
attended
this
job
and
would
love
to
be
able
to
continue
to
recommend
a
shot
to
other
parents.
When
picking
in
school,
with
constant
budget
cuts
and
and
taking
me
to
educational
programs,
you
will
be
depleting
the
resources
needed
to
attract
new
students
and
leaving
them
in
the
dark.
A
C
C
C
C
J
Hi,
my
name
is
Jeremiah
and
I
attend
a
Pho
school
first
I
want
to
thank
counselor
Campbell
for
coming
to
our
publishing
party
on
Stone.
It
was
special
because
you
touch
important
things
about
climate
change
and
you
were
a
great
listener
for
our
books.
I
will
describe
my
school
night.
I
will
describe
the
phot
school
as
a
fun
school.
One
reason:
I
love
my
school
is
because
I
have
a
cool
teacher.
He
makes
learning
fun.
For
example,
my
teacher
Miss
Curtin
has
my
classmates
not
play
one.
J
My
favorite
games
called
pop
that
teaches
us
math
math
skills
like
skip
counting.
Another
reason
is
the
principal
miss
Davis,
miss
Davis
is
kind
and
helpful.
Every
day
she
greets
us
in
person
and
speaks
on
the
intercom
to
remind
us
how
special
we
are.
If
you
came
to
the
Pierre
Shores,
the
ph
olle,
you
would
see
that
we
are
a
family
because
family
hopes
each
other.
Is
it
fair
to
take
resources,
resources
away
from
the
PHR,
because
my
friends
and
I
want
to
be
great
achievers,
so
I
think
you
should
consider
us
at
us.
K
C
J
C
Thank
you.
So
much
Jeremiah
really
appreciate
your
testimony
before
we
move
on
and
you
can
go
back
if
you
want
to
watching
it
on
the
stream
we
before
we
go
onto
the
next
set
of
public
testimony.
I
just
want
to
acknowledge
councillor
Michael
Flaherty
at-large,
who
also
joined
us
and
also
just
to
make
sure
I
know
a
couple
of
councillors.
Counselor
Flaherty
and
counselor
woo
might
not
have
been
able
to
raise
their
hands
when
I
offer
the
chance
for
people
to
make
remarks
at
the
opening.
C
L
C
M
C
N
Is
yours,
hello?
My
name
is
Wendy
Lam
and
I
am
an
ESL
teacher
at
excel
high
school.
This
is
my
third
time
speaking
out
against
a
bps
budget.
I
will
continue
to
do
so
because
I
feel
that
the
students
at
Excel,
High
School,
deserve
the
best
and
the
best
are
the
people
who
serve
them
day
in
and
day
out
at
excel.
We
serve
a
very,
very
high
needs
population.
We
continue
to
students
to
achieve
their
best.
N
Despite
facing
many
adversities
with
a
proposed
budget
for
the
next
school
year,
we
are
still
losing
a
guidance,
counselor
classroom
teachers
and
Dean's.
For
the
past
three
years,
we
have
established
genuine
relationships
with
our
students
with
budget
cuts.
Those
relationships
will
be
severed
and
will
have
an
emotional
scarring
on
students.
Every
adult
at
our
school
has
a
positive
impact
on
students
in
particular,
we
will
be
losing
a
beloved
guidance,
counselor
who's
serving
rides
and
seniors
for
next
year.
N
These
rising
seniors
will
have
another
guidance
counselor
serving
them
who
does
not
know
these
students
on
a
personal
level,
like
the
current
guidance
counselor
does.
This
is
just
one
example
of
the
adverse
effect
that
budget
cuts
have.
The
budget
is
currently
allocated
based,
jected
student
enrollment.
It
does
not
work,
it
is
continuously
punishing
schools
who
serve
the
highest
needs
population.
We
cut
resources
for
those
who
need
it
most.
How
do
you
expect
our
students
to
thrive
when
you
cut
the
people?
They
trust
I'm
scared
to
know
the
emotional
impact
it
will
have
on
our
students.
N
C
N
C
O
So,
even
in
City
cause
of
us,
my
name
is
ping
wink
I'm
in
ten
right
and
I'm
from
SM
high
school
and
serve
the
resources
are
already
very
low.
However,
because
the
budgets
a
being
cut
down
there
in
Sabo,
had
to
eliminate
some
significant
positions
in
the
school
at
this
born
is
obviously
offense
the
success
of
SS
students.
These
positions
play
an
important
role
in
developing
this
code.
If
our
school
doesn't
have
them,
our
education
would
be
less
important
than
others.
Why?
O
Firstly,
because
of
the
lack
of
careless
student
work,
sugar
is
gone
specifically
as
a
from
ESL
student.
The
counselors
helped
me
a
lot
in
choosing
classes
that
can
fit
me
and
they
are
always
willing
to
help
me
to
find
more
opportunities
for
education
or
jobs
and
Sniper
school.
We
also
don't
have
enough
elective
at
our
school
and
yet
classroom
teachers
are
being
cut.
Therefore,
we
are
asking
you
to
give
us
to
make
those
to
fund
that
we
lost
due
to
budget
cuts
and
they
are
significant,
unique
and
cannot
be
replayed
by
any
other
people.
O
All
we
are
asking
to
not
attract
the
people
to
those
who
hon
eliminating
positions,
but
those
who
hundred
positions
are
what
makes
their
runs
even
more
significant
to
us
as
students
without
the
caring
of
teachers
and
counselors
I
might
not
have
enjoyed
and
acculturated
they
have
a
serious
impact
on
student.
Success,
moreover,
is
not
fair.
For
them
to
live
is
still
high
school
because
they
are
dedicated
and
devoted.
They
are
trying
everything
possible
to
help
their
students.
My
education
is
not
any
less
important
than
other
student
and
other
more
well
resourced
schools.
O
C
F
C
L
Well,
thank
you
very
much.
Thank
you
for
the
opportunity
to
to
testify.
My
name
is
Peter
Petrino
and,
along
with
my
brother
Fred,
we
own
property
in
the
north
end
of
there's
one
in
three
Goodrich
court
and
it's
been
our
family
home
for
80
years,
four
generations
that
lived
there,
our
property
abuts
the
foster
a
street
park,
and
that's
the
subject
of
my
my
testimony
in
1930,
the
foster
Street
Park
was
built
and
my
dad
played
there
as
a
child,
and
my
brother
and
I
played
there.
L
But
over
the
years
the
foster
Park
has
become
prey
to
vandals
play,
equipment
and
trees
were
completely
destroyed.
The
area
is
very
rarely
cleaned
and
then
sometime
in
the
1980s
cars
began
parking
there
illegally
and
when
the
city
didn't
take
notice,
more
vehicles
began
parking
there.
So
now
the
foster
Street
Park
is
no
longer
I.
Can
practice
a
de-facto
parking
lot.
L
But
of
immediate
concern
is
the
collapsing
surface.
The
ground
is
caving
in
under
the
weight
of
all
the
vehicles
that
are
parked
there.
The
entire
surface
is
crumbling.
It's
filled
with
significant
crap
cracks
and
sinkholes
and
I've
submitted
files
to
counselor
and
with
office,
so
I'm
requesting
appropriations
as
part
of
the
capital
plan
at
a
minimum
to
rebuild
the
surface.
Restoring
it
to
a
park
with
some
trees
and
benches,
as
it
once
was,
would
be,
would
be
nice.
L
L
P
L
For
this
is
something
we've
been
asking
the
city
to
look
into
for
many
many
years
and
I
want
to
thank
councillor
Edwards
to
being
the
very
first
city
official.
To
give
my
family's
concerns
a
serious
attention
if
there
are
many
efforts
over
the
years
and
also
I'd
like
to
give
a
quick
shout
out
to
councillor
and
Flynn,
because
I
was
one
of
his
teachers
at
Don,
Bosco
Tech,
High
School.
So
thank
you
so
much
for
the
opportunity
to
testify
and
I'd
be
happy
to
answer
any
questions.
D
D
L
Appreciate
that,
thank
you
so
much.
It
was
a
nice
pack
when
I
was
a
child.
That
would
tree
swings,
play
equipment
and
vandals
destroyed
over
the
years.
Like
I
said
in
the
city,
never
really
paid
any
attention.
We
called
so
many
times
and
after
the
car
started
parking
there
we
would
call
Public
Works
and
they
would
defer
us
to
Fox
and
Rec
Parks
and
Rec
would
be
first
back.
The
public
works.
We
have
never
gotten
anywhere.
L
D
C
Q
You
Peter
and
yes,
we've
been
working
a
great
deal
with
you
and
just
making
sure
that
the
city
resources
first
of
all,
are
maintained
by
the
city
as
they
should
be
that
it
is
a
park
or
parking.
Lot
is
still
a
debate,
at
least
for
the
for
the
time
being,
but
that
it
should
be
at
least
well-maintained
is
undebatable.
It
needs
to
be
cleaned,
it
needs
to
be
taken
care
of.
Q
L
Councillor,
thank
you
for
for
everything
that
you've
done
for
us.
So
far,
I
will
tell
you
that
in
my
research,
looking
at
everything,
that's
online,
the
property
is
still
listed
with
Parks
and
Rec.
It's
listed
as
City
Park
number
one
through
three,
and
when
you
look
at
the
tax
records
and
the
maps
of
the
city
of
Boston,
its
labeled
as
of
the
foster
Street
Park
but
like
I
said
sometime
in
the
1980s
vehicles
began
parking
there
illegally.
The
city
never
never
took
attention
to
it
and
then,
of
course,
more
vehicles
began
parking
there.
L
And
now
it's
like
I,
said
a
de-facto
parking
lot,
but
really
it's
it's
a
park,
but
whether
or
not
it's
restored
to
a
park
is
not
the
immediate
concern.
The
immediate
concern
is
the
surface
is
completely
crumbling.
There
are
major
sink
holes
and
cracks,
and
eventually
it's
just
going
to
completely
cave
in
so
I
mean
that
at
a
minimum
is
something
that
needs
to
be
rebuilt.
And
again
this
has
been
something
my
family's
been
battling
with
City
Hall
for
a
long
long
time
and
again,
you
are
the
first
consulate
to
give
this
attention.
G
C
C
P
P
Good
so
I'm,
my
name
is
Michael
Schultz
and
I'm,
testifying
same
issue
that
Peter
patrina
just
testified
on,
which
is
the
the
park
at
the
foster
Street
playground
or
parking
hall.
So
I'm,
a
neighbor
of
the
Petrino's
I
live
at
5
Goodrich
court.
My
unit
also
abuts
this
parking
lot
and
I
really
appreciate
computers,
advocacy
to
improve
the
area
and
also
counselor
all
those
comments
as
well.
So
I've
lived
here
for
20
years
with
my
family
and
during
that
time
it's
always
been
a
parking
lot.
P
It's
never
I've,
never
seen
it
as
a
playground
and
also
during
this
time,
I've
never
seen
any
maintenance
or
improvements
to
the
parking
lot.
I've
seen
a
lot
of
deterioration
over
the
time,
there's
property.
If
you
look
at
it,
it
looks
neglected.
You
know:
there's
lots
of
trash,
there's
large
pieces
of
concrete
missing.
Like
Peter
says
you
know,
there
looks
like
safety
issues
with
the
level
of
the
parking
lot
bowing
and
dipping.
P
You
know
that
there
might,
there
may
be
a
sinkhole,
so
I've
really
seen
a
lot
of
very
nice
improvements
in
the
north
end
to
a
lot
of
the
common
spaces.
I'm
considering
it
because
this
section
is
still
listed
as
a
park,
but
not
really
used
one
that
it's
maintenance.
This
is
just
slipped
and
I
really
hope
that
with
Peters
advocacy
and
that
yeah
some
money
can
be
budgeted
for
maintenance
improvement
to
the
site.
Thank
you.
C
R
I
was
up,
I
was
still
listening
to
Michael
Michael
ik,
my
neighbor
hi.
My
name
is
Gina
Capuano
I'm,
also
I'm
in
five
Goodrich
court
in
North
End.
First
of
all,
thanks
thanks
for
giving
me
the
opportunity
to
speak.
This
is
fantastic.
I've
never
been
involved
in
this.
This
is
a
good
opportunity,
but
I
am
I,
also
have
a
property
in
the
north
end
and
my.
M
R
Actually
opens
on
to
the
parking
lot
that
they're
talking
about
on
the
surface.
It
is
completely
collapsing
in
front
of
the
door
and
needs
to
be
developed.
It's
dangerous
I'm
not
going
to
reiterate
what
you
guys
have
all
heard,
but
it
is
a
concern
that
it's
never
clean
and
my
hope
is
to
get
running
some
city
budget
to
rebuild
the
surface
and
then
haven't
maintained
on
a
regular
basis.
So
thank
you.
Thank
You,
council
members,
you've
heard
it
you've
had
such
a
full
picture
from
Peter.
So
I
think
you
know
what
we're
talking
about.
O
C
M
M
This
is
because
the
Lea
Academy
has
chosen
to
dedicate
resources
to
focus
free
in
inclusion
into
supporting
this
emotional
development
of
all
students,
because
I'm
not
traveling
from
school,
to
school,
I'm
able
to
focus
on
the
needs
of
all
students,
not
just
those
in
crisis,
as
research
has
shown
when
behavioral
health
is
foster,
there
are
positive
academic
outcomes.
Personally,
the
most
important
part
of
my
job
is
developing
relationships
with
staff,
students
and
family.
M
The
Lea
Academy
is
a
diverse
school
with
a
high
needs
population
and,
like
many
other
Boston
Public
Schools
is
responsible
for
educating
students
with
a
range
of
needs,
including
was
contracted
by
community
violence
and
other
forms
of
trauma.
Research
has
widely
shown
the
devastating
impact
that
trauma
can
have
on
learning
overall
development
this
year.
My
role
has
allowed
me
to
support
the
struggling
students,
as
well
as
their
peers.
M
I've
been
able
to
teach
whole
class
lessons
work
with
small
group
C
students
individually,
based
on
their
needs,
I'm
able
to
work
with
teachers
to
develop
interventions
for
struggling
students.
This
level
of
support
provides
all
students
equal
access
to
learning
and
to
the
resources
they
deserve.
Reducing
the
number
of
scholar
labeled
with
disabilities
and
place
in
special
education
with
that
said,
my
position
was
accessed
due
to
budgetary
issues.
The
Lea
Academy
is
no
longer
able
to
fund
a
portion.
S
Welcome
thank
you
so
much
for
taking
comments
today,
I'm
going
to
read
a
letter
on
behalf
of
another
teacher
at
our
school,
but
I
just
want
to
start
out
by
reiterating
what
Jen
said
and
how
important
it
is
to
support
students.
You
know
I
think
it's
particularly
poignant
that
our
school
is
located
in
south
Dorchester
and
that,
if
you
look
at
our
opportunity
index,
we
would
be
one
of
the
transformation
schools
if
we
went
to
fourth
grade,
but
we
do
not,
and
so
as
a
result
of
that
we're
facing
pretty
substantial
budget
cuts.
S
So
the
letter
says
hello,
members
of
the
school
committee.
My
name
is
Meredith
Daley
and
I'm.
A
second-grade
inclusion
teacher
at
the
Lea
Academy
pilot
school
I've
been
out
been
an
elementary
school
teacher
for
the
past
13
years,
and
this
is
my
third
year
as
an
inclusion
teacher
at
the
Lea
I,
respectfully
request
that
you
support
our
endeavored
to
continue
to
have
a
full
time,
behavior,
specialist
and
psychologist
by
funding.
Just
0.6
of
this
position.
Amidst
a
significant
reinvestment
in
Boston
Public
Schools,
we
are
facing
a
deficit
of
less
than
eighty
thousand
dollars
this
year.
S
Our
school
is
facing
these
cuts
due
to
an
arbitrary
rule
that
prevents
pilot
schools
from
switching
to
actual
from
actual
to
average
salary,
until
we've
demonstrated
that
it
negatively
impacts
us
for
three
years.
This
is
our
second
year
in
which
we
have
been
greatly
impacted
in
our
budget.
As
a
result
of
this
rule,
the
Lea
Academy
is
a
full
inclusion
school.
So
that
means
that
every
classroom
serves
special
education
and
general
education.
Students
I
believe
that
the
role
of
the
behavior
specialists
in
an
inclusion
school
is
of
the
utmost
importance.
S
The
addition
of
this
role
to
our
community
has
been
crucial
to
successful
inclusion.
Gen
maduro's
has
stepped
into
our
community
seamlessly
and
has
helped
in
a
myriad
of
ways
to
support
students,
teachers,
parents
and
the
school
community.
As
an
inclusion,
teacher,
I,
wear
many
hats
and
I
find
that
it's
necessary
to
call
upon
the
expertise
of
others
to
support.
My
students
this
year
has
been
a
particularly
challenging
one
and,
as
the
student
needs
of
my
students,
went
beyond
the
realm
of
my
expertise.
S
Miss
Madeira
supported
both
myself
and
my
students
towards
success
when
I
have
a
child
of
concern.
She's
able
to
observe
him
in
my
classroom
and
analyze
those
behaviors
in
order
to
move
that
student
forward
and
towards
independence,
she
provides
a
safe,
paced
slate
safe
place
for
kids
when
they
become
dysregulated
and
need
support.
She's
created
a
space
where
kids
feel
safe,
respected
and
are
able
to
let
off
steam
she's
filled
her
space
with
a
tent,
a
mini,
trampoline
and
endless
snacks
to
support
students.
S
This
because
of
this
students
have
their
needs
met,
are
able
to
learn
new
self-regulation,
schools,
skills
and
then
also
transition
more
quickly
back
into
learning
the
minute
I'm
minimizing
the
time
that
they
miss
out
and
increasing
their
independence.
In
addition
to
providing
reactive
supports
for
students,
she
also
provides
preventative,
supports,
Genco
plans
and
facilitates
whole
class
social-emotional
lessons
and
supports
teachers
in
using
curriculum
like
second
step
and
zones
of
regulation.
She
also
provides
small
social
skills
groups
to
students
in
my
class
and
across
the
school
as
a
full-time
member
of
our
school
community.
S
Jen
is
able
to
do
things
that
she
would
not
be
able
to
do
as
a
part-time
staff
member.
This
is
crucial
in
our
mission
to
support
all
of
our
learners
and
to
close
the
opportunity
gap
that
exists
in
Boston.
We've
also
found
it
paramount
in
her
work
with
students
who
have
time
with
the
school
psychologist
written
into
their
IEP
plans.
In
the
past,
we've
had
just
a
point
or
a
point
for
which
means
someone's
in
the
school
one
or
two
days
a
week.
S
Maybe
this
person
is
typically
inundated
with
testing
students,
writing
reports
and
attending
meetings.
It
is
hard
for
this
person
to
build
a
relationship
with
our
students
because
she's
in
the
school
every
day
she
has
very
supportive
relationships
with
students
and
is
able
to
support
students
on
her
caseload
in
a
way
that
she
wouldn't
given
this
unprecedented
transition
to
remote
learning.
Her
expertise
in
trauma
will
be
crucial
to
our
reentry
to
traditional
school,
whether
this
be
this
school
year
or
in
September.
Her
guidance
and
thoughtful
approach
to
supporting
students
and
families
will
be
invaluable.
S
C
Great,
thank
you
so
much
Lindsay
and
thanks
again
for
your
work.
Thank
you.
Alright,
with
Lindsay's
testimony,
we've
come
to
the
end
of
the
folks
waiting
in
the
queue
here
so
I
think
our
plan
going
forward
is
going
to
be
that
I'm
gonna
I'm
gonna
hold
well
first
I'm
gonna.
Take
this
interlude
opportunity.
C
But
we're
really
grateful
to
everybody
who
testified
today
and
I
just
want
to
stress
before
we
reach
the
sort
of
the
at
least
partial,
close
of
hearing
bad,
that
you
know
these
kinds
of
public
comments
really
add
to
the
council's
scrutiny
process,
and
so
we're
looking
for
people
to
bring
more
of
them,
and
so
whether
and
if
you
don't
want
to
testify
live,
you
can
make
a
video
of
yourself
and
send
it
to
us.
You
can
send
us
written
testimony,
you
can
do
it
in
any
language.
We're
really
looking
forward
to
more.
C
This
is
this:
is
the
start
not
the
end
of
our
public
testimony
process
so
again
really
want
to
thank
everybody
who
testified
so
far.
Like
I
said,
I'm
gonna
hold
this
room
open
for
another
half-hour
till
7:30
and
I.
Will
let
colleagues
know
if
anybody
does
join
in
that
time?
I
mean.
Obviously
their
testimony
will
be
part
of
the
record
and
wall.
C
So
let
everybody
know
but
I
think
since
we've
gone
through
the
full
queue
of
everybody
who
signed
up
to
speak
and
everyone
who's
in
the
waiting
room,
we're
gonna
sort
of
go
into
into
slumber
mode
and
just
see
if
anybody
else
shows
up
in
the
next
half
hour.
So
I
want
to
again
thank
all
my
colleagues
for
joining
this
evening
and
and
thank
everybody
who
testified
so
yeah.
C
C
So
the
first
thing
I
wanted
to,
can
you
see
me
entering
in
the
bar
right
now?
I
can
okay,
great
fantastic?
Thank
you
so
just
wanted
to
show
everybody
that
the
easiest
way
to
get
to
the
proposed
budget
is
to
go
to
budget
Boston,
gov,
easy-to-remember
and
it'll.
Take
you
to
the
city's
fiscal
year.
2021
proposed
budget
you'll,
see
some
information
from
the
mayor.
You'll
see
it
broken
down
into
operating
and
capital
some
sort
of
explanations
about
it.
There's
featured
analyses,
but
there's
also
here
you
see
it
says.
So.
C
If
you
go
up
to
the
top
of
this
website-
and
you
want
more
than
just
the
explainers,
you
want
to
actually
dig
into
the
budget
yourself.
You
can
click
this.
That
says
view
PDFs
of
the
budget
book
and
that
will
actually
get
you
the
the
same
this
here
where
it
says
fiscal
year,
2021
recommended
budget.
If
you
click
that
arrow
you'll
suddenly
see
volume,
one
two
and
three
and
it'll
be
broken
down
into
sections.
C
This
gives
you
all
the
information
that's
been
given
to
the
City
Council,
so
you
can
do
the
same
kind
of
scrutiny
that
we've
done
I'm
and
are
going
to
be
continuing
to
do
over
the
next
couple
months.
So
this
first
volume
will
give
you
kind
of
an
introduction
to
the
budget
and
in
the
executive
summary
and
throughout
especially
revenue
and
estimates
and
analysis.
You'll,
see
some
discussion
of
the
way
that
Cova
19
may
affect
our
city
finances
and
how
to
think
about
that.
C
A
question
that
is
on
a
lot
of
councilors
minds
and
that
we've
been
asking
a
bunch
of
questions
about
and
then
in
volumes.
Two
and
three
you'll
see
both
operating
and
capital
budgets
written
broken
out
by
Department.
So
if
there's
something
in
particular
that
you're
interested
in
you
can
go
to
the
right
department
here
and
find
it
and
see
how
its
budgeted.
Now
you
saw
that
I
clicked
there
on
reading
the
budget
book,
do
the
PDFs
the
budget
books
there's
a
thing
above
this
again
we're
on
that
budget.
C
Honestly,
PDF
is
just
a
static
form,
but
if
you
go
to
CSV,
that's
gonna
show
up
and
what's
better
known
for
most
people
as
an
excel
file,
and
so
that's
something
where
you
can
actually
play
with
the
numbers
and
see
what
it
looks
like,
and
you
can
also
download
this
adopted
operating
budget
for
past
years
through
FY
19.
So
unfortunately
it
doesn't
have
FY
20
there,
but
it
does
give
you
an
opportunity
to
kind
of
compare
and
contrast
a
bit.
So
that's
so
that
those
are
the
datasets
and
you've
got
the
budget
books.
C
You've
got
the
data.
You've
got
these
various
presentations.
There
is
a
if
you
click
on
each
of
these
areas.
You'll
see
that
there's
actually
a
little
presentation
from
the
city's
budget
director
about
each
of
the
component
pieces
operating
in
capital
and
then,
if
we
go
into
that's,
not
what
I
want
I
think.
C
Another
thing
that's
of
great
interest
to
a
lot
of
people
is
that
you
can
actually
see
if
you
go
into
the
FY,
21
capital
budget
and
click
projects
map,
you
can
actually
see
a
map
of
all
the
capital
projects
that
the
city
is
funding
distributed
across
the
city.
So
this
is
a
good
opportunity
and
then
you
know
if
you
want
to
go,
find
out
about
one.
You
click
on
it
all
right.
So
that's
the
Holland,
Park
neighborhood,
slow
streets,
project
and.
C
C
So
that's
gonna
take
you
here
and
then
you
click
city,
council,
budget
process
and
you
get
a
whole
page
about
our
budget
process
and
how
it
works.
I'm
so
and
that
will
include
a
schedule
of
all
the
hearings
and
then
at
the
bottom
of
this
page
you
can
click
how
to
testify
or
up
here
you
can.
Click
testify
during
a
budget
hearing
and
when
you
do
that
it
takes
you
in
to
show
you
all
the
different
ways
of
how
you
can
testify.
So
you
can
do
it
online.
C
You
can
send
us
by
sending
us
an
email
you
can
record
and
upload
a
video
or
testify
live
as
people
did
tonight.
So
those
are
some
of
the
resources
for
folks
to
understand
about
the
City
Council
budget
process,
and
we
just
wanted
to
make
those
available
to
everybody.
Remind
you
where
to
find
things
now,
I'm
gonna,
stop
sharing
my
screen
and
I
see
that
in
the
time
I've
been
doing
that
we've
got
Danielle
Hamilton
has
joined
us,
so
I'm
gonna
see.
If
Danielle
would
like
to
testify.
C
K
Absolutely
so
I
am
my
name
is
Danielle.
I
am
a
first
grade
teacher
at
the
Lea
Academy
we're
a
full
inclusion
school,
and
so
for
us.
That
means
not
just
placing
students
who
have
special
needs
in
the
classroom
with
general
education
students,
but
we
do
really
try
to
think
hard
about
the
way
we
structure
our
school
so
that
those
students
can
be
successful
and
consistently
meet
grade
level
and
state
standards.
Part
of
a
shift
that
we
have
been
able
to
make
is
to
include
a
behavior
specialist
in
our
building.
K
I
think
you
know
that
when
children
have
special
needs
that
oftentimes,
they
need
additional
behavior
support
in
the
classroom.
Having
this
position
has
allowed
our
students
to
be
more
successful
in
the
classroom,
it
has
reduced
the
need
for
students
to
take
breaks
outside
the
classroom,
which
I
think
is
really
important
when
we
think
about
an
inclusion
model.
So
we're
looking
to
fund
this
position
and
it
would
not
just
benefit
our
students
who
have
special
needs,
but
it
would
also
benefit
the
general
population
as
an
inclusion.
K
School
I
am
the
special
education
teacher
ESL
and
the
general
ed
I
have
an
amazing
terror
who
supports
me,
but
often
as
one
person
I
cannot
support
the
whole
group
and
a
specific
student
that
might
need
some
behavior
support
and
it's
unfair
to
both
those
students
and
that
child.
If
I,
have
to
make
a
choice
about
supporting
one
or
the
other.
Having
a
behavior
specialist
really
means
that
we
can
do
inclusion
the
right
way
and
be
successful.
C
C
I
just
want
to
check
if
it
there
are
any
counselors
who
want
to
say
anything
at
the
conclusion
of
this
all
right,
seeing
none
as
I
said
before.
This
is
a
process
that
very
much
continues
and
we'll
be
working
together
over
the
next
two
months
to
really
scrutinize
every
aspect
of
this
budget
and
looking
forward
to
that.
So
thank
you
and
thank
you
again
to
members
of
the
public
and,
if
you're,
watching
this
at
home
today,
please
consider
testifying
at
the
next
hearing
or
submitting
our
test
your
testimony
to
us
through
the
website.