Boston Council Education Panel Hears Alarm Over BPS Bilingual, Special Education Cuts

BOSTON — March 10, 2026 — Boston City Council education panel hears testimony that BPS is cutting services even as special education spending nears $553 million. The Committee on Education, chaired by at-large Councilor Julia M. Mejia and co-sponsored by Miniard Culpepper and Henry Santana for the English language learner docket, received testimony Tuesday that BPS plans to eliminate 110 bilingual teacher positions and 167 special education roles while increasing outsourced instructional services by 15 percent, or $29 million, and spending $68 million annually on out-of-district placements. Ari Brands of St. Stephen's Youth Programs said fewer than 10 percent of BPS multilingual learners are in dual language programs and that a community petition demanding a 10-year bilingual expansion plan drew 590 signatures from 86 schools. Boston Teachers Union inclusive education liaison Katie De La Rosa warned that over 60 schools face staff reductions of 10 to 40 percent and that the closure of Henderson 9-12 eliminates "the most recognized inclusion model" at the high school level. Edith Fazil told the committee that more than 90 percent of students with disabilities have not recovered to pre-pandemic achievement levels despite an unprecedented infusion of federal ESSER relief funds.