The Boston Globe is reporting that a group of Boston parents are asking a federal appeals court to overturn exam school admission decision and let their children attend.
The Parent Coalition for Academic Excellence believes the students had the grades to secure seats at Boston Latin School, Boston Latin Academy, and the O’Bryant School, but were denied admission because there weren’t enough seats allotted to their Zip codes under the temporary policy.
This policy is no longer in use, but a new policy was implemented this year that also divides exam school spots by areas with similar socio-economic profiles.
The filing of documents with the appeals court is part of a larger movement with the hopes the court will reverse a ruling by a lower court judge last year that upheld the legality of an admission policy that allotted seats by grades and student zip codes.
The policy in question allowed more Black and Latino students to secure spots for the three top-tiered schools. Fewer Asian and white applicants were accepted based on the policy.
According to the Globe, the parents behind the appeal are hoping that new evidence not present when the court first made its ruling will help make their case. They believe the School Committee intended to discriminate against Asian and white applicants and include evidence of text messages between two School Committee members who made racially insensitive remarks about white parents from West Roxbury.
From the Globe Article:
Those text messages were never entered into the court record during the original district court case and school attorneys have said it was an oversight rather than an attempt to conceal evidence that could jeopardize their case. The revelation prompted a federal district court judge to withdraw his written opinion upholding the temporary policy, although the overarching decision itself still stands.
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Maureen Dahill is the editor of Caught in Southie and a lifelong resident of South Boston sometimes mistaken for a yuppie. Co-host of Caught Up, storyteller, lover of red wine and binge watching TV series. Mrs. Peter G. Follow her @MaureenCaught.
