The public comment portion of the Barrington School Committee meeting on Thursday night actually started very early Friday morning.

And despite having to wait nearly four hours to speak, dozens of people were still logged onto the zoom meeting and waiting for their chance. At just after midnight, Barrington School Committee Chairwoman Gina Bae announced the public comment period, and parents responded by unloading a barrage of comments:

• Catherine Kittredge — The Barrington resident voiced frustrations about a few items. She said she was upset that she had to sit through the lengthy workshop. “I’m a parent, check my mood meter,” she said. “I’m beyond ticked off and frustrated. You’re the school committee. You all should be held accountable. You should be disappointed with yourselves.” Ms. Kittredge was also upset with the district’s handling of the eighth grade purple cluster at Barrington Middle School; the cluster has gone without a math teacher for multiple weeks. Ms. Kittredge said the committee has let down 75 students. She asked how many school committee members have eighth graders in the school system, adding that “you’re not caring enough  because you’re not a purple cluster parent and your kid did not get screwed.” Ms. Kittredge’s comments exceeded the three-minute time limit, and Ms. Bae warned her a number of times to stop talking.

• Susannah Holloway — A member of the Barrington Committee on Appropriations, Ms. Holloway questioned the school committee on its facilities report and its Stage 1 and upcoming Stage 2 submissions to the RI Department of Education. Ms. Holloway had questioned school principals earlier in the meeting about their communications with parents regarding the facilities report and potential school construction work. She said the school committee’s Stage 1 submission included the six construction options created by Kaestle Boos Associates. Ms. Holloway said one of the options called for the demolition of Nayatt School. She said another option called for all the elementary schools to be demolished and replaced with two larger schools (one would be PreK-2, and the other grades 3-5). She told Ms. Bae that she resented the implication that the information was inaccurate — “I’m not saying anything that is inaccurate,” Ms. Holloway said. “I don’t know if you read it (the Stage 1 submission), but that doesn’t mean that what I’m saying is inaccurate… There are so many people in our community that do not know that you guys are getting ready to make one of those selections.” She said school construction projects should be decided by a public referendum, not a school committee or town council vote. Ms. Holloway also criticized the school board’s communication, referencing the late start time for the public comment period. 

• Anna Amoiradaki — The local resident and parent of Barrington students said 17 out of the 32 public school districts in Rhode Island have already decided to give students mask choice. She said it was commendable that the district wanted metrics for making the masking decision, but added that he son is suffering with the mask. Ms. Amoiradaki also asked school committee member Erika Sevetson to apologize for a comment she made earlier in the meeting, when she said people can go about their lives while waiting for the public comment period of the meeting. Ms. Amoiradaki said parents are listening and following along with the meetings because they care — for their children and their community. “I think you owe us an apology,” she said. Ms. Amoiradaki also asked the committee to survey parents about the student masking. (Ms. Sevetson later responded, stating she did not intend to offend anyone with her comment.)

• Ellen Schaffer — The resident asked why Barrington is waiting for additional guidance to make its decision on whether to require masks in the schools. She said other districts are not, adding that Barrington officials statement that they are following the “science and data” is concerning as no data has been produced to support the masks. 

• Erika Twohig — The mother of two students in the district read a statement and grew very emotional while speaking. She said the school committee has shown nothing but disregard for students and staff. She questioned the lack of surveys regarding masks, and she said the committee has discriminated against people who have taken a stance against vaccinations and masks. Ms. Twohig said she had been vaccinated but not received the booster because of concerns over possible heart complications. She said if she was a teacher, the committee would have fired her. She said it’s not the school committee’s role to choose. Ms. Twohig said Barrington has the highest vaccination rate, and parents should have the choice about whether their sons and daughters wear masks to school. She had a response to waiting for the data: “F the data, she’s my daughter, he’s my son. It’s my choice, not yours.” She later added: “You guys are going to lose a shit-ton of teachers. You’re going to lose people.”

• Brian Hughes — The resident shared a statement that pointed to problems with the existing school committee, adding that there was an effort underway to remove many of the sitting members of the committee. “Barrington School Committee, make no mistake, we’ve mobilized, we’ve organized and we’re coming for your seats,” he said. “Administrators, teachers and Patrick (McCrann), help is on the way.”

• Amy Goglia — This resident asked school committee members if the silent lunch policy was ending, but school committee members refused to answer. Ms. Bae said Ms. Goglia could request that information from the superintendent, Michael Messore. Ms. Goglia also advocated for mask choice. She then asked if the school committee felt the community could not make its own decisions. 

• Jenna Marchal — The Barrington resident said she was glad the school committee knew communication needed to be a priority, but added that adding a position would only be part of the answer — she said committee members need to do a better job respecting others. She referenced an earlier point in the meeting when school committee member Patrick McCrann made a comment about wanting to move the meetings back to in-person and Megan Douglas “dismissed him.” At that point, Dr. Douglas reacted to Ms. Marchal, who said “You’re rolling your eyes right now,” adding that they need to show respect. Ms. Marchal said the school committee needs to start thinking about they can be leaders.

• Julie Semply — This resident wanted to share the same comment as some earlier speakers, advocating for a move to unconditional mask choice. She saids many states have been mask optional and have not seen the spike in cases that Rhode Island did. “Masks haven’t made a difference for us. I implore you to think about the irreparable harm.” She told school committee members it was time to stop living in fear and to remove the masks from their children.

• Kyla Schmigle — This resident called for the school committee to return to in-person meetings or create a format where people can see who the other attendees are. She said she was there to speak for students and teachers. She said students have been wearing masks during outdoor recess since the beginning of the year, stating that masking outdoors should never have been a policy to begin with, given the risk of transmission. She said mask breaks are not enough. Ms. Schmigle called for mask choice for students, regardless of vaccination status. She also said she’s waiting for data from the RI Department of Health that states masking students for seven hours a day has not harmed our students… “because I can tell you it has harmed my 10- and seven-year-old.” Ms. Schmigle said she was hesitant to speak up, but believes it is time. She also said the school committee does not appear to have diverse views and opinions. “I was definitely worried about being labeled as anti-vaxxer, anti-science, but I can see now I’m just pro-freedom and common sense.”

• Jason Budde — The Barrington resident said he was very pro-science and could not wait to get his vaccination when it became available. He said he was “all about the data.” But he asked what data the re-entry task force was waiting for from the department of health. “Because all the data is out there. It’s already on the CDC’s website. We have all the data we need on the risk to children. It’s very minimal.” Mr. Budde again questioned “So what are we doing? What data are we waiting for that Portsmouth isn’t waiting for? What data are we getting that going to make us feel better?” The former teacher said it was time to take off the masks and let teachers teach and students learn.

• Kira Richardson — The resident shared her support for mask choice. She said there was no need to build a metric-based decision chart. “We have two years of data that show masks don’t make a difference. The curves are the same,” she said. Ms. Richardson said students should not be forced to act as shields for adults — “It’s not our kids’ job to protect adults.” She also said the school committee should stop moving the goalposts when it comes to the pandemic and asked when the Barrington School Committee became the “Barrington CDC” superseding guidance from state and national health agencies.

• Katie Starks — The Barrington resident echoed other residents’ call for a choice in masking. She said her family moved to Barrington because they heard great things about the public schools, but since moving here they have not seen the great things. Ms. Starks said the district needs simpler regulations and if officials made masks options they wouldn’t need to spin the information. 

• Mark Leonard — This resident said parents were “done” with the situation, and that there was no reason to continue on with the heavy-handed mandates. Mr. Leonard said parents can’t explain the regulations to their kids because they don’t make sense.

• Cassie DiGiacomo — The Barrington resident advocated for mask choice and questioned an apparent shift in the guidance. Included in a recent email from the district regarding masking, there was a section that stated students who were not boosted or vaccinated must quarantine for five days if they are a close contact. Ms. DiGiacomo said that is a shift from the current protocols, which allow close contacts to stay in schools as part of the “Test To Stay” program. She said the re-entry task force needs to consider that situation, and said the information is important. Ms. DiGiacomo said she did not understand why the district would be moving away from the “Test To Stay” program.

• Tim Twohig — An educator in another district, Mr. Twohig expressed his disappointment in the school committee’s decision to fire unvaccinated teachers. He questioned that move after the committee had earlier sent teachers into classrooms when there was no vaccine available. Mr. Twohig also directed other parents to visit the website www.BarringtonParentsUnited.com for more information and resources.