The Barrington School Committee will discuss changes to the high school’s honors program during a meeting tonight, March 30, at Barrington High School.

But before the committee talks about the honors program, members are expected to vote on reversing previous decisions to fire two teachers in the district. 

According to the meeting agenda that was posted late last week, the school committee is expected to hold an executive session at 5:30 p.m. to “resolve litigation with Employee A and Employee B in matters unrelated to each other through review and possible approval of two separate settlement agreements.”

Employee A and Employee B are not identified on the agenda. 

Barrington School Committee Chairwoman Gina Bae said she did not believe she was legally allowed to identify who the employees are. She also said that in the case of tonight’s meeting, she does not know who the employees are and will not know until the executive session meeting.

It is not clear if either Employee A or B had been fired during the school committee’s Feb. 17 meeting, when the committee had fired five teachers. 

During that meeting, only one teacher was identified — then eighth grade math teacher James Sullivan. The school committee also voted then to terminate three probationary teachers: a special education teacher at Barrington High School, a special education reading specialist at Barrington Middle School, and a special education teacher at one of the K-3 elementary schools. The committee then voted to fire a tenured teacher “for cause.” At least one of the probationary teachers fired was one of the three Barrington teachers who was had been previously terminated because she did not follow the school committee’s vaccine mandate. 

Honors discussion

The public portion of Wednesday night’s meeting will start at 6:30 p.m., and much of the focus will be on the honors program at Barrington High School. 

Earlier this month, the district sent out an email announcing changes to its honors course options for ninth- and tenth-grade students: Barrington High School will no longer offer an honors distinction option for Social Studies courses or English courses for freshmen and sophomores.

“…Social Studies will return to its original course selection prior to the 2021-2022 school year which did not include an Honors Distinction option,” stated the email. “English will now be offering one heterogenous course in both grades 9 and 10, with no Honors Distinction or Honors option being offered at any grade level.”

There were other changes made prior to the current school year — district officials eliminated some honors courses and replaced them with an opportunity for students to earn an honors designation. 

Officials said the change would result in better access to an honors distinction for more students. However, fewer students actually achieved the honors level.