Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell is stepping in with an action plan at the Southwick-Tolland-Granville Regional School District. This comes after complaints of racist bullying, including when Southwick Regional School students held a mock slave auction on Snapchat in February.
The district will follow a 12-step plan to ensure “an effective and comprehensive response” to racist bullying, according to the document.
Allyson Lopez, a parent of a student who has been racially targeted multiple times at school – in addition to what happened in February, said she collaborated with the Campbell's office to help develop the plan.
This spring, Lawyers for Civil Rights in Boston filed a federal civil rights complaint against the district on behalf of Lopez’s daughter.
“It was important for me to have this issue public, and it was important for me to see change because she was not just affected by the words,” Lopez said. “She was also affected emotionally, mentally. So I felt like change needed to happen.”
Some action steps include bringing in outside parties to assess and train students and faculty members. The William James College Center for Behavioral Health, Equity, and Leadership in Schools has begun conducting a needs assessment “regarding school culture and climate as it relates to equity and bias as well as related behavioral health needs.”
In June, the Northeastern Center for the Study of Sport in Society also held a training at a school assembly at the Southwick Regional School, which went over toxic speech, bystander intervention and more, according to the action plan document.
More trainings are to be held at the start of the school year.
The district must also report any future “credibly alleged hate-based bullying, harassment, or criminal conduct” to the attorney general’s office, and to the school district community.
Lopez said she hopes state involvement will give the issues more credibility. But, she said, it shouldn’t stop there.
“We feel like it's more than just the state involvement is what we need. We need a lot of entities to be involved," she said.
The attorney general’s office will continue to work with the district through the 2025-2026 academic year.
With the new school year approaching, Lopez hopes her daughter will have a better time in ninth grade than she did in eighth.
“No child should go to school and feel uncomfortable or unsafe or unwanted," she said. "And this is what has happened. This is the effect this has caused on my daughter.”
In a statement, Campbell, a woman of color and mother to two children, noted she prioritizes supporting school districts in cultivating inclusive school spaces.
“Our resolution with the Southwick School District not only addresses the egregious racist incident that occurred last school year, but it creates a model for combatting hate in a comprehensive, preventive, and systemic manner," she said. "I will continue to take on racism and hate in all its forms, and my office is ready to partner with school districts across the state to ensure they understand their legal obligations and have the resources and support needed to build inclusive and safe school cultures.”
