There have been multiple incidents across the Needham Public Schools involving racially offensive language, engendering widespread concerns and discussions. As the Board of Directors of the Chinese Friends of Needham (CFN), we have actively engaged in conversations with parents, community members, as well as various diversity groups in Needham, including Needham Diversity Initiative (NDI), and Needham Human Right Committee. Through these dialogues, we come to the following requests that we believe are paramount in addressing this dangerous trend and proactively preventing similar occurrences in the future.

1. We urge the Needham school district to promptly implement action plans to address this series of racist behaviors immediately to prevent the spreading of this dangerous trend. We request a collaborative effort involving parents and community members and school and district administrators to develop a plan vetted by both parties. This plan should be available before the start of the September 2023 school year. It should include steps such as providing Professional Development Points (PDPs) for educators on Asian American experiences, utilizing resources like the "Culturally Responsive Understanding and Approaches to Supporting Asian-American Pacific Islander Youth around Mental Health Concerns" webinars hosted by the Public Schools of Brookline. Furthermore, additional funding should be allocated for restorative justice training for all guidance counselors, and schoolwide assemblies with breakout group at the elementary level should be held to promote inclusion, kindness, and allyship no later than September 30, 2023.
2. We urge the district to clearly articulate policies for addressing racial harassment and the consequences for such behaviors. This should be communicated through an email sent from the office of the superintendent and shared in a general assembly with all Needham public schools at no later than September 30, 2023. 
3. We urge the district to organize public listening sessions that allow those who are harmed to remain anonymous while sharing bullying behaviors that target Asian/Black/Latinx/LGBTQ students, students of different religious beliefs, and students with disabilities. These incidents have occurred across multiple Needham public schools in recent months. A summary and transcript of listening sessions that protect the identity of those who are harmed should be made available to the Needham community.
4. We urge the district to adopt comprehensive non-discrimination protocols for handling harassment and bullying throughout the upcoming school year and make this information easily accessible to parents, educators and administrative community at NPS by June of 2024. Please refer to the Non-Discrimination Protocol for Newton Public Schools as an exemplary model.
5. We urge the district to create regular, comprehensive, and measurable metrics to evaluate equity and inclusion in the curriculum and the community experience across all Needham public schools. The results of these evaluations should be transparent and available to all members of the Needham public school community. Additionally, a summary of the action sets expected to be completed in the next school year towards achieving equity and inclusion goals should be provided.
6. We urge the district to establish a district-wide Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Working Group comprising DEI representatives from all Needham public schools, parents, central administrators, and the community at large. This group should strategize on equity and inclusion efforts across all Needham public schools and be allocated a dedicated budget that enables each school to hold at least five events on an annual basis to increase students’ sense of belonging. We urge the district to adopt restorative justice circle practices at all the elementary schools targeted for 4th and 5th graders.

Our hearts go out to the victimized families, and we share deep concern with our community and other diversity groups in Needham. If you would like to share your related experience, please email mycfn.org@gmail.com. All information will be kept strictly confidential. 

Parents, students, community members, and concern citizen who support this, please sign. 

Sincerely,

Board of Directors

Chinese Friends of Needham Committee