Stoneham School Committee Adopts Policy Limiting Civil Law Enforcement on Campus

School Committee · Meeting of September 10, 2026

Stoneham School Committee adopts state-mandated policy restricting civil law enforcement on campus. The board voted 5-0 Thursday to approve Policy ACL, implementing the state's new Protect Act, which bars civil immigration arrests on school grounds without a judicial warrant; members waived a second reading given a state-imposed September 1 compliance deadline. Superintendent Dr. DeFrancisco said the policy "will make it easier for me to enforce what I already know I need to enforce." The board also approved a $33,500 school health nursing grant for fiscal year 2027, accepted a refrigerator and a baby grand piano as donations, and heard librarians Jen Faribault and Diana DePollis and student "Nell" make the case for restoring a full-time librarian at Central Middle School, cut since around 2020.

Members added a December 1 meeting and named JR Fogarty as delegate to the state school committees' conference.

In the full story:

• Opening, Remembrance and Consent Agenda
• Student Representative Report
• Library Presentation: Staffing Gap at the Middle School
• CSHS School Health Nursing Grant
• Donations: A Refrigerator and a Baby Grand Piano
• Committee Governance: Communication Flowchart and Liaison Roles
• Policy ACL Adopted: The Protect Act
• Calendar Changes and MASC Delegate
• Superintendent's Report: Safety Team, MTSS Committees and "Get Curious"
• Special Education Report
• Other Business
• Executive Session
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 3,004 words

Source: the School Committee meeting of September 10, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript. It was corrected where it differed.