When students at one Boston elementary school return to class, they will still not have something a lot of people might take for granted: walls and doors in their classrooms.
For years, families at Blackstone Elementary School have heard various promises from district leaders, but have not seen results.
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Built in the in the 1970s as an open-concept design, parents say the outdated layout at Blackstone is now creating a barrier to learning.
With the help of our colleagues at Telemundo Nueva Inglaterra, we spoke with four Spanish-speaking parents about the education struggle for their kids.
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They described the distracting environment where noises from other classrooms or people walking by in the hall interrupt teacher instructions.
"It is something that makes it very difficult to control a class," said Amanda Lara, who has two grandchildren at the school.
In an age when active-shooter drills are part of the curriculum, parents also told us teachers and students don't feel safe behind the curtains that divide the classrooms.
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"In a violent situation, how are they going to protect themselves?" asked Semal Rodriguez, who has a -grader at Blackstone. "There is no way."
Sonia Medina has a son with autism and transferred him to a different school because she said he could not concentrate. She showed us how he would sit in the corner of a classroom, rocking his head and covering his ears to block out the noise.
"A child with autism, the noise and the sounds bother him," Medina said.
Suleika Soto has two teenage daughters who attended Blackstone, which is located in the city's South End.
Starting in 2018, Soto has been outspoken at city meetings and recalls various financial promises from a revolving door of district leaders about investing in the school.
However, after six years, Soto and other families are still waiting.
"There are promises made, but then there is no movement," Soto said. "And it just seems like it's been forgotten."
There was reason for cautious optimism in 2022, when district leaders announced they were proposing Blackstone for a state program that reimburses the costs for school construction projects.
However, the Massachusetts School Building Authority did not select the Blackstone project for approval.
"The reality is that we have too many school buildings, and most of them are old," said Will Austin with the Boston Schools Fund, a nonprofit with the goal of equity in education and access to high-quality schools. "Unless there's actually more transparency in a real plan, I think what's happening to Blackstone is going to keep happening in other schools."
A letter from the new principal to the school community said the district is committed to spending money on a design study that will recommend the best path forward for Blackstone.
The City of Boston website details a similar initiative in the capital budget, though the timeline would realistically put any renovations years down the road.
Boston City Councilor Julia Mejia worries about the message that is being sent to a school where the majority of students are Black, Hispanic and low-income.
"What parents want is the bottom line," Mejia said. "What we are communicating to those students is that their needs don't matter because we're not acting with urgency."
Despite our repeated inquiries, a spokesperson for the Boston Public Schools did not make anyone from the district available for an interview to discuss where things stand with Blackstone.
Even though her daughters have graduated from the school, Soto is not giving up the fight.
"I'm passionate about this, because you're not going to make a promise to me and then not follow through with it," Soto said. "I feel like I have to hold you accountable."
