School Committee Sends Residency Policy to Subcommittee

School Committee · Meeting of August 19, 2026

Milton's School Committee heard an hour of public comment on residency enforcement before directing changes to the policy. Interim Superintendent John Phelan recommended eliminating the anonymous tip line, reporting residency data twice yearly, and reviewing police-led home visits after Boston Globe reporting and a 150-signature petition flagged racial disparities. District figures showed 15 students unenrolled for residency reasons in 2025-26, 14 in 2024-25 and 20 in 2023-24.

Commenter Adina Schachter said the policy's effects amount to profiling "regardless of whether any individual or administrator intends it to be." The committee referred policy revisions to its subcommittee, voted 6-0 to approve the 2026-2027 handbooks, and voted 6-0 to hire search firm HYA for $36,100 to lead its superintendent search, targeting a hire by January 2027.

In the full story:

• Superintendent's Report: Residency Policy Presentation
• Public Comment on Residency Policy
• Committee Discussion and Recommended Changes
• Approval of 2026-2027 Student and Staff Handbooks
• School Building Committee: Laboure College Feasibility Options
• Superintendent Search Committee: Selection of HYA
• Budget Coordination Committee and Robert Miltz Appointment
• Warrants, Minutes and Closing Items
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 2,464 words

Source: the School Committee meeting of August 19, 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.