Opinion: A Call to Action to Support Volunteers in the Amherst Public Schools

If you have concerns about safety and wellness at the Amherst Regional Middle School and you care about transparency, this is a call to action to make your voice heard. 

Last year, the LGBTQIA+ Caucus of Amherst implemented a volunteer program to support Amherst Regional Middle School students and staff. 

Caucus members volunteered weekly during the 7th- and 8th-grade lunch blocks, a time of day when additional help is especially needed. Community presence from LGBTQIA+ people can provide comfort and representation for LGBTQIA+ students, particularly in a school system with a history of harming queer and trans students. 

The program was successful, and last spring we were working with the PGO and the administration to expand it. We discussed CORI checks and summer Zoom trainings so volunteers could be prepared for the fall. 

Then, in mid-June, after our concerns about things we had witnessed at ARMS led us to bring them to the attention of the School Committee and the public, we were told there would be new volunteering procedures for the following year but were given no details. 

We repeatedly asked for answers throughout the summer. Two days before the start of school, we were finally told there would be no volunteering in the district during the early weeks of school. This was concerning and disappointing since the beginning of the school year is often a vulnerable and chaotic time for students, and because our existing volunteers had already been CORI checked and were ready to start. 

We received no response to our concerns. Meanwhile, we became aware that other parents were allowed to volunteer in ARPS schools.  

On September 1, the LGBTQIA+ Caucus of Amherst sent a letter to the Regional School Committee outlining our concerns about a chain of events that feel retaliatory and targeted. 

Please read our letter and consider using your voice to support our asks by September 8.  

Here’s how you can help:

* Attend the next Amherst Regional School Committee meeting; Tuesday, September 8 at 6:30 p.m. in the library at the Amherst Regional High School (side entrance). Public comment is at the beginning of the meeting, and speaking directly to those with the power to address these issues is powerful and important. 

* Email the Regional School Committee at regionalschoolcommittee@arps.org. 

* Leave a public comment on the recorded line for the School Committee: 413-362-1891 before 3:00 p.m. on the day of the meeting. 

These issues should concern anyone who cares about student safety. Closed systems are dangerous, and community members should not lose access to volunteer spaces because they raise concerns about student well-being. 

The LGBTQIA+ Caucus of Amherst is a grassroots group formed in the fall of 2023 in response to a clear need to push for transparency, accountability, and equity from the local administration, and to mobilize greater advocacy and support for queer and trans students.  The caucus works with the community, including Amherst Regional Public Schools staff and administration, to identify and meet the needs of LGBTQIA+ students. To protect its members from potential retaliation and intimidation within the community, the caucus operates with an anonymous membership structure relying on a designated spokesperson for public communication. Caucus spokesperson Ali Wicks-Lim (they/them) can be contacted at CaucusLGBTQIA@gmail.com.