A Milton parent published an open letter Tuesday, Aug. 25, accusing Interim Superintendent John Phelan and the School Committee of dismissing the experiences of Black and Brown families at the committee's Aug. 19 meeting, the first public session after a Boston Globe investigation found Black students were disproportionately targeted in residency enforcement.

Camille Sanabria-Cooper, a nurse and parent of children at Glover and Pierce elementary schools, wrote in The Milton Scene that she stopped watching the meeting after an hour because committee members opened by defending their positions rather than acknowledging harm to families.

"Never once did anyone in the group, as a whole, acknowledge or empathize with what marginalized communities go through each and every day," Sanabria-Cooper wrote. "No one thought to say, 'I apologize for any distress this may have caused families.'"

She singled out Vice Chairperson Anna Varghese, calling her comments about School Resource Officers "tone deaf." At the Aug. 19 meeting, Varghese had defended Milton police's role in schools, saying the department "tries really hard to make sure that they have a strong connection with community," according to the Globe's coverage of the meeting.

Sanabria-Cooper challenged that framing directly, writing: "Do you think that if an SRO in police gear shows up to a child's house to investigate, goes into their room, looks at their clothes, and questions them, that child is necessarily going to look at that same SRO in a school setting in the same light as you or your children might?"

She also addressed Chairperson Mark Loring, writing that she "expected more" from someone who works in a school district serving Black and Brown students.

The letter lands as Milton schools open for the new year Wednesday, Aug. 26, and amid ongoing pressure on the district over its residency practices. The Globe's Aug. 5 investigation found that nearly half of the roughly 100 children investigated for residency in the 2024-25 school year were Black, though Black students make up less than 12 percent of enrollment. About 140 parents signed a petition delivered Aug. 17 demanding the district stop using police and an anonymous tip line to verify residency.

At the Aug. 19 meeting, Phelan announced the district will end the anonymous tip line and begin collecting data on students' race and housing conditions during investigations. He said 15 students were expelled for residency last year, 14 the year before and 20 the year before that. Loring said a board policy subcommittee will review the changes and bring them back at a future meeting. No date has been set.

Massachusetts Secretary of Education Stephen Zrike condemned the use of police in residency cases in an Aug. 6 Globe report, saying there is "zero tolerance for racial profiling or intimidation of any kind, especially actions like sending police officers to surveil homes and entering children's bedrooms."

As we reported Aug. 21, the School Committee has filed a governance retreat notice amid the residency fallout. The policy subcommittee's timeline for completing its review remains unannounced.