Massachusetts high school pleads National Guard quell ‘shocking levels of chaos and violence’ among students

A group of Massachusetts educators are pleading for Gov. Maura Healey to deploy National Guard troops to Brockton High School to help quell what teachers described as “shocking levels of chaos and violence” among the students there, posing serious security concerns over the past several months. 

In a letter last week, four Brockton School Committee members – Joyce Asack, Tony Rodrigues, Claudio Gomes and Ana Oliver – asked that Brockton Mayor Robert Sullivan request temporary National Guard support at Brockton High School from Healey to address “a disturbing increase in incidents related to violence, security concerns, and substance abuse.” 

“Recent events at Brockton High School have prompted us to seek immediate assistance to prevent a potential tragedy,” the letter, obtained by several local news outlets, read. “The situation has reached a critical point, more recently we had an alarming 35 teachers absent, underscoring the severity of the challenges we are facing.”

The letter said instances of students wandering the halls, engaging in altercations and causing disruptions in classrooms “have become alarmingly frequent.” 

In a Facebook post Saturday, Brockton City Councilor At-Large Winthrop Farwell Jr. said he also opposed the use of the National Guard at the high school. 

“Our faithful teachers (at all levels of the system) have experienced violence, injury and disruptions for years. Now, suddenly, the Guard is the answer? I do NOT support this,” he wrote. “Soldiers in military field uniforms aren’t the answer. Convene a committee of classroom teachers (as opposed to administrators) and let that committee provide their input and recommendations on how to deal with the escalating problems in schools.” 

The National Guard stage near South Station in Boston in case of unrest due to the presidential election on Nov. 4, 2020. (Nicolaus Czarnecki/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald)

“Classroom teachers are closest to the students. Select the independent-minded educators, not anyone who wants to ‘curry favor’ with the school administration. We have the talent to create a positive learning atmosphere if we listen to our teaching staff. They know, they care, they can guide as to success,” Farwell added.  

Asack, Gomes, Oliver and Rodrigues plan to hold a press conference at Brockton High School at 11:30 a.m. Monday regarding the matter, Boston 25 News reported. 

The letter comes after video of a violent fight at Brockton High School spread online last month. 

“It has become very unsafe being at the school teaching and the students as well,” Nora Acevedo, a teacher present, told Boston 25 News. “I was the only one in the cafeteria at the moment. There were supposed to be two teachers, but the other supervisor was absent. A fight broke out with girls wandering the hallways. They came in to attack another girl in the cafeteria.” 

Last May, three students were hospitalized, and five students were arrested in connection to a stabbing attack that unfolded outside Brockton High School.