Boston City Council grills BPS leaders on exam school admissions overhaul

BOSTON -- September 29, 2025, Boston City Council education panel scrutinizes BPS plan to restructure exam school admissions. At a nearly five-hour hearing Monday chaired by at-large Councilor Henry Santana, Superintendent Mary Skipper defended a proposal to add a citywide competitive round reserving 20 percent of seats at each of the three exam schools for top-scoring applicants, eliminate school-based bonus points, and reduce housing-based bonus points from 15 to 10, with the policy to remain fixed for at least three admission cycles pending School Committee approval November 5. BPS data presented by chief of data Monica Hogan showed the changes would reduce invitations to economically disadvantaged students from 39.2 percent to 35.5 percent and drop the Latinx share from 25 percent to 22 percent, while the white student share would rise from 27 percent to 31 percent, based on the 24-25 applicant pool. Council President Ruthzee Louijeune and Councilor Julia M. Mejia questioned whether legal pressure rather than educational data drove the changes; Skipper said flatly the recommendations "have nothing to do with the lawsuit." Community panelist and 2021 task force member Roseanne Tong argued the 20 percent set-aside had already been tried, produced worse racial outcomes, and was added to the original task force recommendations without a task force vote.