Providence City Council seeks answers on non-renewal of three non-binary teachers

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — The Providence School Board is set to meet tonight after the Providence City Council asked for answers on why certain teachers were issued notices of non-renewal.

Last Friday, city council president Rachel Miller sent a letter to both education commissioner Angélica Infante-Green and PPSD superintendent Dr. Javier Montanez, after local reporters highlighted that three non-binary teachers did not have their contracts renewed.

In that letter, president Miller said not only did these teachers lose their jobs, but they are now ineligible for other positions anywhere in the district.

President Miller is asking the two leaders for an immediate review of the non-renewals.

The state department of education is now sharing superintendent Montanez’s response with us.

The letter states first and foremost, PPSD is an equal opportunity employer, and the superintendent said the non-renewal process is based on a state statute followed by all districts.

It’s based on employee performance, discipline and attendance.

The letter to city council president miller reads in part:

This year, PPSD issued 17 non-renewal letters on February 14 in advance of the march 1 statutory deadline. While these recommendations are not easy, we do believe that they are in the best interest of students and in improving teacher quality.

The superintendent also notes that the teachers mentioned in Miller’s letter were part of non-renewals were not performance-based.

They were done due to financial uncertainty as the district heads into the next fiscal year.