School Committee delays vote on ICE arrest policy

School Committee · Meeting of September 2, 2026

CHICOPEE — The Chicopee School Committee postponed a vote adopting a new state civil-arrest policy for schools after two members raised federal-conflict concerns. Members first voted 7-3, with two abstentions, to waive their own rules and consider the ACL Protect Act policy the same night, then voted 11-1 to delay final adoption until the next meeting. Member Dave Barslow said he did not want to be "anybody's rubber stamp" for what he called an unenforceable state mandate, while Ron Bernard said he wanted to research potential conflicts with federal law before voting.

Superintendent Dr. Ware said the policy, required under a law Gov. Maura Healey signed in August, sets guardrails while his team drafts implementing procedures to bring back to the committee.

The committee separately approved two bill warrants totaling $1,607,371.95, including $47,094 for school security cameras, and honored the retirement of 33-year Fairview School teacher Paula Lamar.

In the full story:

• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report — 2,082 words

Source: the School Committee meeting of September 2, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.