Southbridge School Committee Votes 7-0 to Advance State Receivership Exit Plan

SOUTHBRIDGE -- May 12, 2026, Southbridge School Committee unanimously approves Phase Three plan to exit state receivership. The committee voted 7-0 Tuesday on a roll-call vote to approve the Phase Three transition plan and forward it to the state commissioner of education for approval, a step members described as the final formal milestone before local control of the district can be restored. Chairwoman Brittany Davison said she and Vice Chair Carla De La Cruz Davila built the timeline using input from DESE representative Juan Rodriguez, consultation with a former Massachusetts Association of School Committees president who helped guide Holyoke out of receivership, town counsel, and community members. Member Stephanie Rivers praised the document's specificity: "This is exactly what a project scope is, how it's created, we have dates, specific items, goals and objectives clearly defined." Receiver Metzger, who endorsed the plan "wholeheartedly," also reported that the district's ACCESS testing results are the best in at least eight years, with 34 students exiting English language learner status and the district's first-ever student earning the Massachusetts Seal of Biliteracy.