Parents and residents press Pawtucket committee over alleged racial slur by teacher

Two residents used the public-comment period at the Pawtucket School Committee’s Dec. 5 work session to press the district for action and transparency after incidents they described involving racial slurs.

Mister Seagala, who identified himself during public participation, recounted being mute as a child until a supportive teacher helped him and urged the committee to expand supports for students, including ways for students to report abuse and praise effective teachers. He said some teachers ‘‘don’t put in the effort’’ and that students need ‘‘representation’’ and a place to report mistreatment.

Miss Bento followed with a pointed public comment that directly alleged a teacher used the n-word toward a student. She said the union and some school leaders appeared to be defending the teacher rather than the child and demanded disclosure of what the principal and district administration had done. "We have a union president who feels bad for the teacher, but does he feel bad for the student?" Bento asked. She said she had requested paperwork since August about another committee member’s conduct and that she would continue raising issues until the committee provided answers.

Committee members did not take action during the public-comment period. After comments, the meeting moved to recognitions and committee business. The transcript does not record any specific disciplinary outcomes or a district response that contradicts or confirms the allegations; the matter therefore remained unresolved in the meeting record.

Next steps: Committee members did not announce formal follow-up at the meeting. Public commenters asked the committee to consider student reporting mechanisms and to make any relevant findings public.