1 Willow Ter, Newton, MA 02459

We joined Mason-Rice Elementary as a new immigrant family. In the beginning, we were very touched by the warm welcome from teachers and the excellent support provided through the ELL (English Language Learners) program. The school’s inclusive atmosphere helped us settle in during a major life transition. However, by the time my child graduated from 5th grade, especially in the last few months. We had also encountered some concerning challenges related to the social-emotional environment. My child experienced repeated verbal bullying and exclusion by certain peers. There were also racially insensitive remarks made by other students. While my child reported some of these incidents to teachers and high-level administration staff, unfortunately the issues were not effectively addressed, and we as parents were never informed. This made our child feel unheard and unsupported. One especially upsetting incident occurred after we invited a few classmates to a birthday party. Afterward, one of them made hurtful comments about our home, saying it was "poor" and expressing pity. It was difficult to explain such cruelty to a young child. Toward the end of the year, we also discovered that several parents had organized a group teacher appreciation event, but some transfer families—including ours—were never informed. This left us feeling unintentionally excluded and raised concerns about communication gaps and inclusion. We still appreciate Mason-Rice’s strong academics and the commitment of many wonderful teachers. But we hope the school community—both staff and families—can be more mindful of hidden biases, microaggressions, and the social integration of new students, especially those from minority or immigrant backgrounds. We chose this school because we believed in its values of excellence and community. I still believe in that vision, and I hope that sharing this experience will contribute to a more inclusive environment for all.