John Czuj and his wife, Kristen Day, were conflicted about sending their 13-year-old daughter to Boston Latin School. They thought the school would be academically rigorous but had heard from other parents that some students feel unsupported by faculty and many are often overwhelmed with “unreasonable” amounts of homework.
Four months after their daughter became a student there, the prestigious exam school is embroiled in controversy over student claims of racism and allegations that its headmaster failed to take sufficient action to address those claims, leading Czuj and Day to consider whether their daughter should stay.
Czuj and Day said they were shocked to learn about an incident in which a non-black student threatened to lynch a black student with a cord while referring to her with a crude racial slur. But they said they found it even more troubling that Boston Latin administrators mishandled that case, according to a school department report. That report, released in February, determined that six other race-related incidents were adequately addressed.
Earlier this month, US Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz revealed her office will investigate allegations of civil rights violations at the school after civic groups filed a complaint.
“Because of our family and the position we’re lucky enough to be in — that the school has to prove itself to us — I feel as though we have a choice,” said Czuj. “On the other hand, I’m a Bostonian. . . . It’s a great institution that shouldn’t be the way it is.”
The family is white, and Czuj and Day were among about 20 parents who met with schools Superintendent Tommy Chang Tuesday evening to discuss the allegations of racism and ask how he plans to address them. Some parents at the meeting said they lack confidence in the school’s leadership; Chang has said he has no plans to fire headmaster Lynn Mooney Teta.
Czuj and Day think Teta should resign.
“It’s not just about the headmaster. It’s the institution,” Czuj said. “We understand that can be a long haul. Cultural change is not fast.”
But administrators should have addressed the atmosphere of racism years ago, said Czuj and Day, who did not want their daughter’s name published to protect her privacy.
Czuj, 53, is the president of Marketing Evolution, an advertising technology firm, and Day, 46, is a stay-at-home mom who has joined a coalition of parents who are concerned about the racial tension at the school and want to help fix it.
The family lived in California for two years, they said; Czuj and Day’s daughter transferred into Boston Latin in November. They have two other children: a 9-year-old daughter and an 11-year-old son, who learned Tuesday that he was accepted into Boston Latin.
Whether their son becomes a student there and whether their daughter remains, they say, depends on what the school district does to address the racial climate.
“I cannot see us remaining there if the administration stays the same,” Day said during a recent interview at her home in Jamaica Plain.
At the meeting with Chang, the parents expressed concern about the social and emotional safety of the students, according to two parents who attended. Chang told them that “racial dialogues” will begin soon and professional training will be held. The parents suggested that Chang also consider creating an entity to which students can report issues.
A Chang spokesman did not return calls for comment, but in a statement said, “BPS is working in close collaboration with the leaders of Boston Latin to improve the school climate, specifically around issues of race.’’
Day said she initially had no interest in being a part of a parent group, but after hearing from Lori Britton about what happened to her daughter, who was threatened with lynching, and from students Kylie Webster-Cazeau and Meggie Noel, who took to social media to denounce racism at the school, she felt compelled to get involved.
“That was like dropping a bomb,” said Day about the revelations. “I was outraged.”
Education advocates say the racial climate and the administration’s slow response to racially-motivated incidents reflect negatively on the school and has worried parents.
“There are concerns that the leadership at the school did not handle some or all of the allegations appropriately and that’s a big concern for parents as they consider where to send their children to school,” said Kim Janey, senior project director at Mass Advocates for Children.
Janey said that, in addition to the racial climate of the school, the lack of diversity has also led parents whose children have been accepted into Boston Latin School to instead opt for Boston Latin Academy or the John D. O’Bryant School of Mathematics & Science.
Now, she says, all eyes are on Boston Latin School.
“If people don’t see something tangible, something concrete, that will send a message that [the administration is] happy with the status quo,” said Janey, “and I don’t think that’s the message we want to be sending.”
Jan Ransom can be reached at jan.ransom@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @Jan_Ransom.