Latest news with #EnglishHighSchool
Yahoo
03-07-2025
- Yahoo
Plea deal for adult woman accused of posing as Boston high school student falls apart
A woman accused of posing as a Boston Public Schools student was set to resolve her criminal case Tuesday, but reached an impasse on a plea agreement with prosecutors, according to published reports. Hewitt, 34, has pleaded not guilty to charges including of forgery of a document, identity fraud and violating the standards of conduct for a public employee, records show. State payroll records show Hewitt was employed by the Department of Children and Families when prosecutors say she forged documents to enroll in several Boston high schools for the 2022 - 23 school year. At the hearing Tuesday, Hewitt's defense attorney, Timothy Flaherty, told the presiding judge that Hewitt would only accept a plea deal if her case were continued without a finding, allowing her to avoid a guilty plea. But prosecutors would only accept an agreement where Hewitt pleaded guilty, The Boston Globe reported. 'It's clear to me the commonwealth is not willing to proceed with a plea unless there is a guilty finding... We've done what we can today,' Judge Debra Squires-Lee said, according to NBC Boston. Squires-Lee said the agreement would have recommended a sentence of probation, mental health treatment and restitution for Hewitt, according to the Globe. If no agreement is reached, Hewitt is scheduled to go on trial in February 2026. Boston Public Schools Superintendent Mary Skipper said Hewitt used the transfer process to enroll in Jeremiah E. Burke High School, Brighton High School and English High School under various names. 'I am deeply troubled that an adult would breach the trust of our school communities by posing as a student. This appears to be a case of extremely sophisticated fraud,' Skipper said in 2023. Hewitt's alleged fraud unraveled when administrators at English High School in Jamaica Plain contacted authorities after uncovering some suspicious paperwork from a student, according to a police report. School officials told police they became concerned after a student's parent said they would be withdrawing their daughter and enrolling her into St. Columbkille School because she was being bullied. But the student had enrolled just a week prior and school staff had only just begun addressing the reported bullying, according to the police report. A hearing in Hewitt's case is scheduled for Sept. 30. Flaherty, her lawyer, said he would 'report back immediately' if an agreement on a plea was reached, the Globe reported. Mass. has an on-time(ish) state budget: 3 big things to know about the $61B plan Here's how Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene described support for Trump's 'big beautiful bill' Group behind MCAS ballot question broke campaign finance law, state says Jennifer Aniston cast in new TV series based on child actor's memoir Mass. beach closures: Here are the beaches closed on Wednesday, July 2 Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
27-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Overcoming obstacles, succeeding: Youth Guidance helping students get ready for college, beyond
Understanding the power between a caring adult and a teenager needing guidance. A school-based counseling and mentoring program is helping those overcoming obstacles and living in low-income families to learn the skills they need to succeed. And it's having a profound effect on reducing violence and increasing graduation rates. During school vacation week, a group of teens were focused on their future, with resume building and mock interviews. The nonprofit Youth Guidance Boston, led by Executive Director Shawn Brown, held the workshops for teens in its Becoming a Man and Working on Woman programs—known as BAM and WOW. 'Youth guidance creates and implements programs that enable young people to overcome obstacles and succeed in school and life,' said Executive Director of Youth Guidance Boston Shawn Brown. The school-based counseling program is currently offered in the Boston, Cambridge, and Somerville school districts—and it's not just mentoring—it's an elective the students take year-round. A study of the BAM program shows just how effective it is. 'BAM reduces violence by 50%, increases graduation rates by 20%, and decreases overall crime rates by 35%,' said Brown. 'The study also showed for every dollar invested in the program, there was a $30 return just by keeping our young men out of the system.' Rich Baez credits the BAM program for teaching him important core values. 'Accountability, integrity, respect for womanhood, positive anger expression, like a lot of things,' said Rich Baez, a senior at Madison Park Technical Vocational High School. 'So using those things, using those tools, those deep breathing skills, like they helped me a lot, get through a lot of tough situations that I thought I wouldn't get out of.' 'WOW was like a stepping stone that's helped me in my life since my mother wasn't really present in my life and gave me the female guidance that I needed in my life,' said Jade Reed, a junior at English High School. The counselors go through over 300 hours of training and coaching to help guide scholars like Jade Reed. Because of the WOW program, Jade says she's not as nervous and now recognizes the possibilities right in front of her. 'If I didn't have it, I wouldn't be introduced to these many opportunities that would help me get ready for college,' said Reed. And it's that circle of trust among their peers and mentors that really helps them connect. 'It's always good to talk to a person who's been through what you've been through, who's experienced what you have, so you have that reliability, you know you relate to that person,' said Baez. Shawn knows this firsthand. He grew up in Dorchester and had a mentor who turned his life around--now it's his goal to set the younger generation on the right path. 'Our young people are wired to be connected to something,' said Brown. 'And if we don't connect them to something positive, there is a whole host of negative things for them to be engaged in.' Brown was named the New England Patriots Foundation Person of the Year Award in 2023. He directly serves about 14,000 youth in the community. He's in talks with expanding the BAM and WOW program to other school districts in the area. This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
