Berkshire Hills School Committee Approves Updated Social Media Policy for Staff

School Committee · Meeting of July 23, 2026

LENOX — Berkshire Hills School Committee approves social media policy and hears record AP score gains. The committee voted 6-1 on July 23 to adopt an updated social networking websites policy, designated IJ and D&D, after unanimously approving a union-requested amendment specifying that teachers may not share private phone numbers directly with students without prior district approval. The committee also heard early College Board data showing 107 students took AP exams this year — up from 73 the prior year — while maintaining a 93 percent pass rate of scores three or higher, a figure administrators attributed to the addition of a 10th-grade AP Seminar course.

Equity data showed an average AP score of 3.64 for low-income students compared to 3.71 for non-low-income students, a gap Director of Curriculum Colin called "meaningless" statistically. The district also introduced incoming middle school principal Seth, who said he has already called approximately 70 families and met with nearly all teaching staff as part of a structured summer entry plan.

In the full story:

• Substantive content and new hires
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report — 2,747 words

Source: the School Committee meeting of July 23, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.