Staff member bloodied, students suspended after fight at Revere High School, officials say

REVERE, Mass. — A teacher was left bloodied after a fight between students broke out in a hallway at Revere High School on Wednesday, educators and city officials said.

During the brawl, a teacher who tried to intervene suffered an arm injury, according to the Revere Teachers Association and Revere Mayor’s Office.

The RTA claims the teacher was “slashed with a knife,” while a spokesperson for the mayor’s office told Boston 25 in a statement that “there were no weapons involved” and the staff member in question “did scrape his arm on a locker, which drew blood.”

“I stepped in, not even thinking because all I saw was my colleagues and students needing help,” said Revere High teacher Michelle Ervin, who also serves as co-president of the Revere Teacher’s Association. Ervin is seen in video trying to push back and block other students from getting too close to the fight.

The teacher’s union is currently in contract negotiations with the school district, and Ervin says there are serious safety concerns regarding fights. Revere Public Schools says it has suspended or expelled more than a dozen students in the wake of recent brawls.

“It’s so frustrating to see these students and my colleagues getting hurt,” Ervin said.

“Two unarmed students got into an altercation,” the mayor’s spokesperson said. “There were no weapons involved in this altercation, and no staff member was stabbed.”

Mayor Patrick Keefe condemned the violence in Revere schools.

“One incident is too many, and it’s something we take seriously,” said Mayor Patrick Keefe during Wednesday’s afternoon news conference. “We have a very large student population, and an unbelievable amount of resources. It’s really about making sure we’re providing them with the mental health resources they need, the social workers they need, and we’re providing them with a great educational platform.”

Effective immediately, Revere High is adding another school resource officer, Keefe said. Paperwork provided by the district shows three SRO’s for the entire district, including one at the High School Level. The new SRO would be the district’s fourth, officials said. The school system is also partnering with Revere Police to build relationships with students.

“The ongoing health and safety crisis in Revere Public Schools is a top concern for educators, students, and families,” the RTA said in a statement Wednesday.

The hallway brawl comes after educators spoke Monday at a Revere City Council meeting, where they urged elected leaders to be partners in solving the ongoing “health and safety crisis.”

Teachers say there’s already been several fights at Revere High School just days into the new school year.

“Weapons have been found in our building on numerous occasions over the last few years, I’m not stepping into a melee to get a blade in my ribs,” Chris Kingston, a teacher at the high school, said during Monday’s meeting.

Ervin said during the meeting that an assistant principal was seriously injured during one fight after her head hit a locker.

“It infuriates me that our superintendent and our school committee can’t take that seriously,” Ervin exclaimed.

The city council said it would explore more options for school safety, including looking into whether it’s feasible to add metal detectors to the schools.

In a statement issued Tuesday, Revere Public Schools Superintendent Dianne Kelly blasted the RTA for mischaracterizing the school district.

“The Revere Teacher’s Association is using the media and the unacceptable fight that occurred at Revere High two weeks ago to amplify a false narrative that serves their bargaining platform,” Kelly said in a statement. “This was evident in their commentary at the city council meeting last night where they repeatedly referenced their contract proposals, including the false claim that I instructed them to refrain from speaking to the media.”

Kelly added that she also wrote to Ervin and Chapin “in an effort to stop their untruthful vitriol that is creating greater strife in our community and eroding the trust of our families.”

City councilors also said they’d like to meet with school district leaders on how to come up with a better plan to make schools safer.

Boston 25 News has reached out to the city of Revere for comment on Wednesday’s fight.

Ongoing school violence in Revere

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