At one of the last School Committee meetings of the academic year, the Newton Public Schools gift policy raised some questions.

On June 15, committee members discussed an Angier Elementary School parent’s request to donate $500 to support the school’s students and programs. The donation memo stated that it was in compliance with the district’s gift policy, sparking a conversation about whether or not donors are allowed to designate their funds toward a specific school.

Last revised in June 2025, the policy allows donors to indicate preferences on where their money goes, with the understanding that the School Committee may determine otherwise in order to generally maintain equity among the district’s schools.

“While the donor may express a preference, and the intention of this policy is to honor the donor’s request whenever possible and consistent with this policy, the final decision for the use of a gift shall be made by the Superintendent and approved by the School Committee,” the policy states.

The gift policy exists to preserve equity between schools while still giving donors the chance to support the district.

“The sticking point is that the School Committee always has the option of rejecting a donation or redistributing a donation,” said Tamika Olszewski of Ward 4 at the meeting. “Say [a parent says], ‘I want to donate $1 million to Newton North.’ The district might say ‘thank you very much, we’ll take your donation and redistribute it as we see fit.’”

Chair Alicia Piedalue tabled the memo to allow for time to make sure the parent was made aware of the policy’s stipulations and was okay with their donation possibly being redistributed to other schools, at the School Committee’s discretion.  

For those looking to give a gift to a teacher or staff member in a way that complies with district policy, the Newton Schools Foundation runs a campaign called Honor Thy Teacher, giving students and families the opportunity to make a donation in honor of a favorite teacher or staff member.

A local nonprofit that raises money for the district, the Newton Schools Foundation, has provided $4 million in grants to educators for a variety of curricular enhancement and professional development purposes since 1985. 

“Families identify the educators (teachers, administrators or staff) they want to recognize, and they make a donation to Newton Schools Foundation in their honor. Educators receive a magnet they can display to identify themselves as an honoree along with any note of appreciation the families have provided,” the Foundation said in a statement. “All donations are used by Newton Schools Foundation to fund grants for educators across the district.” 

The Foundation said 545 teachers and staff were honored this past school year—up from 470 last year—receiving a total of $18,700. A list of all honorees is sent to Superintendent Anna Nolin and school principals. Honorees are not informed of how much money was donated by any student’s family. 

Learn more about the district’s gift policy here and how to take part in the Honor Thy Teacher campaign here.