Superintendent Recommends Moving Amigos School to Former Kennedy-Longfellow Building

Cambridge Public Schools Superintendent David G. Murphy recommended relocating the Amigos School to the former Kennedy-Longfellow building in East Cambridge in 2028, proposing up to $18 million in renovations to expand access to the district’s Spanish dual-language immersion program.

Murphy presented his recommendation to the Cambridge School Committee during a special meeting Thursday evening, one day after notifying parents of Amigos students. The Committee did not vote Thursday, but will weigh the proposal in their regular meeting next Tuesday.

The move would relocate the Amigos — the district’s only Spanish dual-language immersion school for pre-K through eighth grade — from 15 Upton St. to 158 Spring St., which has sat vacant since the district closed K-Lo in June 2025.

Murphy said the recommendation followed months of community discussions about the future of the vacant building and reflected an opportunity to expand access to one of the district’s highest-performing schools.

Amigos is currently at capacity in its Upton Street facility — with 418 students enrolled in a building suited for a maximum of 416, according to district data presented Thursday. Murphy also cited a host of issues with the school’s current building, including bathrooms on only one floor and a lack of a dedicated science lab for upper-school students.

At Thursday’s meeting, Amigos Principal Sara B. Marrero expressed enthusiasm for the proposal, saying the larger facility could alleviate longstanding space constraints while allowing the school to serve more students.

“As a staff and, I would dare say, as an entire community, it’s very exciting to think about this opportunity,” Marrero said.

Steven Rodenas, a fifth and sixth-grade social studies teacher at Amigos, said in public comment on Thursday that the K-Lo building could afford the school more outdoor space — something he said was limited at the Upton Street school.

“Today, I was out at recess. I saw a frisbee flying over a football while some kids were trying to play soccer,” Rodenas said. “Our space is limited, and we do the most with what we have.”

“I know that if we were to have more space, I think more students would benefit from it,” he added.

Murphy’s presentation identified expanding access for high-needs students as a central justification for the relocation. Nearly 38 percent of Amigos’ students are high-needs, and the school has consistently topped rankings for the district’s Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System scores.

Amigos also has the second-lowest proportion of high-needs students in the district, but Murphy argued that expanding the school’s enrollment capacity by making the move to the K-Lo facility could make the school “more representative” of Cambridge Public Schools.

Cambridge City Councilor Patricia M. “Patty” Nolan ’80, whose two children attended Amigos, said efforts to expand the school’s bilingual education program date back years — pointing to a motion she co-sponsored on the School Committee in 2019 to establish a second Spanish bilingual immersion school. She called that motion “very much in line” with the proposal to move Amigos to the K-Lo building.

“Equity would be enhanced by allowing Amigos, which is a high performing school, to expand,” Nolan wrote.

Relocating Amigos to the K-Lo building was one of three options proposed in September — presented to the School Committee alongside options to create an early learning center or merge some of the district’s upper schools.

Murphy told the School Committee that it would take between $14 and $18 million in capital improvements — including a full HVAC overhaul, significant window replacements, and electrical and plumbing upgrades. The district also identified improvements to the auditorium, cafeteria, and classroom technology infrastructure, alongside city investments in outdoor recreational space.

For some Amigos families, the building’s readiness remains a central concern — even though it would still be more than a year until students move into the building.

Priscilla Allen, an Amigos parent, said she was not surprised by Murphy’s recommendation but questioned whether the building would be sufficiently renovated before students arrived.

“I think the major concern for me is I don’t see yet what would prove that the building would be ready,” Allen said.

Allen said she supported expanding enrollment, particularly for families who have struggled to secure places at Amigos, but emphasized that additional students would require adequate staffing and educational resources.

“We need to make sure that our specialized educators are in place,” Allen said.

During Thursday’s meeting, Marrero said the school would need a teacher and paraprofessional for each additional classroom, emphasizing the importance of staff who can support students’ language development.

Murphy said the district would expand staffing alongside enrollment rather than hire for the building’s full capacity immediately.

Murphy said enrollment would likely grow gradually, potentially beginning with additional preschool and kindergarten classrooms. He estimated that expansion could take three to five years, with the district also considering ways to admit more students into later grades.

Relocating Amigos would free up the Upton Street building for other potential educational uses, including early childhood and alternative education programming.

Murphy said he had initially hoped to reopen the Spring Street building in fall 2027, but assessments of necessary renovations took longer than anticipated. He added that rushing to move into the building by next fall would leave insufficient time to prepare for the transition.

If the School Committee approves the recommendation next week, Murphy said the district would begin coordinating building operations, staffing, instructional planning, and communication with families this fall.

Amigos would remain at Upton Street through the 2027-28 school year before relocating to Spring Street in fall 2028.

—Staff writer Tess E. Sumner can be reached at [email protected].