By 2019 the district received an influx of students speaking the
Kʼicheʼ language. In 2019 an advocacy group for the
Maya people complained to the courts that the school district was not providing adequate Kʼicheʼ language services. As of December 2022, New Bedford Public Schools had 161 enrolled students who speak primarily K’iché out of its 13,000 student population. The
U.S. Department of Justice and the school district came to resolution so the school district could provide appropriate Kʼicheʼ language services. The
Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974 requires school districts to provide services to speakers of languages other than English. ==Demographics==