Number 1 July 3, 1975

Number 1 July 3, 1975 Honorable John F. Kehoe, Jr. Commissioner of Public Safety 1010 Commonwealth Avenue Boston, Massachusetts 02215 Dear Commissioner Kehoe: You have requested my opinion as to whether certain employees of the St. Basil's Seminary for the Eastern Rites and the Salvatorian Center for Ecu- menical Studies may be appointed to serve as "special police officers" for certain properties of the Melkite Exarchate (in Methuen and other localities) pursuant to G.L. c. 147, § lOG. Section lOG provides, imer alia, as follows: "The commissioner may at the request of an officer of a college, university or other educational institution appoint employees of such college, university or other institution as special police officers . . . ." The essential requirement for appointment under § lOG is that it relates to an educational institution. Such an institution need not be exclusively educa- tional to qualify under § lOG; however, a substantial proportion of the institution's activities must be focused upon the formal and vocational edu- cation of its members. 1967-1968 Op. Atty. Gen. 75. The Supreme Judicial Court has classified institutions as educational where its stated purpose is "clearly educational" and the work actually done is "dominantly educational . . . and not merely incidental to some other dominant pur- pose." Assessors of Boston v. Garland School of Home Making, 296 Mass. 378, 386-87 (1937). See also, 1970-1971 Op. Atty. Gen. 17. The request which prompted your inquiry is made by the Apostolic Exar- charte for the Melkite whose purpose, according to its corporate by-laws, is to: ". . . promote and support public worship; to establish, acquire, take over, manage, direct, conduct, promote and contribute to any religious, benevolent, charitable, educational, or missionary undertaking or undertakings. . . ." While part of the Exarchate's goals include the furthering of education, it does not appear that education is the dominant purpose of the Exarchate; rather, education seems merely to be incidental to the primary purpose of promoting and furthering religious activities. On this basis, then, the Exarchate is not an institution which qualifies under G. L. c. 147, § lOG. Moreover, the request itself specifically refers to such Exarchate proper- ties as a diocesan chancery, a cathedral, two churches, and a chapel, which are not generally defined as educational institutions. The request for appointments is, therefore, too broad. A more narrow request concerning particular properties would permit appointment under § lOG should you determine, in your discretion, that such request pertained to an educational institution, as defined above, and was presented by an officer of that institution. Very truly yours, FRANCIS X. BELLOTTI Attorney General P.D. 12 69