WESTBROOK (AP) – The city of Westbrook has a new committee that officials hope will bridge cultural divides.

The Westbrook Human Relations Committee, designed to serve as a liaison between minority groups and city officials, is the brainchild of Police Chief William Baker.

Baker started a similar group 10 years ago as a chief dealing with a wave of immigration in Laconia, N.H.

Westbrook is among a number of communities in Maine where there has been a marked increase in immigrants and refugees.

The number of students who count English as a second language rose from five to 82 over the past 15 years, according to Deborah Peck, director of special services for the Westbrook School Department. According to the Portland Press Herald, much of that increase has come since the 2005-06 academic year, when the system had 36 such students.