High marks to Monárrez in first year
This month, Rachel Monárrez will reach her first-year milestone as superintendent of the Worcester Public Schools. It has been a very good year — one in which much progress was made to ensure that our students receive the highest-quality education in a safe environment in which equity is a value. Under her leadership, the groundwork was laid for a culture of openness, transparency and engagement, recognizing that the work of education is a communitywide endeavor.
Dr. Monárrez, new to Worcester, new to the role of superintendent, and the first Latina to lead our city’s schools, entered the position with enthusiasm and a host of new ideas and perspectives that have invigorated teaching and learning across the system. Through community-focused onboarding developed by civic leaders associated with the Worcester Education Equity Roundtable, the superintendent built bridges to the youth-serving, arts and cultural organizations that are an integral part of students’ educational experience. In addition, her schedule included over 300 formal and informal school visits and community meetings, assuring the opportunity to hear firsthand what is on the minds of nearly 5,000 employees and 24,000 students and their families.
In assembling her leadership team, she relied on current district leaders but also brought in new voices. While criticism has been proffered regarding new hires at the district level (some of which were approved, but unfilled by the end of the previous fiscal year), these professionals lend considerable bench strength to accomplish the complex work of 21st-century education. The positions signal an approach that draws on demonstrated best practices to advance excellence in K-12 education and build stronger partnerships with parents.
The superintendent took several steps to make our schools safer places for our students. One was to shift school discipline from reactive and punitive to developmental approaches, reinforcing the value of self-control and encouraging commitment and hard work. Locating culture and climate teams in the schools supports kids in developing healthy peer-to-peer and student-adult interactions.
We have already seen a concurrent decline in discipline referrals in our elementary and high schools as a result.
The district focused on providing more rigorous learning opportunities for our students. Recognizing that reading at grade level is an indicator of future success, the district selected a new reading curriculum to be delivered beginning in the 2023-24 school year.
The curriculum is grounded in research on the science of reading and considers history and culture in addition to comprehension skills. This sturdy foundation will advance academic excellence and cultivate young people as readers, critical thinkers and critical consumers of information.
Dr. Monárrez and the School Committee also successfully negotiated two new educator contracts, expected to be ratified by the EAW membership this summer.
The agreements will advance the continuing work to recruit, retain and develop educators.
The intense negotiations yielded bargains that put Worcester school salaries in line with or ahead of those of contiguous districts and recognizes the all-in commitment that educators of all titles offer each day.
Groundwork was laid for a new strategic plan that builds on and enhances the work of the 2018 plan while recognizing new approaches to teaching and learning for advancing excellence. As before, the plan will be a joint effort between the district, the School Committee, parents, students and the community. This approach acknowledges the value placed by the current administration on the professional and lived expertise housed both in the community and among professional educators. It also affirms that for education in this century to be successful, the schools must engage in meaningful external partnerships to complement the work that goes on in the classroom — a premise fundamental to the current administration’s orientation.
One of the most exciting advances this school year is the development of the new Sparks Academy, scheduled to open at Wawecus Road School in the fall. The academy will pilot new teaching approaches with an emphasis on technology and project-based learning. The best practices in 21st-century learning that are refined in this setting will be incorporated into work across the district and benefit all kids.
The waning pandemic, a visionary School Committee, inspired leadership in the district office, and increased funding assure that we are at a point in this community to assure more rigorous and safe learning environments for our students. By doing so, we will secure a bright future for our young people and our community. It was a very good school year. With the expert and committed leadership at 20 Irving St., we expect many more.
Jennifer Davis Carey is executive director of the Worcester Education Collaborative.