Let's
do all together. All right. Um, good evening everyone. I'll call to order a
special meeting of the Salem School Committee of July 7th, 2026 at 6 p.m.
This meeting is taking place in person at 29 Highland Avenue, room 227 in
Salem. In person is the primary method of public access to this meeting. Um if
technologically feasible, you can access via Salem Access TV or remotely using
the Zoom link posted in the meeting agenda. The only item on our agenda for
this evening is interview with our superintendent finalist, Jorge Allen. Um
we will begin with uh allowing uh you to uh offer a two to three minute opening
statement if you like. There'll be a series of questions from the committee
members. Uh committee members that wish to ask a follow-up question to any of
the questions that were asked, please raise your hand. Uh and I'll call on
folks. Um and then we'll move on to the next questions and then at the
conclusion of the questions, uh you'll have an opportunity for another two to
three minute closing statement if you'd like.
» All right. >> Thank you.
» Okay. Well, uh with that, the floor is yours.
» Thank you. Uh good evening. Uh thank you uh for the opportunity to be here. Um I
would like to start by saying what really excites me about Salem. Um what
really excites me about Salem is basically who the community is. The um
having almost um for more than 40% of families and students to be uh Hispanic.
Um having one in every six um students roughly to be English learners. Uh those
are the things that really excite me but especially the fact that this is a
community that is very intentional and deliberate in communicating their sense
of belonging to um all these members. Um and the most important thing is that the
multiculturalism and the multilingualism of this community is not being seen as a
challenge to be managed but instead as an asset that enriches the community and
should also enrich educational experience of the students. Um,
personally as a immigrant myself, as a first generation college educated in my
family, as a descendant or uh descendant Westinians that actually built the
Panama Canal, um, I feel connected with this community and I feel that the I
don't see way I don't see Salem as a basically a district, but I see the
families that represent also my family as well. uh also because of the fact of
me having to raise uh three African-American uh boys in in this uh
community and having to navigate this the school system as a parent in a
language and a culture that was not actually my first that has given me a
perspective that is not just imagine or learned from a book but actually lived
um in every day of my experience as a as a parent. Two things that I would like
to highlight tonight and hopefully you'll be able to see that through line
is one I truly feel and believe that Salem is not at the beginning of
something. It's actually in the midst of uh extraordinary things that are
happening. When I came to the site visit uh a couple a few weeks ago, I I was
able to see um from the early early childhood center how the adults were
excited about kids getting dirty in the community garden. I was able to see uh
the dual language school be very proud about the um the teachers that they have
brought from Brazil, from the Dominican Republic and Spain. Uh then I was able
to experience and and have a conversation with the a middle school
principal that's actually very excited about the possibility that next year
they will be um the start of a dual language program at the at their school.
And then also in um in my meeting with high school students when I asked them
what what is one aspect of the Salem High School uh experience that they feel
really proud that they will be able to brag about and the answers I got were
two that really were very telling. One one of the students mentioned that they
were really proud of the special education program.
This has been my first time in my educator life that actually students
will actually highlight the education special education program as a highlight
of their educational experience. The second thing that also uh was shared
by the students when I met with them was that they were really proud and really
excited about the design of the high school that allows them to to experience
uh career and technology education opportunities and pathways in addition
to the uh regular high school curriculum. So those are the things that
I describe by extraordinary. Those are the things that really make Salem for me
a exciting place to be able to join um as an educator. The second thing I would
like to um highlight that my second through line is and it will hopefully
will make more sense later is the concept of um locally rooted and
globally ready. I I feel and I believe that all and every single Salem public
school student deserves uh access to the core curriculum and also they deserve to
really learn about their language, about the culture and about their local
community and those things and those elements should make them ready for um
basically be ready globally for career or any post-secary uh opportunities that
they might want to pursue. So um those were my two uh through lines
today and hopefully that will capture my vision and again I'm thank you for the
opportunity um as I'm really honored to be here with with you today.
» Thank you Mr. Allen. Um so our first question
equity often requires difficult choices. How do you approach decisions about
allocating resources, opportunities, and supports across students, schools, and
programs when needs exceed available resources?
» Yeah, I think for me the first operating definition is to keep in mind that
equity doesn't mean equal distribution of assets. So equity is not asking for
every single school, every single student to have the same thing. is
actually is asking us to be mindful about how distribution of assets is u
providing equal opportunity of uh access to opportunities.
So um there's always this dilemma that is that
we're bound to face that needs always going to surpass resources.
The question that I will have as a superintendent that actually has
dictated my um my career is to always ask the question like what are the
students or families that will be impacted by any budget decision.
especially keeping in mind that we want to u protect the families that are more
vulnerable that the families that have been uh under reppresented or the the
students have not been achieving educationally as their peers. So um with
those decisions with those principles in mind it's important to communicate those
values when um having budget considerations and conversations. I
would like to offer an example. Um, as a department head in a in a world
language program, I had to make the decision about uh increasing the class
size of the honors classes to be able to to have enough staffing to support the
um the college prep courses offered in my department. That was not a popular
decision. That was not a decision that is in a way counterintuitive.
But the principle, the driving principle for that is that those students that are
labeled as college prep versus honors, those are the students that in a world
language program are the ones that are more vulnerable. They are the ones that
don't see themselves as language learners and those are the ones that
will benefit from having a smaller class size in which that will um provide more
access to the teachers. um those kind of decisions are the ones
that I that I use when I look at budgetary uh considerations
and um and what is more important is to keep in mind what will be the effect or
the impact of those. So I was trying to protect the students that our program
needed to um highly support and the students that were actually were
underrepresented academically. Um but the most important thing is that
that decision was owned by me. That decision was understood by the
department and I did not pass that um the negativity that came with the
decision and spread to the rest of the staff. So um in in the end the driving
decision is about the impact. A budget document becomes a document of values
and statements. And it's not just a list of cuts and expenses, but actually it
should show what a district, what a program or a school values.
» Thank you. Uh follow-up questions from committee members.
Member Cornell. >> Thank you. Um I'm wondering if you can
uh develop a little bit how you would use what metrics you would use to sort
of assess how we allocate our resources equitably. Um you know
this is a concern for us going forward and equity is our guiding light in this
district. So, how would you think about being data informed at the same time
that we're, you know, um being human about the way that that
we approach our high needs population? So, just like what sort of metrics and
data would you be looking for to make sure that we're appropriating uh our
finances um to the to the kids who need it the most?
» Yeah, I think um a key element for that analysis has to be disagregating the
data. We have to understand um what is the um the level of achievement not
necessarily as a district as a whole but actually being able to be more nuanced
and be able to understand um are we actually closing the gaps between the
different student subgroups. And then we had to be a I will have to understand
basically what is that connection between the uh prepundance of the those
subgroups where are they mostly located or likely to be situated in the district
operationally and also in um in the academic programming. So um I think the
metrics for me that um that I basically drive when I understand district
decisions, it has to come to the dis the segregated data and understanding what
are the programs that actually supporting those particular groups that
are trailing the mainstream or trailing the average of the district and what
where are the programs that actually are helping to close that gap and to
accelerate learning. And so in an environment which one is considering
either right sizing or sunsetting programs that is kind of the metric that
I will be looking for the educational outcomes for the particular groups that
we're interested in protecting. >> Thank you.
» All right. No further follow-ups on that point. Member Cornell.
» We have the next question. Uh the next question is uh Salem has
worked hard to build a culture of high expectations for all students while also
offering strong college and career pathways. How would you ensure students
experience a coherent educational journey from elementary through high
school and graduate prepared graduates prepared for co success in college
career and life? I'm sorry and graduate prepared for co success in college
career and life. >> Yeah. Um thank you for the question. For
me the uh key term with that question is coherence. And by coherence I mean that
when I think about a kindergarten student who might be starting in the
fall in the and Sarah Parker Raman school for example and when I think
about high school sale high school student uh are they experiencing
educationally an alignment of um or opportunities or are we just a district
that is basically a conglomerate of disperate um experience. experiences
under the same name of uh Salem public schools. So it is important that um I
see the coherency reflected by what Selma has done with the uh portrait of
the graduate and the question for me will be how is that portrait of the
graduate reflected in all vert vertically in all the levels. Um, one
should be able to see that unfolding and unpacking of those um, characteristic of
the posture of the graduate like critical thinking, creative problem
solving, collaboration, communication, self-awareness and cultural competence
from the early stages from um, kindergarten, elementary and middle
school and so forth. It should not start at ninth grade. which actually should
start in our levels. And um this alignment of experiences
um is important to be able to provide students with access to the core
curriculum and high standards. And also going back to what I say about being
able to um experience a enrich locally um informed educational uh curriculum
and also to prepare them for the global economy and all the um future readiness
that we're asking students to be ready. So going back to the question, I mean I
think the the key thing is coherence and what we should be able to see that
elements of that coherence throughout vertically in all the levels
follow-up questions.
» I'm just gonna say yes every time. >> Okay. Member Cornell. Um, so just to
drill down a little bit more on that, I'm wondering if you could talk about
how you will work with teachers to assess whether or not we we are being
coherent, right? Um, with our expectations and our follow through um
and also ensuring high standards while we're doing that. And I think that also
goes back to our the first question about our um you know about equity and
making sure that our most marginalized students are getting the most having
those h how you assess that and how you work with teachers to kind of make sure
we're on track. >> Yeah, I think you know definitely um
with the educational data that we have that is to ensure that um that the
educational programming is actually yielding the resource that we're looking
for. For example, here um in Salem um you know it's it's remarkable the growth
that we have seen with former English learners. Uh personally um in my current
district I I participated in um in tried to introduce datainformed
uh meetings regarding uh English learners uh in the sense of you know a
kind of a variation of multi-ter systems of support in which we're using data to
inform our educational moves and instructional practices.
um is not too much about remediation a mindset of remediation but it's a
mindset of what do we need to provide at the student at the right time uh at the
right moment um so that the data inform instructional decisions is something
that I will be looking as a superintendent and hopefully in um in
different spaces there will be evidence that educators we are using that not as
the only solution or the only aspect but that is actually partially informing our
decision aside from understanding the uh context of the different students. So I
think um going back to data on and seeing every year how we closing those
gaps. For example, Salem has done remarkable in um their student growth.
You know, even though that our prof our achievement um levels have not caught up
yet, we know that research shows that sustained
um increase in growth will actually pay off or show off with achievement. So um
to your question about how we'll ensure that that is happening in classrooms and
in schools. I think by having by listening and observing conversations in
which educators are using data to inform their conversations.
» Um member bias you have the next question. Can we get prepared first?
» Hello. So, I'm going to be asking my question in Spanish and I just want to
thank the interpreter here for helping us tonight.
Let me know when you guys are ready.
Okay.
andific.
Army
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experience.
Um,
collabor. Fore
being inch.
Um, in closing, I would like to say this in
English for everyone to have access to it. I think the goal is for Salem to be
a district where everyone feels that they belong.
Gracias. >> Gracias.
» Any follow-ups?
No.
Um, member Hoffman,
» tell us about your experience supporting students who face significant barriers
to success, including students from marginalized communities and those at
risk of disengagement. How would you ensure Salem's systems identify needs
early and provide effective support? Early
identification is the name of the game is the most
important aspect for me. Um in one of my previous um districts or
actually schools um educators had access to a system that
via email any educator in the team could actually communicate with the entire
group when there was any uh reason for concern.
Uh it didn't have to be a crisis. It just was just a concern. Um for example,
in my case as a language um educator, if I had a concern about a particular
student, I will just email the group of adults. Um this is what I'm seeing. This
is I'm wondering and likely the counselor which as as a part of that
group will reach out to me. I will try to understand better what I have seen or
heard from the student or uh regarding the student performance and then they
may share with me a little more context so I can understand um what is the
reality of the student and what could be the factors um in playing into that.
That system might seem really small but it's something that I had taken
throughout my career in the sense that a concern we should not let a concern
become a crisis and sometimes we formalize
alert systems. Um yes they are designed to capture those moments but if we could
also normalize more frequent more less formal in a way kind of informal way or
letting other adults in the group on the team kind of know we will be able to
kind of close that gap between a concern and a crisis. I think that when a
student disengages in multiple disciplines, we have missed the mark. We
should try to respond early and try to um access and and um provide that
support from the early stages.
» Member Cornell. Thank you. I'm wondering um if you could
talk about how you will work with teachers, you know, the people who are
really on the ground to ensure that we're not leaving students behind. Sort
of what is your leadership look like in that regard? Um or how do you expect to
engage with teachers to kind of make sure that everybody is prioritizing the
same things? >> Yeah. Um I mean obviously I mean there
are there are structures in schools like um student student support and teams um
data meetings also um at the building level that might bring up some of those
conversations. Um personally currently in my district
what we are working in what we call relationship mapping which is basically
just a tool in which we are trying to account for every student making sure
that they have at least a trusted adult. is not too much on the student
perception of having an adult but actually matching the stu the adult or
the teacher perception or of how they connect with a particular student. So
we're trying to in that way kind of survey the landscape identify where we
had gaps identify the students that have not been quote unquote claimed by any
adult and then act as okay let's understand who can be that trusted
adult. um so that so that the student is connected. A lot of times those uh gaps
or holes in my current practice they happen to be new students, new transfer
students that are new to the community. But also it kind of when we look at the
aggregate data in those that that kind of practice it tell us a little bit
about our practices and our about internal biases regarding why students
need connections and why students don't need connections. So that is a very uh
it's a small tool that's a daily practice but that is how currently we're
trying to remind our staff members of the important of connections and
hopefully those connections will allow us to have those identification as I
mentioned in my previous question and then also be able to tackle a concern
before it becomes a crisis.
Okay. Um, next question is mine. Um, Dr. Allen, school districts across
Massachusetts face significant fiscal challenges. Tell us about your approach
to budgeting and resource allocation and share an example of how you've navigated
a period of financial constraint. Yeah, as I mentioned, I mean, uh, budget
is a value statement document. Um, in my experience, you know, um, as a
department head, as a district director, um, I had an a situation in which, um,
because of FD reductions, we had to look at, um, you know, cuts in the, uh, high
school programming. um the cuts could have impacted the
Chinese language program uh in my particular setting. Um, two of the key
drivers going back to what I mentioned at the beginning about looking at
budget, looking at finances, looking at impact from an equity lens was to
appreciate the fact that our middle schools offer Spanish and French.
Whereas um the only exposure or access to Chinese was actually at the high
school level. the Chinese lang language program in
this particular district actually represent was a statement of value
because it it represented a significant portion of the demographic of the
community. So that was one equity consideration.
The second equity consideration was that for students that have not found success
in French or Spanish at the middle school, uh having access to a different
language, uh a very different language from the Romans languages of French and
Spanish actually offer an opportunity to try again to reset and not lose that
confidence of them becoming um language learners.
Um the importance of small programs at the high school for example is that they
tend to only have one teacher. So the students actually were um exposed or uh
actually working with one educator for four years. So it created a level of
safety that we were not being able to provide with the larger uh language
programs. Again this is a decision that was not popular is not intuitive. Um and
it's um it's the kind of decisions that one has to make and one has to own and
be able to also absorb the negativity that will come that may come with the
decision and not pass it to the the rest of the team or the rest of the staff
because I believe that that's part of the being a servant leader to also be
able to understand that there will be a price to be paid by decisions that had
to be made but as long as one is transparent about what is the guiding
principle in this case the two equity considerations
um at least there's an understanding even though that people might not agree
about the the execution of the plan when when I scale out envisioning what
happens at the district level it's kind of the same being led by the same
principles uh understanding what will be the impact of the cut or the budget
change depending on the um the challenges of the budget and to ask
ourselves about are there other ways to protect those vulnerable students and
and families. Are there other services that comparable to that uh and it's not
just an exercise of balancing numbers um even though that that's is you know
obviously going to be present in those discussions.
» Stop. >> Thank you. Um
I I had two quick questions actually. The first question was so the the
example that you provided with the Chinese language program. Were you able
to keep that program or did you have to no longer have that program in the
district? >> Yeah. So the specifics is that the there
were some retirements happening in in in Spanish and also they we had a teacher
that could actually teach both languages French and Spanish. So we were able to
kind of like swing that person to support the not refilling the uh or
replacing retirements in the Spanish program to be able to have enough FTEEs
to be able to maintain the Chinese language teacher at that moment. So
obviously by doing that class sizes increased you know this uh expectation
like why you doing this I mean these are the most of our students are in Spanish
and French they are now being served by these decisions but there was the equity
consideration that I mentioned in my answer about this is the only space
where a significant number of families see reflected and also it's important
because otherwise we will be narrowing the language options for students that
may not have seen success at at the middle school level.
» Thank you for closing that loop for me. >> Um and then just a question about the
the budget communication in in general. Um you know it happens every year,
right? We all know what's coming and so I'm curious as to what your your
philosophy is with communication of the budget to you know the different groups
that we have. So staff um families students even sometimes like how is that
all communi or what's your philosophy of communicating that out and working with
the other groups? Yeah, I think it comes back to what I have said in in some of
the answers uh before just remind the community about the
guiding principles. I mean they are budget drivers you know the you know
that actually are f more financial in nature but also they should be a
reminder to the community about the guiding principles so that when we start
um having discussions the preemptively we have the we have
shared with the community and with the stakeholders what will be the equity
consideration that we'll be using for those decisions. Um I mean budgets um I
would assume if it's similar to my previous districts I mean they basically
start early in the fall. I mean when we start looking at at those um anticipated
um sizes of revenues um we might anticipate any shortfall from the very
beginning. We start asking programmatic questions at the at the academic council
level we call it which is basically all the department heads and principals and
directors. And then the equity question will be always the the equity probe that
those conversations will be um will be used is who are these who are the
families and students that will be impacted? how uh can we protect them and
are other uh alternatives where students can still have access to the same
educational outcomes that we wanted to provide for these other programs. the I
think with with um staff I think given the declining enrollment that we're
having across the state and even in a way the country I mean that's a it's a
reality that communities are facing we have to be also be cognizant of the
impact that immigration enforcement is having in in a number of our communities
because it's impacting our enrollment so I think the more that we let people
preemptively know what are the factors that are going to be at Okay.
Is not going to alleviate the discomfort and the frustration but at least will
allow people to see transparently what was the framework and the thinking
behind the decisions. >> Thank you.
» Any further follow-ups? Member Cornell. As a body, we really value our
relationships with our collective bargaining units and uh you know, the
Salem Teachers Union is the biggest collective bargaining unit and is is the
one most impacted when we have uh budget deficits. And we rely on the the
superintendent to be that bridge between the Salem teachers union and the school
committee both in the buildup to the budget process and and um and in the
negotiation process as well which is dependent on budgets obviously but um so
that as you know is an important job of school committee of the um the
superintendent. So, I'm I'm wondering how how you'll negotiate that role of of
um you know, being that liaison between us and and the the school commit or the
um the teachers union uh preparing them for uh potential deficits, you know, how
do you see that relationship evolving as you as you get into the job?
Yeah, that's a great question and I I have to admit that in my experience I
have not seen the perfect way to do it. I mean I just want to be honest about
that. I think it's always uh hope that there will be some kind of um
anticipated communication that will uh avoid that sense of shock and
frustration that comes and at the same time the um
the sometimes the details of knowing exactly how a reduction will impact a
specific employees or in specific number of FDs is always uh a tricky uh act to
navigate. I will say that bringing back everything I have said, I mean I will I
will assume that Salem compared to other districts will have routine
conversations with leadership. I I I am currently part of those leadership um
you know once a month every you know twice a month uh communications and
engagement and one of the guiding principle is let's try to avoid
surprises uh let's try to at least as much as we
can you know giving our different roles um to be able to kind of give a heads up
and and try to also be open to um to different perspectives. I think what
I would I would hope if it's possible to bring is a space and a time where uh
decisions have not been made and decisions can actually um entertain
multiple perspectives because budget can give you a sense of where the gaps are
but the stories and perspectives are the ones that actually will inform you about
the impact. So on the one hand as I'm holding the kind of the primordia
principle for me of understanding the impact and making sure that the impact
is not falling on the most vulnerable to really of be able to understand that
impact uh requires engagement with uh the teach association with other um you
know uh units of the um the collective bargaining agreement uh because those
are the stories that really inform what just the numbers are kind of like
leading us to to focus on
member Miranda.
» How do you balance supporting principles and school leaders with holding them
accountable when student outcomes, school climate, or equity goals are not
being consistently met? >> Thank you for the question. Uh I would
like to start by saying that I don't see um support and accountability as
mutually exclusive you know propositions.
I actually see them as basically the two halves of one situation.
Um it is not fair to hold any any educator
accountable for um goals that we have not spend the time explaining
and providing resources and coaching um the educators to be able to execute that
plan when adults you know basically um adults are just grownup students. So the
same thing that that we face sometimes in the classroom in be able to kind of
manage um changes it also happens with adults. When adults tend to face or tend
to react in a reactive way, an oppositional way is we have to be able
to slow down and appreciate and assess if this is coming because of fear of not
knowing how to do it and fear that if I don't know how to do
it, would I be fired? Would I lose my job? Would I lose my standing? So it's
important that in the coaching of of every um leader the superintendent is
getting close to that building leader or that department leader or program leader
to uh to ensure that that leader understands what the goal is about. that
that leader develops um a sense of what kind of resources they might have to
provide to their staff in order for the goal to be accomplished and that they
have time to believe in the goal. Uh personally I you know bring it to the
educator level to to the educator level. I had um a situation with a couple of
educators in which um I feel that we provided coaching and support and
resources for extended period of time and the educators were not able to uh
meet those goals. Um it was not necessarily a lack of uh skills was not
really a lack of resources. It came down to be a mismatch between
the district beliefs and the personal beliefs of the educators.
Do I continue providing the coaching? The uh the educators then came to the
point that they realized that it was not going to be a match between what they
believe and there was no way they could they could access the district goals. So
they in both cases they decided to uh separate themselves from the from the
positions. Um that's not really a failure of
accountability. It's actually accountability h providing a little
dignity to allow professionals to come to that realization when there's no way
that they can give up their personal beliefs in order to align them with the
district beliefs. Um I I view that those cases as exceptions rather than the
rules because educators normally come to education because they really want to
make a difference in in students and families.
Um so I think the same kind of um pattern kind of works for a
superintendent working with building levels building uh leaders in the sense
of ensuring that when a building leader is not meeting the the standard is not
achieving the goal is not a question of what's wrong with the leader but it's
actually an introspective question for a superintendent to ask what why am I or
what are we not providing the leader leader as far as coaching and support
for them to continue with that growth. And I think it's important that uh
building leaders at the same time as a superintendent, we have the patience and
the willingness to go through that journey to go through that process and
and that we can provide some grace to each other in that in that journey. Um,
and that it basically because that's the same kind of modeling I would like for
them to share with their staff when they're coaching classroom teachers as
well.
» Thank you. I really appreciated appreciated that sentiment about um
you know looking at yourself you know as a as the leader um and saying what am I
you know how how what am I not providing you know doing doing a little personal
reflection that's um important in leadership so um just to piggyback on
that I'm wondering what role or h how I may not be saying this correctly because
I'm not a teacher but it's sort of how how um
professional development can be used to help to support teachers,
which is what it's for. But like how do you view professional development um
as a you know as a tool to help give give um our educators the support that
they need? What would your approach be to professional development?
» Thank you. I appreciate the question. Um I have maybe a little individual
perspective on this. I I believe the professional development
at its best is when is more about coaching and the the reason why I use
that those those terms in a distinctive way is that sometimes professional
development sounds to educators as a one shot check a box. Here we go. We taught
it. You should do it. And the same analogy and extension of what I'm saying
like adults were just like grown-up students is that there there's a
learning curve and the question is when I'm learning the new skill in order for
the new task or goal that has been set for the district or for the school
am I being able to share my my failures and my small successes with someone? Am
I able to get feedback, timely feedback so I can know how to improve? And so I
think for me professional development that is really uh most effective is the
one that resembles coaching. So it's like a sustained relationship
um throughout the the um learning the new learning that educators are being
asked to to acquire rather than just one presentation. an afterchool one or two
hour session.
» Uh, next question is member stop. >> Thank you. Salem has a strong foundation
and an ambitious future including a transformative high school project that
will impact the community for generations. What should Salem schools
look like 10 years from now? And how can the superintendent ensure that long-term
investments remain educationally sound, fiscally responsible, and responsive to
community needs? >> Yeah, thank you. Um
the buildings and infrastructures that those are the easy part. I think the the
real um core of the enterprise is actually the program and the vision
inside the building. Um it's important that our capital investments or
infrastructure investments are a reflection of our educational vision,
not the other way around. Um it's important that that we find ways
to include the key um comm school community me uh members who are
basically the educators and students not just in the planning phase um but also
in the implementation phase so that our initiatives have um
vibrancy and currency as we implement Um my job is to ensure that a for
example in the case of the um future high school that the uh future the
future high school maintains the uh educational programming that Salem
values and that is actually is a place where there's a ocean of opportunities
for students. Um it is important that the three
elements that I heard from the students when I met with them that they love
about Sale High are preserved and actually uh better resource the regular
high school programming their uh vocational pathways
uh and also something that I I learned in talking to the high school principal
is about your robust uh early college u programming as well. So um it's
important to keep that currency that we are always asking ourselves if these
investments are the um in in service with educational vision and that um we
constantly find ways to for any capital improvement to actually reflect those
educational goals and visions that we we have set for the for the community.
and we're stopp Thank you. Um I would love to unpack a
little more if you don't mind the response about educators and students
need to be involved in not just the implementation but the the planning
process and the um you know the the before we get to the end part. How do
you envision that happening or what has worked for you in the past with making
sure those voices are heard? >> Right.
um in any new construction. I mean I'm I'm
focusing on the on the building of the new high school. I anticipate that with
rising costs with uh unanticipated challenges that the construction may
face that we have not been able to to um protect or forecast with the finances
that there will be decisions that will have to be made. So I think it's
important with educators and students that uh the superintendent creates a
list of the non-negotiables of the most haves and the other a second list of the
in case we need to cut something because of rising costs or any external
challenges that we could live without. If the educational programming is one,
let's say that uh fosters maker spaces and and innovation or and spaces where
students can actually integrate a lot of the STEM um knowledge and and um create
projects. I mean, do we have those wide open spaces to allow that more agnostic
spaces opposed to just um subject bound spaces? And I think in in creating those
master lists of the we're going to try to protect this at all cost and these
are the ones that if needed that students and educators have been part of
that of those conversations because I think the last thing that we want is to
have a final product that the the school community did not feel that their voices
were represented or honored uh through the project.
member Cornell. >> So, we've
we've had a lot to think about with regard to infrastructure in the past few
years, as I'm sure you probably know. So, we, you know, we've consolidated
middle schools, we've consolidated schools, um we've moved some some two
programs into another school. Uh so going forward, we have a lot to think
about. I think particularly around preK. Um even though our enrollment numbers
are are good, we're in good shape relative to other districts. You know,
we still need to think about that um birth rate cliff, you know, going
forward. So thinking about buildings is, I don't think something that any of us
love to think about, but it's something we really have to think about. So um I'd
love to know it. It is a day one job. is really
thinking about the infrastructure. So, I'd like to know um kind of what your
approach would be to to really thinking about what's in our portfolio of
buildings um and how we how do we how do we utilize them? You spoke to it a
little bit um but there's also like there's a lot of practicality to it, you
know. So, I'm just wondering kind of like how you would jump in and and start
thinking about literal buildings, you know?
That's a great question and I I'm not sure if I'll be able to answer the
question because of not knowing more the specifics.
Um,
» there's a good chance I didn't ask it very well. So,
» no, no, no, no, no. I guess it's just is it's a reflection more of my lack of
understand my lack of knowledge already of the um details and nuances that you
might expecting the superintendent to kind of know at this point. Um
» so >> my question may be
» how how are you going to get into it because we won't expect you to know on
the first day but kind of like how are you going to jump into this and try to
tackle it? Ah, okay. Uh, in my experience, building
conversations have always been um a multi-year, very long conversations. And
I think it's important for a um a public school system to have an uh a vision of
not necessarily the decay of buildings where but we start getting the warning
signs that the infrastructure is might not be yielding a safe or uh educational
educationally conducive environment.
and and I in my experience that at at the first signs of those things that's
when we I guess our partner this time will partner with the mayor to try to
understand what are the um the city's um list of priorities and how where will
that stack up in their punchline of projects and things that they have to to
um assess. Um for example in my current community
there has been a lot of conversations about AC because of given the extreme
weather that we have been experiencing and which is based on science is not
it's not going to get any better anytime soon. Um those conversations are also
multi-year conversations. So I think as a superintendent the first thing one
should do is to visit the sites and spend time in the sites.
um really get to um walk the building from the principal perspective to
understand where those um infrastructure niches are are already
showing signs of distress and then um be able to start understanding the economic
and financial relationship between the schools and the city to be able to
understand where will they fall in the list of either repairs or replacement or
new project if needed. So I my short answer to the question at this point I
will say the superintendent needs to spend a lot of time visiting the sites
and really stand spending time with the principles to understand what is
happening in those schools.
» Other follow-ups on that question? Uh I just have a a quick one. So you you
talked about we talked about the future perspective of capital facilities and
buildings, but so zooming out 10 years down the road, um what does the district
look like from an achievement perspective or a culture perspective to
your mind? Yeah, I think 10 years from now, I would
like to see Salem be a place where we have definitely
moved the needle regarding achievement uh according to state benchmarks with
MCCAST proficiency and so forth. I will I will vision a district that is
actually graduating students that have a strong
threeprong approach. They have a solid high school a regular high school
curriculum exposure. they have a a vibrant exposure to vocational uh and
technical uh pathways and also uh students that have been able if they so
wish to uh access early college opportunities.
I would like to see a district like Salem really embracing their assets
being multicultural and multilingual in the sense of um equipping the
students to be ready globally and by that I mean that every Salem student to
graduate being proficient in at least two languages.
um we have a robust Spanish um program and we have a a dual language program
and I think that there's uh a lot of promise in those practices and I would
like to see how that could extend vertically on both ways. I mean even I
would like to understand more about the prek opportunities in dual language if
if we don't offer them yet and what how would that look like if we sustain the
growth in secondary. I would like to see a student that feels that sale prepare
them to be effective contributors in anywhere around the globe because of in
sale they experience diversity. They understand uh different stories that
this community holds and and that the educational preparation have given them
the tools to be effective in in our economy.
Member Miranda,
» describe a time when feedback from families, staff, or community members
caused you to rethink your initial approach to an issue. How did you
communicate your decision? And what did the experience teach you about
leadership? Yeah, I think that um
I'm going to offer an example because I think that trust um needs to be earned
or demonstrated, not just described. Um when I started in my in one of my
previous um districts, um the the world language program was
undergoing a uh changing at the middle school level. Um there was actually has
there was a consolidation from three languages to just one language. Um and
then I was kind of thrown into this uh environment uh when I was hired. Um the
the language that was chosen for the middle school was Spanish. So the
community was um kind of upset when they saw me, a black Hispanic coming as a
world language department head. they um in their minds they were connecting the
dots that okay they want to institute only Spanish and they bring a Hispanic
um educator to kind of run the program. Um the feedback was like so
um emotional and negative that we had to offer a a a evening forum to the from
some of the families. um in that evening forum um families was expressing a lot
of frustration. Um and something that I did said to them is that I come to
education and to this administrative roles as a public servant that I don't
come to this role thinking I'm I'm the expert who's going to bring solutions
that the community have not even asked for.
um in that public service stance. I I asked them for some grace to allow me
time to sit with the dilemma with the feedback I was hearing from them with
the consolation that has been done at least for one year by the time of my
arrival for me to understand what are the forces that led to that
consolidation and and what is the impact that that is having on families and
students. Um after leaving being honest to that and
upholding that promise uh we were able to reinstate French into the middle
school program. Um so then the program was designed to have two languages
instead of just one. We I was not able to um bring back Latin in the way
families have uh hope. uh in order to maintain that promise, I
I I I really uh tried to keep a vibrant Latin program at the high school. Um
that was kind of like my evidence of holding that promise. And um
and I just communicated to um families that while I could not
deliver over all the the expectations that I did stay open to be humble and
listen to the perspective and understand their perspectives and try to remediate
that as much as possible. So I think that um I think that's an example on
when um you know when negative feedback comes one one's way is to write is to
really sit in that place of humility and be able to open up the conversation.
uh to be able to um not have so much pride into a specific outcome but be
able to be humble and be able to change course if the information the new
information that it comes to one kind of um informs that it was basically a bad
decision at the beginning. So that's my example of how I I try to build trust in
in challenging situations.
follow-up questions. Member Cornell.
» So, I appreciate that uh um noting humility and and and being
able to to reflect before reacting. Uh that's that's um important. I'm
wondering how will you establish regular lines of communication with different
groups whether that's families um educators community partners kids when
there's not a crisis. of the the everyday communicating.
» Yeah. I think that communication similar to equity is not a um
is is really a commitment to to structures that will allow for um
genuine engagement and as you said not to engage when a situation is a crisis.
Um something that I learned from the um sale high school students is that
there's a superintendent council with students and they were describing how
even they have elementary school students and that really uh blew my mind
because of um having the the be able to visualize not just the typical reaching
out to high school students because they're older mature or maybe to an
extent the middle school students but I Salem is intentional in trying to even
include when it's developmentally approach appropriate, you know, students
perspective on on conversations. As I mentioned in one of my previous um
answers um visiting with the community, visiting
not always waiting for the community to come to the schools who actually
understanding where are the regular points of u meetings, where are the um
regular spaces and ways that that people communicate uh regularly and to not be a
stranger to try to to come to I I I had a meeting with a group of um
families recently in which I told them that I was valuing frequent
communication and not crisis communication by sharing with the
community even if they're just nuggets doesn't have to be a big news doesn't
have to be a resolve issue but like welcoming um you know really welcoming
community partners as partners not as guests you know when it's a school event
or something like that. So, um I think that is really looking at what we have
as regular practices and making sure that those those regular practices of
meeting with different uh constituencies um have covered the ones especially the
ones of the communities I mentioned that are more vulnerable and less visible. Um
in addition to that I I feel it's important to have a portfolio of um
media not just always expect the evening in person meeting but also to be able to
acknowledge and recognize that some working families some um families that
are that is hard almost impossible for them to come in per to come in person to
a evening event that they may need uh communication that is still um virtual
uh that is still uh via email, not bombard people with bulletins and
newsletters, but uh really find ways to just share little nuggets so they are
hearing often and frequently and don't have to wait for the big earth
shattering news um to hear from the superintendent.
» Member Miranda, >> thank you. Um, I sincerely appreciate
your interest in our district. Um, what you've shared about your philosophy
around centering dignity when it comes to um, in the educational experience,
not just with students, but also with um, staff and also some of the
non-traditional educational experiences that uh, you would bring to the table as
a leader. Um and and with that I I would like to ask can you share the ways uh
having not held a superintendent position before um or an assistant
superintendent position um please share the ways that you believe that you're
ready for this role. >> Yeah. Thank you for the question. Um,
I guess I will start with um with something that my family
um they kind of raised me in the in this concept. Um I'm going to say in Spanish
first I'm going to translate it. But
mucho uh one that is faithful in the small
things is also faithful in the larger things.
um while because of role constraints I have not have the opportunity to um be
invited to have the role of assistant superintendent or superintendent
previously. I I think I I have a track record that has shown what my values
are, my uh approach to leadership that is based on relationships.
Um I had for the last four or five years I have been part of the um at the senior
team level and I have in g because of my role I have worked closely with the
superintendent in um in challenging decisions because every time there's an
issue that has to do with DEI it tends to be challenging
um those exposures and opportunities are giving
me a deeper understanding of how a district works. Currently, uh my current
district, while on the surface might seem the opposite or not align with what
Salem is, is similar in size, is similar in the student population and is similar
in comparable as in the number of schools and that has also has given me a
sense of how to navigate the different levels in a district um from the
superintendent lens. So um I don't personally honestly I feel that I am the
right um candidate for this position not because I I have all the answers because
of previous experiences but because uh I can convey because of my track record
that I uh I I am someone who will actually will sit with the problems will
listen carefully and we're very thoughtful about finding solutions that
are responsive. So, it is in a way um what I'm
what I'm hoping a district will value is the um the how the superintendent will
present. How will the superintendent show up? How will that will that person
be faithful to our families when no one is seen? when the budget is tight and
when decisions have to be made. So I think that what I may not bring all the
bells and whistles of someone or people that have held positions very closer
quote unquote to the superintendency. I think my live experiences as a
professional and the uh commitments and values that I have used in all the
different levels of my career um could be solid evidence that could hopefully
Salem could could believe in and could trust that I will be faithful to those
commitments if I'm invited to come to Salem.
» Thank you.
Any further follow-ups? Member Hoffman,
» I just have a quick followup because we were talking about DEI and inclusion.
And my question is um how how will you show up to help the LGBTQ community uh
especially in these trying times with the trans ban in um sports which doesn't
really affect Massachusetts but I know there's lots of concerns with families
and how will you make how will you help those families feel comfortable coming
and talking to you? >> Yeah, that's a great question. Um the
way that we have um shaped the work is to make sure that
students see themselves in the curriculum and instruction. But to your
question about how families will feel uh comfortable approaching
me as a DIA director, as a superintendent,
I think is is is um is based on the actions and um and based on showing care
for the um the experiences, not necessarily because of coming from an
intellectual lens like I understand but coming from a commitment that um
that I I am there and I will be there um when challenging times comes. For
example, um we I have shown courage regarding the
the curriculum and inclusion of representation and and also um by
connecting with other stakeholders in in the in the town where I reside. um by
making sure like for example at the high school um
where I work there's um there's a display of
flags of different countries and also there's a BLM flag and also a pride
pride flag um in working or attending um the school
council meetings for example the the school council in my current community
um recommended that um those value principle flags were
not at the same level as the national flags. As a DI director, I show my
support in those kind of recommendations and also in advising the superintendent
of how to implement those things. So I will maybe answer that question that I'm
not sure if I just by just by being people will feel
comfortable. Um I don't want to fall into that uh cliche of quoting people I
have friends and families you know that's like so not appropriate but I I
hope that uh my actions are showing that um that I truly believe in those values
and I truly believe that our students should feel safe and seen in in our in
all our spaces. And the and the third level
might be a little more micro talking about the smaller things.
Um we have a system of reporting when incidents happen and a lot of incidents
sadly but is the reality happens among students and and I will say that because
I'm the the recipient of those u reports either from students or educators
after race you know gender identity um sexual orientation are the ones that are
second and third in the number of incidents. I think that um
while my work tends to be a little more behind the scenes, but people that know
the work will know that we when those situations happen, we try to respond
timely um and in a visible way so that the
students that were the target feel that um that they are respected and valued.
And that is the work that I my role kind of like asked me to kind of put in place
um for the for the welfare and support of the LGBTQ plus um families and
students.
» Any final followup questions? Yeah, member Cornell.
» I have a a question that that um follows up on Veronica's question, which
is this. You know, as a new superintendent, you'll have a new
experience of having to build relationships with the school committee.
And so um I'm wondering how you'll go about developing relationship with us as
a body and also individually um what that you know what your approach will
be. >> Yeah it's a great question. Um, I don't
know if it's a local uh configuration, but um,
in my experience, I tend to see the superintendent interacting more with the
chair and the co-chair of the school committee. Um, I think, you know, I have
been able to build the relationships and I feel that even as a superintendent,
relationships are built by doing things together. And I think that it's not the
social, you know, pleasantry exchanges, but it's actually the moment of doing
the work is actually what brings strong connections. Um, I, as a superintendent,
it's important to participate in school committee subcommittees. For example, we
have one for policy and we meet with two um
school committee members who are not the chair or the um vice chair. So those
working groups are are opportunities for a superintendent to kind of build that
relationship with individual school committee members. Well, I think we'll
circle back that is really uh because of the open meeting laws, we cannot do too
many things as a group, but it really come from finding opportunities to work
with each uh school committee member individually as a school committee
member or as a president in whatever work or advocacy
um duties or participation that they have
in the community also. So I think uh I will close by saying just by doing
things together that's how relationships are built.
» Okay. >> All right. Dr. Allen, a closing
statement if you'd like. >> Uh first of all, I want to thank you
all. I want to thank the school committee for the opportunity for me to
uh spend uh now you know a full day and then now uh this evening with um here
with Salem. Um I came to this evening wanted to
highlight two things. Um it was one the um that I feel that Salem is not you
know trying to restart something. I don't feel that Salem is needs or is
looking for someone to create something new per se. I personally believe that
that Salem will benefit from having someone that actually will sustain the
work, will shepher the work and be um be a humble partner and listener with uh
the initiatives that we already have to have underway. And the um second thing I
wanted to like highlight for this evening and coming back in the closing
is about the concept of valuing the richness of this community
that um I'm really excited about participating in a district that really
values that and try to incluse that intentionally in the curriculum and in
the educational experiences of their students because of um you know locally
rooted which is your curriculum and your spaces
are kind of showing that and also globally ready which I this is kind of
like the more in visioning part that would like to sell today that I think
there's a lot of potential for Salem to u see itself as a place where students
are developing that global competency um I circling back to what I'm saying I
think that my my live experiences as a immigrant myself as someone that had to
navigate the public school systems, someone that I feel if I were to be
invited to be a superintendent to be I would be honored to be in a district
that has taken the courage to name their new school uh after um Sarah Perk uh
Parker Ramon um knowing the history and the influence that has in
African-American history of the of the area
and I think that um those elements but and understanding um my leadership style
and the values that I will bring to the um district. Um and most importantly
that I will be a guardian and um and uh someone that will strengthen our equity
commitment but I mean the superendency as well. Um
I I feel really fortunate to be here in
front of you at this moment. I I appreciate the moments like in the uh
community forum when um one of the community members actually stood up to
the microphone, asked a question in Spanish in a public forum. I I want to
be in a I I I want to be in a place where that is not uh an exception. It's
actually the rule and Salem so far in my experience has shown evidence that you
are that type of district. Um so thank you very much for the
opportunity and I I would like to um to thank you all for um for for the
friendship and the um hospitality that you have offered me and I and I would
like to um wish you the best and I hope hopefully I will be part of that that
journey moving forward. Thank you. >> Thank you.
That concludes the interview. Thank you, Dr. Allen, for joining us this evening.
Is there a motion? >> Motion to adjurnn.
» Second. >> Motion. Well, Shirley's not here. She
can get it from the recording. Uh, under discussion, seeing none. All in favor?
Any opposed? We're adjourned.