An Open Letter to Our Next School Leader

Dear Candidates:

I write this open letter to all superintendent candidates in order to give you some perspective on the reality of education in the Branford schools. Some of you have been contacted by our search consultants. Some of you may have seen an advertisement in an education journal. Let me give you some insight into our schools in the year 2010 as seen through the perspective of this parent. 

Branford has a long history or education greatness. Many students have graduated from secondary schools, gone to college and enjoyed wonderful careers. And, many have stayed in Branford to start their families and to send their children and grand children to Branford public schools. Yet, others move from surrounding towns to enjoy our schools. There exists a sense of pride and accomplishment in our schools. Branford schools have a reputation.

But you should know that our once stellar reputation has changed. Many parents in town as well as many teachers believe that we are now at a crossroads. Even our Board of Education has acknowledged we face serious challenges.

Over the past few years the Branford public schools have changed and our once proud reputation is evaporating. State mastery tests, aimed at testing for the absolute minimum a student must master, have steadily declined from 2006 to the present. For example, the percentage of 4th grade students scoring at or above goal on the mastery test math has dropped from 74.7% in 2006 to 59.2% in 2009. Connecticut Academic Achievement Scores have hovered at 50% of 10th graders scoring in the goal or higher division. And, Branford is on its own course, as it is going in a negative direction compared to other towns in our District Reference Grouping (DRG, similar in demographics and income). For example, Branford 3rd graders ranked #1 in reading among the 25 districts in our DRG in 2006 and now ranks 18th out of 24 districts. The 3rd graders also have dropped from 6th to 20th in writing and from 2nd to 21st in math over the same time period. 

I am sorry if this data is not as good as other districts. It is what it is.

First and foremost, we need and want a leader who recognizes we have gone off course. We cannot afford to remember our glory days, nor can we blame our new academic reality as just a transient bump on the road, referring to it as changing demographics or tough economic times. We can no longer feel embarrassed or uncomfortable with the data. While the mastery test results are just a snapshot, it is very disheartening to see such profound change. In fact, we need to accept what we cannot change and move on to address how and why we started to decline and how to effectively turn this all around. 

Our new leader will be required to turn it around. To that end we need a strong performance improvement plan. Enough with talk of preparing students for the 21st century; we have been in the 21st century for a decade now. Rather, meaningful goals need to be set and they need to be transparent. We need assessments to make sure we remain on track. No hidden agendas wanted. State mastery tests are just one tiny tool we can use. We need other quality evaluation tools with an honest analysis that can ultimately be used to re-strategize as needed to meet our goals.

That said, what are our goals? Do we aim to just improve mastery test scores? If mastery tests are there to make sure our students are getting the bare minimum, should we settle for the bare minimum? No. We need to realize our potential. Are we the best we can be? Are we offering an education that inspires each student to reach his/her potential?

In order to set goals and accomplish them, we need experience and a whole lot of common sense. We have expertise within our system. Use it. We want our next leader to get into our schools and talk with building level administrators (principals) and with our teachers. Harness their ideas for advice and direction. No more top down mandates as we experienced in the current administration. Embrace the teaching staff and respect their ability to contribute as an integral part of the performance improvement plan.

Our new leader’s primary goal will be to earn respect back. There must be a sense of community and trust from within the system for the system to work. Teachers need to have someone whom they respect to put their faith on the line. Let’s face it: it is hard for a teacher to buy into a new curriculum if he or she does not believe in it. Address all of the concerns teachers bring to the table. Have an open dialog with your staff on a regular basis. Strong bridges are built with two-way roads. That is, rather than just reaching out to sell your ideas, make sure to take the time to see how they are being received on the other end.

The trust of the parents of the 3,479 students in our town needs to be earned back as well. We feel that we are not being heard. We want our next leader to worry less about image. We want our voices to be heard. 

We want our next leader to publicly acknowledge and report all data concerning our schools, the good and the bad. Do not take failures as times to hide. After all, it is not one single person’s fault our schools are in the shape they are. Hiding the data and expressing concerns about how bad a report may make the schools look does not reflect on the superintendent only. But, not acting on it is shameful. 

We need a leader who can create a new culture of quality and pride. Branford has the tradition of inspiring all students to perform to their best potential even if we define this potential differently. We have a plethora of talent in our teachers and principals. They all want our schools to work and go to great lengths to do so. Parents care too. 

A spark is missing. Trust is absent. A respected leader is being begged for. 

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