On January 8, 2020, in his State of the City speech, Walsh called out Cassellius by name, saying she was working hard to give every single student access to high-quality schools., Cassellius says she felt she was flying high, on her way to achieving her vision for a better, fairer BPS. Zip codes are allocated spots at the schools based on the number of students living in the area and family income. Strike a blow for transparency for once. She had been sitting in her car for the past 45 minutes, she explains, on a conference call with other big-city superintendents brainstorming ways to reopen schools in the middle of a pandemic. "My hands - and my heart - will be fully committed to BPS until it is time to pass the baton. Current and former BPS officials came to believe that the root causes of Casselliuss scattershot ideas were her lack of attention to detail and short attention span. In our conversations, Cassellius seemed to ask for two things: time and skepticism of her critics. Together, we can create a more connected and informed world. Then she added an admonition: You need to grow in humility., Stung by the criticism despite the vote of confidence, Cassellius went home and cried. As the students offered suggestionsfree menstrual products, cleaner bathrooms, improved ventilationCassellius had her executives take notes. Cassellius, the former Minnesota Commissioner of Education, was selected superintendent in 2019 by the Boston School Committee. When expanded it provides a list of search options that will switch the search inputs to match the current selection. At the same time, not everyone agrees with this renderinga soaring start to her superintendency derailed by a once-in-a-lifetime catastrophe. When you are disrupting the status quo with an anti-racist lens, as an African-American woman, you have to think about the motives of why people might be criticizing the ideas and the disruption that Im making so that underserved children can be served better and to create opportunity and access. For some reason, I just felt like I was supposed to be here in Boston, she told me. Woolhouse: Well, that's a great question. During her early tenure, staffers at the central office found the new superintendent to be more drawn to splashy proposals than to the grinding back-office work they believed was required to solve the districts problems. It is tradition for the President to recognize special guests during the State of the Union address each year. When [Casselliuss predecessor] Laura Perille was in front of an audience of children, she seemed stiff, the official says. 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. You can do this. Prior to the release of AYP data, Commissioner Cassellius provided an optional letter to parents that school districts could choose to send with their mandated AYP letters. Cassellius took the top job in Boston eight months before the pandemic prompted a shift to remote learning that has since transmuted into staffing shortages, mask mandates and other complicated issues. Alexi's professional experience encompasses print, television and radio at NY1, CNN en Espaol, 88.7FM WRHU and The Republican newspaper. GRADE 3 READING Virginia Department of Education Home. We talked about that challenge routinely, he said. So she's been tested by fire. She succeeded Tommy Chang who resigned after three years. She was just four months into her job as superintendent and had a bold idea she wanted to share. Cassellius made the announcement in a letter to parents, students and staff Monday. I was such a go-getter, she told me, and confident and, you know, dig in. - SEPTEMBER 9: Boston Schools Superintendent Brenda. Whats more, in a district with chronically declining enrollment, it wasnt even clear to them that there would be enough students to populate all of Casselliuss new programs. Just to cite one example, she's run through four chiefs of staff in two years. She has taken charge of a flailing school district and recognized the need for bold and uncomfortable changes. After all, equity is her driving passion. It was chaos, says a current BPS official. Dr. Cassellius wrote she will transition out of her role as superintendent at the end of the 2021/2022 school year. Here's what she said at a press conference the day after announcing Cassellius' departure. In 2021, school districts will face the daunting task of repairing the damage sustained during the pandemicparticularly for low-income children of color who have borne the brunt of the school shutdowns. According to five current and former BPS officials, she often appeared to make snap decisions, seemingly without contemplating their ramifications. Boston Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Cassellius will resign at the end of the school year, bringing to an end a three-year tenure marked by COVID-19 upheaval and leaving Boston's new. "I don't have any further thoughts on that at this time," she said. Do the windows open at the central office? I asked. Once, in August 2019, Cassellius returned to the Bolling Building in tears from a visit to the McKinley South End Academy, which was housed in a decrepit building. It's a sense among parents of "here we go again" and that might even understate the level of aggravation they're feeling. But BPS staffers and observers perceived Brophys work as an emergency rescue mission. As she traveled the city on her listening tour, Cassellius issued a flurry of staffing directives that often went unannounced and unexplained. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and Superintendent Brenda Cassellius held a press conference Tuesday, a day after announcing Cassellius resignation. When you are really smart and your mind is moving a lot, sometimes you have to take the time to pause and hear from others., Carol Johnson saw both promise and room for growth in Cassellius. Shes scattered, she struggles with talent management, and she doesnt provide a clear vision., Those traits were on full display once she arrived in Boston. Tanisha Sullivan, president of Bostons NAACP chapter and a member of the districts exam schools working group had called the move a historic and positive, transformative mark on our city.. In one light, Cassellius looks like the ideal person for that mission. Its been, what? She has worked arduously to reach her dream of becoming a successful teacher. This transcript has been edited for clarity and length. Note that clicking the link below will block access to this site for 24 hours. In districts that were well managed and in those that were not, the results have been largely the same: learning loss for students and hardship for parents and teachers. We could use more of that honesty and advocacy for school children. It does not seem that there is any appetite to give people room to prove themselves., If Cassellius shares that sentiment, she was too diplomatic, in most of our conversations, to say so. September 8, 2018 Will new reporting & school support systems help students? Wu hinted earlier this week that she wants someone local for the job. Photo By Matt Stone/ MediaNews Group/Boston Herald. Everyone was going every which way without direction, without leadership., Meanwhile, the senior leadership ranks cleared out as incumbents defected (Casselliuss chief of staff left in complete and utter dismay, a current BPS official says) or were pushed to resign. She walked into the mayors office, asked for $100 million, and got it. Will they be encouraged and challenged? 2016 columns / Together, we've laid a stronger foundation upon which BPS can continue to build. Briner had been her right-hand woman in Minnesota, serving as chief of staff and then deputy commissioner throughout Casselliuss eight years leading that states Department of Education. Lets breathe out. MS Word MS WORDPDF PDFView FileMS WordFebruary 16, 2012Dr. Somebody who's passionate about helping inner city kids," said Yonathan Fassil, whose child goes to Boston Latin School. "She found out what work is. Her husband Jason is a stay-at-home dad. Brophy might have seen it this way, too. If she appeared harried outside, coming off her meetings and calls, she is now something much closer to jubilant. She is the head of school at Boston Latin School. BOSTON (CBS) - Boston Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Brenda Cassellius is resigning at the end of the school year. Go Blue! . When Boston Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Cassellius resigns at the end of the school year, she'll take with her hundreds of thousands of dollars from a separation agreement. For people with disabilities needing assistance with the Public Files, contact Glenn Heath at 617-300-3268. Woolhouse: The pandemic, I think it's been a very rough ride for her. Campbell Brown (journalist) Alma Dale Campbell Brown (born June 14, 1968) is the head of global news partnerships at Facebook and a former American television news reporter and anchorwoman. She also served as a principal in the states of Minnesota and Georgia. This button displays the currently selected search type. She did not say why she is leaving. All of this landed in her lap precisely when the district was trying to figure out how to reopen schools in the fall. She came under fire from some parents and teachers for her efforts to reopen the schools for in-person last fall. I need to come hang out here more often, she says. Henry Santoro hosts midday newscasts on GBH Radio and contributes to breaking news coverage and other hosting duties for GBHs daytime programming. Dismayed by the prospect of sending kids to school there, she asked her staff to find a way to close italong with another dilapidated school, the Jackson/Mannand send the students elsewhere. This button displays the currently selected search type. She has always wanted to be a teacher and instruct pupils. Near the end of our final interview, during which I detailed her critics charges, Cassellius cut me off. Aaliyah Hodge, Birchview Elementary School, Brenda Cassellius, Catalina Anampa, Chris Williams, Daniel Sellers, DaVimci Academy of the ARts, Debra Lach, Denise Rodriguez, Denise Specht, Don Sinner, Ed Allies. Cassellius often describes her plans for reform as bold, which is also a good descriptor of Cassellius herself. Was it the superintendent herself, who, her critics argue, is too focused on visionary (and starry-eyed) future transformations to tend to the urgent problems of the present? But that's not to understate there's a considerable amount of frustration out there. Cassellius was a former commissioner of education for the state of Minnesota, where she oversaw schools there for nine years. This is not a new problem in Boston, having a superintendent leave. And thats a good thingright? Then, throughout the day, the students would shuttle between buildings on a train. It has been this way since March, when Cassellius and Mayor Marty Walsh decided to shut down every school in the district. On Wednesday, when asked whether she's still thinking about changes to the admissions process for exam schools, Cassellius indicated she is no longer considering changes. Boston schools superintendent Brenda Cassellius appeared to catch many by surprise Monday when she announced she would step down from her position at the end of the school year. You have a vision, according to the official. They love her.. Give us details on her relationship with former Mayor Marty Walsh and current Mayor Michelle Wu. She has previously served as an assistant superintendent at North St. Paul, Maplewood, Oakdale School District and Saint Paul Public Schools. For the next hour, she listened warmly and keenly to the advice of her most important constituentsstudents. She is too focused on big-picture plans, Bazile says, and she does not have the leadership tools to put in place policies that are going to make those plans actually occur in reality. It creates a level of desperation, Bazile adds, because we cant lose this generation., On the afternoon of November 13, I joined a Zoom call with Cassellius, her chief financial officer, her chief operations officer, and some of her favorite people in the district: her cabinet of student advisers. To say that Casselliuss daily life in Boston has not been smooth is something of an understatement. When Boston Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Cassellius resigns at the end of the school year, she'll take with her hundreds of thousands of dollars from a separation agreement. On an unseasonably warm day in October 2019, Brenda Cassellius took the floor during a meeting at the Bolling Building, BPSs headquarters in Nubian Square. Seven, or eight, or nine superintendents in a relatively short period of time? Cassellius insists she will still be that leader, as long as the city will let her. What's the mood among parents and students over this announcement? Together, we've laid a stronger foundation upon which BPS can continue to build. A spokesman for BPS declined to comment due to pending litigation. It was the early 70s and people werent too nice to biracial children., Cassellius started her career as a special-education paraprofessional and soon rocketed up the ranks. Working with educators, parents, business people, students, policy-makers and other concerned people throughout the United States. Publicly, at least, Cassellius still had the backing of the two allies she needed most: the school committee and City Hall. Mask up, Superintendent, an aide says, and she pulls her facemask over her nose. Reading Sage MCAS Practice Test. How much influence and interference did they really have on her and how the schools are run? But we can assume it will be at least 18 months and possibly two years left on her contract, which could give her a payout of up to $600.000. Her driving passion, equity, seemed to make her a perfect fit for a district where inequality in academic outcomes is glaring. Despite Casselliuss public victories, though, BPS officials were alarmed by the mounting evidence that she was an ineffective administrator. The problem was the timeline: She wanted it done now, before the new school year began the following month. Support GBH. Series III Reading. She did not say why she is leaving. She quickly won jobs as a teacher, assistant principal, and then principal of a middle school, after Carol Johnson (who would later serve as BPS superintendent) hired Cassellius to work in the Memphis school district where she was superintendent. would be stepping down at the end of the school year, Boston Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Cassellius to step down, Boston Public School students walk out, call for remote learning, COVID-19 outbreak at Curley School 'caught us by surprise,' says Boston Public Schools superintendent, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility at GBH, Transparency in Coverage Cost-Sharing Disclosures. Brenda Cassellius, David Esquith, Minnesota State University Mankato, PACER Center, School Safety Technical Assistance Center, US Department of Education Office of Safe and Healthy Students, Walter Roberts / 0 Comments, The following column originally was published by ECM Publications Helping students be safer at school By Joe Nathan on February 10, 2016 at 2:03 pm Joe Nathan David Esquith shares one of the deepest concerns parents have: I worry about a call from the school that my kid got hurt. Its important that Esquith understands, [], Joe Nathan / Back in Minneapolis, she served as an associate superintendent from 2007 to 2010, overseeing high school principals. The combination of all of these measures made principals heads spin. During the second half of 2019, she visited every school in the district and met privately with parents, religious leaders, activist groups, and politicians. Thanks to passionate, practical parents, students and educators, Minnesota Association of Alternative Programs, MDE offers great opportunities to help develop education plans, School Safety Technical Assistance Center, US Department of Education Office of Safe and Healthy Students, Massive misunderstanding or classic bait and switch. Can Wu deliver? Before she even started the job, when she was still a candidate for the position, she had already seemed to achieve the impossible: winning the support of the community, the school committee, the teachers union, and the mayor. BOSTON Boston Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Cassellius will resign at the end of the school year. Building consensus, he notes, is a long, agonizing process. When Cassellius arrived in Boston to vie for the BPS top job, she pitched herself as a deft political operator laser-focused on equity. It's been two very difficult years for schools, as many teachers and school officials are leaving. 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