Parent Groups Gives School Committee a Book

At left, Advocating for Medford Public Schools member Mary Finn presents the book to the School Committee during their meeting Monday night. Courtesy photo.

The City Hall Chambers were filled with members of Advocating For Medford Public Schools (a4mps) on Monday night at the School Committee meeting.  Their purpose was to present a gift to the School Committee. Many of the members of a4mps worked towards the election of this “new” School Committee – going so far as creating “slate” of candidates for the School Committee – all of which were elected.

The gift was in the form of a book, Leading for Equity – the Pursuit of Excellence in Montgomery County Public School. This book inspired the a4mps Strategy Team, and many members of a4mps. The book tells the story of the Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools transformation—in less than a decade—into a system committed to breaking the links between race and class and academic achievement. A dramatic departure from “business as usual,” MCPS has won nationwide attention as a compelling model for tackling the achievement and opportunity issues that confront our nation as a whole.

Strategy Team member Mary Finn presented the gift with these words:

“On behalf of Advocating for Medford Public Schools I would like to present a book to all of you – Leading for Equity – the Pursuit of Excellence in Montgomery County Public School. It has stimulated some of us to think about what could be here in Medford. We hope that it will inspire you all to think about how we all can be involved in a process in Medford where high performance for all children is expected. That all students regardless of their race or family income can have access to an education that will prepare them for college and beyond. This book offers some potential lessons that our district can learn from, and offers a framework for applying them.”

The core of the strategy was the their belief that a great teacher in every classroom is the foundation for student success. In their change process, all of the stakeholders were represented – the district school administration and staff, consultants, school board members, and citizens, all working together to analyze critical issues facing the school system.”

a4mps’s next meeting will be June 2, 7pm, location TBA. This meeting will be intended as a community service meeting with Q and A from the audience. Our keynote speaker will be Noah Berger, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center.

– Submitted by a4mps member Matt Haberstroh