The next Cambridge Public Schools superintendent should guarantee fair and accessible opportunities for all students as well as prioritizing communication and connection, students said at a June 11 forum – the only of eight in a lengthy search process set aside for a demographic in some ways most directly affected by the job search.
The forum was much more restrictive than the seven general community forums between May 29 and June 16: Exactly 18 juniors at Cambridge Rindge and Latin high school, identified as “leaders” within the school community, were invited.
This group included teaching assistants, club presidents and members of student government. The students sat around a table for a 90-minute a discussion led by Ashley Pierre, executive director of Human Resource for the district, and Jalene Tamerat, a senior lecturer in education leadership at Boston University.
The search has been in progress since May 2024, when the last permanent superintendent was ordered to resign. Soon after, the district’s chief operating officer, David Murphy, assumed the role of interim superintendent; he remains in the position and is a candidate.
The majority of student grievances were about a class divide within the school system, with a consensus that children from wealthier families benefit disproportionately from opportunities in the district that disadvantaged students struggle to access. The district tried to address this in 2023 with an equitable grading policy that eliminated participation grades and extra credit. Several students said the policy backfired, creating further divides.
The administration had brushed off complaints from teachers about the equitable grading policy and other policies, students said. “A skill superintendents should have is actually listening to feedback, even if that means adding or removing a policy,” a student said.
The ideal leader for the district is someone who ensures all voices are heard, regardless of demographics. The equitable grading policy “created less stable grounds for grading,” said one student, “making things less stable for students in general,” while several of the students reported a persisting demographic imbalance in honors and advanced placement classes, which give students college credit if they pass a test administered at the end of the year.
“Certain groups are also not able to take advantage of good programs, because they’re gate kept,” a student explained. “It really sets certain children up for failure. The new superintendent should [prioritize] looking into these programs and how to make them more accessible.”
A new superintendent has to be able to address race and class divisions when, as one junior put it, “richer, whiter parents speak out more, so their kids are more of a priority.”
Asked by Pierre other important qualities for a superintendent, the juniors were quick to emphasize communication – with teachers, students and families. “The new superintendent needs to be transparent with families, so they know what’s going on; and they need to genuinely care about the students,” one said.
Murphy was given credit for this by a student who recalled a time he sat in on a CRLS student government meeting: “I really appreciated that, and the respect we got.”
Before jumping into the main subject matter – what the juniors wanted in a new superintendent – Pierre and Tamerat had the students reflect on the current state of the district, and most students agreed the school system was good in general at providing opportunities. That included getting to take college classes and pursue interests at a higher level.
Additionally, “the school system really helps students share their voices and speak out,” one student said. Another credited School Committee members as sometimes “actually taking our feedback and using it,” though that didn’t get universal agreement.
Some attributed a disconnect to administrators who have never worked as teachers. “I would like to see [a superintendent] who actually has experience teaching,” one student said.
A stronger
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Students, just calm down and learn to read, write, and be able to do math so that you can become productive citizens.
This might get me pilloried, but I think low expectations in middle school cause many kids not to try for the most challenging classes unless their individual caregivers push them, because the district historically hasn’t.
I am white and richer than those in public housing, but not “rich”. When my kid got Bs in 6th and told me I should be happy they ‘met expectations’, I said they didn’t meet my expectations and they needed to try harder bc I knew they could. They did.
I’m loath to paraphrase a Bush, but there seems to be broadly low expectations that hurt some kids more once they reach high school. The climate surveys show that many students don’t think they’re being challenged to do their best in middle school, and if they don’t have that experience, it can be very hard to excel later.
I haven’t done anything to game the system but tell my kid to try harder than the minimum. If teachers/district pushed all kids to do their very best, parental input could be broadly negated, no?
Will there be courses of study of how to be a better parent of school age children? Maybe the next Superintendent be an advocate of such!