School Committee Interviews Superintendent Candidate Joanne Menard

Report on the Joint Meeting of the Union 26 and Regional School Committees, April 23, 2024

Joanne Menard, Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum in Holliston, was interviewed by the Regional School Committee on April 23. The meeting was recorded and can be viewed here.  E. Xiomara Herman was scheduled to be interviewed on April 25, beginning at 7:30 p.m. All interviews will be televised on Amherst Media and recorded. Susan Gilson, Assistant Superintendent of the King Philip Regional Schools, was the first of three finalists for Superintendent of the Amherst Pelham Regional School District. She was interviewed on Wednesday, April 10 after meeting with school staff, parents, and community members on the previous day. She is also a finalist for the middle school principal position. 

The Regional School Committee will choose the candidate to offer the superintendent position during a special public meeting at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, April 29. 

Interview of Joanne Menard
In her opening statement, Menard stressed her “unique ability” to develop relationships and  form teams that work collaboratively. She said that since she entered the field of education, a superintendent position has always been her goal. She was in sales before becoming an educator and noted that the communication skills and ability needed to sell an idea or product transfer well to education. 

Since becoming an educator, Menard said she has been Intentional about the positions she has taken in order to advance toward a superintendent position. She began as a middle school STEM teacher and then became a STEM curriculum coordinator. After that, she was an elementary school principal in Petersham for four years. During her tenure, she responded to calls from the community to establish an afterschool enrichment program, and raised literacy scores by instituting a new reading program in grades K through 2. 

She subsequently became a secondary school principal in the Gill–Montague District. At that time, the superintendent Michael Sullivan (now appointed to be interim principal at the Amherst Regional Middle School), her mentor, advised her that she needed to address racism in the school system, look out for students that are not in school, and improve the school climate. She was appalled that teachers were not addressing the obvious racist incidents in the school, but realized it was because they did not know how to respond. She brought in a collaborative from Northampton that worked with staff to set social justice standards and trained them to combat racism. She took the training with the staff, using many of the incidents that occurred at the school as teaching tools. 

Menard also created a culture-and-climate club. She sought out students who were often in trouble and encouraged them to tell her about what changes they wanted to see in the school. Although regulations and budget constraints made some of their suggestions untenable, she was able to institute many of their ideas. She gave the example of making Mondays easier by allowing the students to play music on their way into school.

In order to maintain a diverse curriculum in a small school district, some courses were only offered every other year, but students could plan their schedules to take the electives they chose. She also developed education pathways in health care and social assistance and advanced manufacturing to link students to local businesses and offer hands-on experience.

Realizing that she needed more experience to become a superintendent, Menard moved to the Holliston Public Schools as Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum in 2021. In that position, she was involved with contract negotiations and Title IX investigations. She brought in transgender students and their parents to advise on the development of new policies. She also participated in Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) audits and became a fellow in the state’s Influence 100 program to “increase racial and cultural diversity in school superintendents and to create more culturally responsive districts.” From participating in that program, she has made many contacts of people  she can consult with. “Being a superintendent is a lonely position,” Menard said, “You need to have people you can confide in and attend conferences to be exposed to new ideas.” 

As to responding to negative incidents, Menard said it was important to be proactive and get the information out to the community. “If the district is not informing the public,” she said, “other people will be talking, and the result is usually not good.” She said that there were several anti-Semitic incidents in Holliston schools, and the superintendent immediately let the town know how they were being handled. Menard emphasized that you have to let people know that you hear them, and then do follow up to make sure their issues have been adequately addressed. She noted that she saw amazing things happening in the district’s schools, and they need to get the news out to the public.

Menard said that the Holliston superintendent initiated the development of a three-year strategic plan. A 20-person committee of the town manager, selectboard members, teachers, and students meets monthly to agree on the direction the district should go. Each initiative launched must further a strategic goal or a DESE requirement. She stressed that she endorses collaborative decision-making and empowering others, although she is not afraid to make decisions once she has received information from those who will be affected. 

Holliston is a predominantly white community, but Menard pointed out that she lived in South Korea for three years in the ‘90s when, she said, it was very much a third-world country. She learned there what it felt like to be a minority. She considers herself to be a “global thinker,” which is why she is one of the few white administrators in Influence 100, and she learns from the BIPOC members. She is not afraid to be honest with the Director of Social and Emotional Learning in Holliston, who is Puerto Rican, she added.  “He calls me out, and I call him out.” 

She told the committee that  Holliston invested $42,000 for an outside agency to do an equity audit and assess access to classes. The audit showed disparities in the curriculum and the agency provided recommendations to remedy them. The district formed a steering committee of administrators, staff, parents, and students and  the recommendations are being prioritized. Menard said she would prioritize DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) in hiring through a multipronged approach, communicating to candidates the importance of equity in the district and being especially supportive to new employees.  Staff need to know that the administration is backing them up and that all racial incidents and microaggressions will be addressed. 

She said her work in Influence 100 has dealt with ensuring the academic success of marginalized groups. At her school, she is in charge of the English Language Learner program. It is important to her to open up opportunities to marginalized communities. AP classes are open to all, but many students are not aware of it, so more outreach is needed.

Fostering safety is also crucial for Menard. She said that people need to feel that they belong in order to feel safe, so the school needs to find out from students what barriers prevent them from feeling comfortable, and to remove those barriers. As far as using correct pronouns and names for students, she noted that there are laws governing this topic, and staff need to be educated continuously.

In terms of contract negotiations with staff, Menard stated that when she was a teacher, she was the union representative through two contract negotiations that went through mediation, so she sees both sides of the issue. She feels it is important for the superintendent to build a solid relationship with union leadership and to share what is happening in the development of the budget. However, she said the role of the superintendent in contract negotiations should only be to answer questions or clarify points. The actual agreement is between the union and the school committee.

Menard said that if she is chosen as superintendent, she will get to know the community and become part of it. She will attend as many community events as she can to get to know people. She emphasized her collaborative style of leadership and suggested that she may have a summer retreat for administrators to encourage team building. She also would like to have a picnic for families to meet parents outside of the school environment. Additionally, she would work to develop partnerships with local businesses and the local university and colleges.

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