Graphic shows the Parent Communication Flow: Individual Teacher – School Counselor – School Principal – Superintendent of Schools. The idea is to solve any issues earliest in the flow. It’s working. Superintendent Pellegrino reports few phone calls.
Gardner has one of the only Calculus with Physics programs. Gardner is strong on the traditional 3Rs while providing a 21st Century Education.
The Great Schools Interview with Gardner MA Superintendent Mark Pellegrino
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A huge transformation has taken place in Gardner Public Schools. Gardner has progressed from a past with a concern about meeting standards to the present in which Gardner is setting standards. For the 2nd year in a row, Gardner School Superintendent Dr. Mark Pellegrino has been asked to speak to the City of Chicago schools so that they might benefit from the initiatives which Gardner has in place. Every student is considered as important as every other. Proactive efforts are in place to make sure each student rises to the level of his/her ability. Data is analyzed to see what works and what doesn’t. Administrators have been coached to step up. Teachers are expected to be excellent. And, students are achieving what some other districts would describe as almost miraculous success. 37 students, or more than 1/3 of the graduating class will also have a 2 year college degree upon graduation from High School. This is unheard of elsewhere. But it is being achieved in Gardner. And now the “Chair City” is becoming the “Share City”, sharing its model of success with other communities so that students nationwide can benefit. It’s an incredible true story Gardner Magazine is proud to share.
Gardner Magazine Publisher Werner Poegel had the honor of interviewing one of America’s most consequential School Superintendents, Dr. Mark Pellegrino speaking with such an enthusiasm and love for students the positive vibe is contagious. Listen on any device. Click Play.
About the Learning Process and Test Results
“When you focus on making sure kids have what they need in the classroom for support, so they’re available to learn….even last year, our MCAS scores, our growth scores, were very strong, which was somewhat of an anomaly for the state….we had some very strong outcomes…and our internal results of testing show that kids are further along than one might expect…So we’ve really turned a corner in making Gardner actually an anomaly.” Gardner made sure students had internet access during the pandemic so each could participate in learning, often providing internet hot spots for the kids to take home. What Gardner also did during the pandemic. “We focused a great deal on helping teachers, giving teachers more time to review their lessons and work collaboratively to design solid lessons that align with our state standards.”
Staffing
Gardner has added 50 positions in the District in the last 6 years (out of 360 total positions) to enhance the learning process. “Many of these positions are support physicians, whether its a second teacher in the classroom, or supports like school psychologists, school adjustment counselors or school counselors. Putting folks where they can have direct contact to support our students. I think that’s made a huge difference.”
Outcomes
Gardner’s outcomes show a low dropout rate, a low discipline rate, and no disparities in learning among students with disabilities, students from low income families, or students of different races. “That’s what gets you to level one is those outcomes, those positive outcomes.” While not revealing names for reasons of confidentiality, Superintendent Pellegrino says “some pretty big districts are now coming out to interview us, to say, what are you doing, how are you doing this, and how can we replicate it in our district? So that’s been a really positive thing for the district, and something I’m very proud of. It’s all the work that, ultimately the teachers and staff are doing in the schools to make it so Gardner is actually having those outcomes.”
Reading at early grades a priority
“My teachers have been absolutely wonderful, making sure that kids are learning to read at those early grades, so later on, they can read to learn at the upper grades. And so we’ve really made that a priority for the district. And with added staff members, with added supports, and again, through our model of this tiered system of supports, we make sure that kids are reading by the 3rd grade.”
Help When Needed
Superintendent Pellegrino explained that his phone doesn’t ring off the hook like at other districts. The reason he gives is the proactive support which starts with the individual teacher, school counselor, principal, and if needed, he as the Superintendent. “I have very strong leadership and I have a very strong team at each school that then responds to any parents needs. So they’re not calling me because they know if they call the school, the school will help them.”
Partnerships
Gardner has strong partnerships including Early College with 37 students this year graduating with an Associates Degree from Mount Wachusett Community College with “many others having close to an Associate’s Degreee or most of their prerequisites done, which only prepares them better for college.” He also points out this this saves parents considerable amounts of money. Other partnerships with Monty Tech and others and the manufacturing program provides students with immediate skills upon graduation so they can immediately go into a career. About 120 high school juniors and seniors are currently taking college courses.
Advanced Ideas and Learning
In Gardner, there is a calculus-based physics course which is unique and it even counts as their college class for calculus. “No other school I know of provides that course.” The difference, Gardner talks with “the folks who work with our students after graduation, and talk to them about, well what do our kids need?…. We’re talking with them to say, well, what do kids need upon graduation. That gives us a much more reliable indication of are we going in the right direction or not.”
The approach is clearly different
“So our history teachers are talking to kids about being historians, not just learning history. Our math teachers are teaching kids to be mathematicians.”
SAT is FREE
Gardner makes the SAT test free so every student takes it. “I think we’re the only district around that pays for all of our students.” And why are students continually doing better whether it’s the SAT or the MCAS? “We teach to the standard…we get our kids to master that standard…..Well you are trying to figure out if you are actually teaching them, and when you figure that out, then they are actually getting a better learning environment.” “So I think were doing a lot of the right things for our families and that is something of which Im extremely proud.”
Learning to write and think on their own
“We all are supposed to be able to read, inform our own informed opinions based on fact. And you know, I think for a long time we lost sight of that in education.”
Math Program
Just this year, the District has launched an even more successful math program “First of, I believe math teaches us logic, so what helps us make informed decisions in life. The math program we have called “Into Math” helps kids understand the concepts of math, rather than just rote memorization of formulas…Because if you understand math, it informs higher level math, and it also informs your logic later on when you’re making decisions.”
Analyzing Data – How they do it
“So we have a lot more data, and we’ve purchased some … software programs that help give us the data in a user-friendly format, so we can read and actually use the data. So it’s great to have data like, we have a lot of data, but it’s how we take that data and use it to inform how were moving forward, that’s what makes the difference.”
Superintendent in the Trenches
Something else Superintendent Pellegrino does is spends a week here or there at each school so he can observe first-hand what’s going on. “Almost all my meetings are at the school itself. I’m operating out of the school. I’m walking around, I’m seeing the culture, the practices, the rituals in the schools. All of that is data for me to inform.”
Regarding Art and Music
Superintendent Pellegrino plays the guitar. “I’m actually a musician, so I believe very firmly… My math skills, I think, were developed because of my music abilities. And so I’m a huge proponent for developing your artistic abilities. And even if you’re not going to be an artist, to develop some of those skills, and understanding again, creates well rounded individuals as they graduate.”
About Sharing with Other Communities
“We’ve been asked to speak in Chicago, California, Ireland, a bunch of conferences here in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont, because of the things that were doing. Again, these national and international conferences put us together with some of the brilliant minds that are at the forefront of leadership on MTSS, and were a part of that group. Now we’ve been asked again to speak at the National PBIS conference, which is Positive Behavior Interventions in sports. Its part of our FTSS process that happens in Chicago annually. We’ve been asked to come back again and present on the leadership part of this and how were doing it district wide, because schools are fascinated with how quickly we’ve come very far.”