by Frank Schroth

The Milton school system is the largest institution, organization or business of any kind in the town of Milton. Four thousand students a day go through one of the doors of the six school buildings. Five hundred employees are on hand to meet them, teach them, coach them, counsel them, feed them, and clean up after them. Managing all of this is the Superintendent of Schools. There is no other individual that touches more lives here in Milton than our superintendent of schools, Mary Gormley.

We sat down last week in Ms. Gormley’s office. We were joined by John Phelan, Assistant Superintendent, and Matt Gillis, the newly arrived Business Administrator. When you meet Ms. Gormley, several traits become immediately evident: she has a lot of energy, a lot of enthusiasm, a great deal of faith, trust and confidence in her leadership team and staff . . . and a lot going on.  “We make 97,000 decisions a day,” Gormley said only slightly facetiously.

We began our conversation with the role of the superintendent. When you watch Ms. Gormley in front of town meeting or the school committee, when you read that the town budget is about to be cut by ~$300,000, a third of which will come from the schools, you begin to wonder if the superintendent is a business manager, a politician, or an educator. Gormley, who has also served Milton as a teacher, a principal, and assistant superintendent, acknowledged that being an effective business manager came with the territory; but as she learned from one of her mentors,  you cannot let the business and politics become more than 49% of the job. “Fifty-one percent of the job is focused on education.” According to Gormley, the schools’ never-ending goal is to “increase and improve student achievement.” Gormley cited the formation of a debate club, a long held dream, that was getting off the ground after years of fits and starts as just one recent example of expanding opportunities for students. She also pointed to the number of Advanced Placement classes offered and there enrollment as another plus (You can find a recent presentation on AP classes here.)

But everything is not coming up roses. Recently it was reported in the Milton Times that two of the elementary schools, Glover and Collicott, need to improve their MCAS scores. When asked about the MCAS scores, Gormley didn’t skirt the issue, but quickly identified the specific areas of concern as identified by the AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress) results. AYP is one of the state’s metrics for gauging school system performance as indicated by MCAS testing. (You can find the complete presentation regarding AYP made to the school committee here.) Gormley noted that, “It gives new meaning to No Child Left Behind.” Gormley is working with the prinipals at the schools and putting strategies in place to address the issues identified. Gormley will discuss MCAS results further at the School Committee meeting on October 20th.

Then there is the budget. Last spring there was no doubt in Gormley’s mind that the town needed an override if it were to continue to deliver a quality education to its students. She also had no doubt that the school parents would carry that override. As Gormley said, “I don’t know if you could find better, more supportive parents anywhere in the country.” The vigorous commitment of the parents coupled with a goal of complete transparency in working with the Warrant Committee got a favorable result. The override passed, and the cuts that needed to be made were drastically reduced.

It hasn’t ended there. The state reduced financing to towns and so the schools will need to reduce their budget by an additional ~$100,000. Gormley expressed cautious optimism that there may be stimulus funds available to close the gap. As a point of information, Gillis noted that Milton is approximately 9% below the state average on per pupil spending. And when asked why French Immersion seems to bubble up whenever the budget discussion take place, Gormley explained that there’s always some issue du jour (no pun intended). All students cost the same to educate. It’s always something. Of the 4000 students in Milton about half are elementary students, and of those, about half are in the French Immersion program.

Another town initiative that is being reviewed as a potential budget saving measure is consolidating facilities across all town departments. The school administration and the Selectmen have each contributed $2,000 to fund an independent assessment by a consultant who is working with all stakeholders. The hope is to have more information in a winter time frame. As Gillis noted, “All sides need to make it work. We are respectful of the process.”

And going forward, what are the hopes and goals? “Our goal is to have every child in Milton attend the Milton Public Schools,” said Gormley. And Phelan added that they know there will be “high challenges and high expectations.” Are there choices that might have been made differently? On this Gormley was blunt, “Increased fees are my failure. It takes the public out of public education.” She was referring, of course, to the fees associated with participation in athletics and extracurricular activities. It takes a lot of courage to make a statement like that. But that book has not yet been finished, and Gormley is hopeful that she can “rectify that.”

This team understands that mistakes will be made. “We take risks. Sometimes it works. They’re (the faculty) trusted to use their judgement,” said Phelan. Added Gormley, “Like children – we learn everyday. I never have a day that I am always right.”

How do they make all this work on a day-to-day basis? Well, for one, Gormley says they have a great School Committee and the administration works to empower their faculty. A couple days later we had occasion to speak with a long-term faculty member. This is what we were told: “They [the school administration] will do whatever they can to support you and get you what you need to be successful. “They bleed red and white.”

Support may be the operative word when it comes to Gormley. She is always about the kids and her staff. It is rare that you will be at a school program or event and not find Gormley or a member of her leadership team there. This hands-on, participatory approach reinforces the connection and importance of the schools within our community. Superintendent Mary Gormley and the Milton Public Schools are a big reason why My Town Matters.