Dr. Madeline Negrón Tapped To Lead New Haven Public Schools

NEW HAVEN, CT —The New Haven Board of Education has appointed Dr. Madeline Negrón as superintendent of schools, effective July 1, 2023.

The action came at a special meeting of the board this afternoon. Negrón will replace Dr. Iline Tracey, who will retire June 30.

“Dr. Negron knows New Haven and its schools very well,” said Board President Yesenia Rivera. “At the same time, her experience in Hartford has encompassed many of the same issues we face here in New Haven. She can bring a fresh perspective and a strong leadership voice to our ongoing conversations about strategy in all aspects of our mission.”

Negrón has spent her professional career as an educator in Connecticut urban environments rich with cultural and linguistic diversity. She is currently the acting deputy superintendent of academics and school leadership for the Hartford Public Schools; she previously served as the chief of academics, teaching, learning and student supports.

Negrón served as director of instruction and director of early childhood for the New Haven Public Schools and as the principal and earlier as a classroom teacher at Hill Regional Career Magnet High School. Negrón also dedicated over 10 years of service at Windham Middle School, located in Willimantic, where her family settled after moving from the island of Puerto Rico to the mainland.

“I am looking forward to working with the committed and dedicated administrators, teachers, staff, and community partners in service of our students and families,” Negrón said. “I am eager to start meeting, listening and learning from the entire community to hit the ground running as there is no time to waste in affording our students access to equitable opportunities to realize their hopes and dreams. I am grateful for the foundation that has been established by Dr. Ilene Tracy and her cabinet, which will serve as my springboard to lead the New Haven Public Schools to its next chapter of excellence.”

Negrón’s personal experience as a multilingual learner in the Connecticut public educational system resulted in a passion for equity and excellence in schools. Negrón has over 25 years of public education experience, comprised of elementary and secondary instruction and administrative site leadership, as well as university level experience. She served as a faculty adjunct in the Educational Leadership Department at Southern Connecticut State University.

Negrón began her career as a bilingual education teacher and has worked as an assistant principal, principal, central office administrator and as a senior executive level administrator.

Negrón is proud to be a first-generation college graduate. She earned a bachelor of science degree in Spanish from Central Connecticut State University, a master of arts degree in education with a minor in bilingual bicultural education and a Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction from the University of Connecticut. Negrón is a co-founder and past president of the Connecticut Association of Latino Administrators and Superintendents; she currently serves on various local and state committees. She has been a member of the CSDE Minority Teacher Recruitment Policy Oversight Council since 2016, of the board of directors of ARTE Inc. since 2017, of the Aspen Education and Society Program since 2020, and of the board of directors of CATCH Global Foundation since 2021.

Negrón and her husband are the proud parents of their daughter who graduated from the New Haven Public Schools and currently attends Southern Connecticut State University. She is an inspiration and reminder about the promise of public education and the strong future that every child deserves to make their hopes and dreams come true.