Salem Academy Charter School Names New Executive Director

Salem, Mass. Kathy Egmont of Reading will take the helm as executive director of Salem Academy Charter School on July 1, the school announced today. She assumes leadership of the school following the retirement of Sean O’Neil who has held the position since 2006.

Egmont has over 22 years’ experience heading public charter and independent schools, and she holds a master’s degree in educational administration from Boston University. Most recently she served as head of school at Lowell Community Charter Public School in Lowell where her work garnered her the Lowell Sun’s “Woman of the Year” award in 2014.

“Providing strong leadership for finance and operations can strengthen the foundation of academic programs at Salem Academy Charter,” said Egmont in accepting the position. According to Nina Cohen, chair of the school’s board of trustees, “We look forward to working with Kathy in furthering Salem Academy’s commitment to supporting an inclusive culture of high expectations for every student.”

The change in leadership of the Salem Academy comes at a time of significant expansion of the school’s physical footprint, located in Salem’s Shetland Park. The recently opened Nile Albright Center for the Arts enables an expansion of programs with 5 specialized classrooms designed to support the arts, dance and music, and a 182-seat auditorium. In addition, the 12,000 square foot Norman H. Read Gymnasium, currently under construction, will house on-site athletic and school community activities beginning in fall 2017.

Salem Academy Charter School is a 480-student public charter school serving the diverse population of Salem with a college preparatory program for students in grades six through twelve. With no tuition or fees, admission is by lottery. Ranked a Level One school by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Salem Academy repeatedly has been recognized among the top 10% of schools in Massachusetts and the top 5% of schools in the nation by U.S News and World Report as well as by the Washington Post.