New Superintendent is Looking to 'Sell Hope'

Dr. MaryEllen Gorodetzer, the recently appointed superintendent for the Colonial School District, said that “these are difficult times for public education,” financially speaking.

“We have to start to think about doing more with less, working smarter and not harder,” she said. “I know it sounds trite, but there is real truth to that.”

It's easy to believe her, considering how she came into her new position.

Gorodetzer served as the assistant superintendent in the district for nine years before taking over for the outgoing superintendent in July. The position was eliminated during the development of the 2011-2012 district budget in June.

Getting rid of her former position helped the district lower its budget by mroe than $100,000, but it also made Gorodetzer the first superintendent in almost a decade to go without an assistant.

“That’s been a challenge,” she said. “We’re doing a lot of work with teamwork in mind, and we have a great administrative team that has been open to sharing duties. We are challenged right now, but we’re making sure that our expenditures align around student achievement and success.”

That idea of working together is one of Gorodetzer’s main focuses moving forward in her new position. She said that her focus for the district is three-fold: communication, collaboration and inspiration.

 “It is critically important for effective leadership to be hearing people’s voices,” she said. “Communication and transparency are important to any organization, and part of that is to be a good listener so you can collaborate effectively. It’s important for me to hear what is important as a teacher, as a parent or as a community member, then look at our vision and mission and see how we can work together.”

Since taking over as superintendent, Gorodetzer has already tried to implement practices that focus on communication and collaboration throughout the district, including bringing all the district’s employees together to get on the same page.

“We kicked off the year with a convocation, which brings all the district’s employees together,” she said. “That’s something that hadn’t been done in many years, and it fits right in with our message of unity and collaboration.”

Beyond finding ways to effectively teach in troubling economic times, Gorodetzer wants to remain focused on providing inspiration for her student body.

“We want to inspire,” she said. “How many times have you heard kids reflect after graduation about their experiences, about a program or a person that inspired them. Those things happen in schools and we want them to happen more and more here.”

For Gorodetzer, the best way to inspire students is to give them leadership opportunities. Currently, the district is in the process of establishing programs that, she said, will “enrich learning opportunities for our gifted students.”

“That’s one thing we really haven’t paid as much attention to, providing leadership opportunities and expanding learning possibilities for our students,” she said. “So many kids are gifted and talented and our goals is to align these things with their needs.”

All of these goals, she said, lead back to a district-wide focus on inspiration.

“I believe very much that we are in the business of hope,” she said. “There is so much hope in youth and we are committed to that.”