to find common ground on issues affecting everyday life in schools.
MassPartners advocates on behalf of the public school community with state and federal legislators and represents the interests and concerns of public schools to the state department of elementary and secondary education. We share a commitment to improving public schools, to educating all children to high standards, and to supporting accountability within the education workforce. As members of the MassPartners coalition, member groups retain their association autonomy. The MassPartners associations are:
American Federation of Teachers Massachusetts (AFT Massachusetts)
Massachusetts Association of School Committees (MASC)
Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents (MASS)
Massachusetts Elementary School Principals' Association (MESPA)
Massachusetts Parent Teacher Association (Mass PTA)
Massachusetts Secondary Schools Administrators' Association (MSSAA)
Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA).
MassPartners is governed by a Board of Directors, employs a part-time administrator, and periodically issues policy briefs and position papers. During my tenure on the MassPartners Board, we have met monthly to discuss the public education issues of our time, addressing issues such as Underperforming Schools, Fixing the Accountability System, and Readiness Schools, among others. Members of MassPartners participated on the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education's Educator Evaluation Task Force. Most recently, MassPartners has provided in-depth input to the Massachusetts Legislature's Joint Committee on Education in an effort to streamline regulatory reporting and compliance.
In 2010 I was elected Vice Chair by the MassPartners Board for the 2010-2011 school year. In 2011-2012, the board elected me to Chair, marking the first time that a non-educator professional had been elected to the position. I am pleased and humbled to say that the Board then subsequently returned me twice more, for school years 2012-2013 and 2013-2014. MassPartners represents a long-term commitment by the major education associations to revolutionize the way members work together to support the public school community throughout the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.MassPartners for Public Schools