maldencitizensunited

June 19, 2016

Dear Friend, Neighbor, Colleague, and Current Maldonian,

We are writing to you to share information in the hopes that you will help by contacting the Mayor and your elected School Committee Representative.

A recent posting for the vacancy of superintendent, that inhibits the current high school principal, Dana Brown from applying for the job needs to be corrected.

Do not let the shortsightedness of a search committee or the suggestions of an outside consultant presume that the leadership skills of Mr. Brown and the success of Malden High, are NOT valued in our community.  The job posting for interim superintendent of Malden Public Schools should be written to include viable candidates, not exclude a highly qualified candidate such as Mr. Brown.

Please let the Mayor and members of the School Committee know that this mistake can be amended.  Mr. Brown should be given the opportunity to compete with other applicants.  The staff, students, family community members and elected officials who have worked along side Mr. Brown wish to continue that 13 years of dedication and insight that he brings and pours into his work daily.  The support that he has derived from teachers, students, athletes and families has made Malden High a prized jewel among other urban high schools.   It does not seem to make sense that the leadership of a quality public high school and the man who helped to shape it should be discounted.  The lack of insight into how families, colleagues, educators, home owners value our public schools seems to have been missed by a select group of search committee members who developed the rules and job postings for the superintendent vacancy.

If you live, work, teach, study, or play sports in Malden you are aware of the following highlights regarding Mr. Brown and Malden High School.  These few highlights barely scratch the surface of our collective knowledge of the time, efforts, and accomplishments that Mr. Brown has helped to bring to our community.

• Principal of the year 2016
• Fellowship named after Mr. Brown at Tufts University for his on-going support for the reading mentor program
• Malden High School is ranked 44^th in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
• Oversaw a multi-million dollar renovation of MHS
• A enthusiastic supporter of the Golden Tornado Club
• Hired and supported through professional development highly qualified staff to support use of cutting edge technology and significantly increase advanced placement classes at MHS, some of which are regarded as best in the state for low-income students.
• Supported and crafted programs and schedules that created support for ALL students from those with special needs to those students who have received national scholarships such as the Gates Scholarships to those students who are first generation to attend college and those bound for Harvard and numerous other post-secondary experiences. 

Please SEE BELOW and take a moment to contact the Mayor and members of the school committee with your concerns and join the community at School Committee, on  either or both June 20 and June 27, 2016 @ 6:30 PM at the City Council Chamber at City Hall.  This affects all of us!

Open Letter to Malden Citizens, Parents and City Officials:

Over the past week, I am just one of many parents who are celebrating the success of their child at Malden High School. Their success is due in no small part to Dana Brown, the 13 year principal of Malden High School and Massachusetts’s 2016 Principal of the Year”. In addition, I have another child heading into her senior year as well as a third finishing up at the K-8 system. Being a lifelong resident of Malden myself and a Malden High Alum, I am in a bit confused as to the decisions and direction the Malden Public School System is taking.

As the currently elected school committee and city officials, you are in an unenviable position to determine the future of Malden Public Schools. Malden is losing not only a dedicated and compassionate leader in Mr. Brown but now, we are also losing our Superintendent, our Assistant Superintendent and our Athletic Director, whose notices were made public within the last three months. With 4 leaders leaving the system simultaneously, you have chosen to eliminate two positions (Assistant Director and Athletic Director), leave one unknown and leave another to have no support or continuity within the system. As with any job, there is a learning curve no matter what experience you have and with 2 new leaders – unfamiliar with each other, unfamiliar with our students, unfamiliar with our system – what can we expect, except chaos and uncertainty, which affects the students most of all.

Malden has a varied history with its public education choices. With previous budget cuts, the K-8 system has suffered greatly with the elimination or reduction of many programs. In my tenure as a parent alone, I have endured 3 superintendents and as well as a few principals. Every one of these leaders came with experience and a stacked resume but not the heart and dedication to ALL the students and the community. After a disastrous selection process with Mr. Brown’s predecessor that made Malden High an embarrassment, I would have hoped that Malden Officials had learned that experience encompasses more than a degree such as, character, heart, work ethic, and willingness to go above and beyond for the students of Malden. As someone referenced at the MHS graduation this year, Mr. Brown took a school that parents refused to send their children to and turned it into a place parents were proud to send their kids. And, let us not forget how many officials did not want to give him the opportunity because he “didn’t have enough experience.” With resignations alone, how come only one leader put the students and community first by giving us over a year to find a qualified candidate to replace him yet, the others, in higher positions, gave the city a mere few months. I, myself, would be leery of hiring any superintendent willing to take a job in Malden now and leave their current district in disarray. If Mr. Lucey believes the Superintendent is one of the two most important jobs in the city then, why are our election campaigns conducted over a yearlong span and why did we take over a year to find a suitable replacement for Mr. Brown yet, you believe we can hire an effective superintendent from a pool of 8 in a few months. It doesn’t make sense.

So, forgive me if I am befuddled as to why you are risking all the hard work, public praise and progress Malden High School has made over the last 13 years under his leadership. Why are we not trying to use Mr. Brown’s skills, knowledge and proven success, even as an interim superintendent, to provide stability and continuity for students, teachers and the system as a whole? It would allow the new principal the support he deserves and the school committee an appropriate amount of time to thoroughly search for a superintendent who wants to stay in Malden and not use it as a stepping stone as we have experienced with the last two. And, I urge you not to use “experience” as an excuse because many of you who sit on the School Committee, including the Mayor, had zero experience in your current position but, citizens of Malden took a chance on your heart, dedication and community ties to give you a chance to prove yourself. Budget issues are a concern for every city, but shouldn’t be used to justify the questionable decisions our elected city officials are making. Many of us with children already in the system do not have the luxury to wait for you to figure it out or right your wrongs. This is our children’s future, Malden’s future that you are gambling with. So, I implore you to do the right thing, do right by the students and teachers of Malden Public School before it is too late.
Respectfully, Judi Lombardi (Class of 1985)

Mother of Students in Class of 2016, Class of 2017 and Class of 2021

Dana Brown, Malden High School, Selected as Massachusetts Principal of the Year (2016)

Mr. Dana Brown, Principal of Malden High School has been selected as Massachusetts Principal of the Year by the Massachusetts Secondary School Administrators Association (MSSAA).  This program annually recognizes principals who demonstrate exemplary skills in instructional leadership, supporting a safe learning environment and fostering a collaborative culture of decision making among members of the school community.   Mr. Brown will receive the 38th Bertram H. Holland Award at the annual MSSAA Leadership Institute at the Hyannis Resort and Conference Center on July 27, 2016.

Mr. Brown has created a collaborative culture at Malden High that bases all decision-making on a simple question; “Is it good for students?”  Youngsters come to Malden High with a variety of learning styles.  In addition, some come as parents, part-time workers or newly immigrated.   Attending to all students takes creativity, hard work and patience.

Mr. Brown and his staff have displayed all three characteristics in their quest to make learning “personal” to each of their 1800+ students.  They started with expanding course offerings, added flexible hours, and created on-line learning opportunities.

The Alternative School program was relocated to its rightful place in the main building. This change in environment for at-risk students paid immediate dividends as participation in extra-curricular activities increased, discipline referrals plummeted and graduation rates increased.

In partnership with Bunker Hill Community College, over 150 students are enrolled in BHCC courses as they get an early start on their post-secondary education.  In addition, a small number of moderate to severe special education students are enrolled in BHCC’s Culinary Certification Program.

Mr. Brown has been at the forefront of an ever expanding social-emotional curriculum for youngsters.   In April of 2015, a vision of his came to fruition with the first annual state wide“Teen Mental Health, Depression and Suicide Conference. “  This day-long event included 12 workshops hosted by over 10 noted practitioners from the New England area.

During Mr. Brown’s 13 year tenure his influence has ranged far beyond the campus ofMalden High.   As a result, he has been honored by community service groups such as the Malden Rotary, Triangle, Inc., the Chinese Culture Connection, and the North ShoreBlack Women’s Association, to name a few.   In addition, he has presented at the

• National Advanced Placement Conference
• Communities for Restorative Justice Annual Board Meeting
• America’s Promise Alliance Annual Meeting and at Tufts University Graduate School of Education.

Mr. Brown lives with his wife Marie and they are the parents of Dana Marie, a teacher in the Malden Public Schools and Jacqueline, a staff trainer for Jet Blue.

The Massachusetts Secondary School Administrators Association represents and supports the interests and needs of 1,500 middle and high school administrators throughout the Commonwealth