Municipal Spotlight Asst. Superintendent’s Focus — Curriculum, Instruction

By KEN HAMWEY,
Bulletin Staff Writer

The role for Cari Perchase, the new Assistant Superintendent for Bellingham’s school district, will focus on curriculum and instruction, and she’ll continually be reviewing what’s being taught, how it’s being taught and what impact that instruction is having on student learning.

“The ultimate goal is that all students have the opportunity to achieve and get the support that each individual student needs,’’ Dr. Perchase said. “My immediate goals are to build and maintain relationships with all stakeholders, to listen and learn about the ongoing work, and to celebrate success and identify opportunities for growth.’’

A native of New York City, Perchase graduated from Stoughton High, where she played varsity basketball for two years. She enrolled at the State University of New York at Stonybrook for a semester but later left and spent a semester at Massasoit Community College and a semester at UMass-Boston.

“I was a non-traditional college student,’’ she said, “not totally sure of my future as an educator. But, I returned to UMass-Boston, received a bachelor’s degree in psychology and sociology, and worked as a substitute teacher in my last semester before joining the faculty at the O’Donnell Middle School in Stoughton.’’

From that point on, Dr. Perchase’s advancement in education became very traditional. She earned a master’s degree in elementary education at UMass-Boston before getting a certificate of advanced graduate studies in educational leadership at Bridgewater State University. Northeastern University was her next venue, where she earned her doctorate in  education.   

Dr. Perchase’s stops in the field of education later took her to Duxbury, Medway and Burlington.

“I taught grades 5 and 6 during my five years in Duxbury,’’ she noted. “Then, I was named assistant principal at the Medway Middle School (three years) and later became principal there for five years. In 2018, I was selected as principal at the Marshall Simonds Middle School in Burlington where I stayed for six years before coming to Bellingham.’’

After 14 years in three administrative positions, Dr. Perchase felt the time was right to go to the next level. “I wanted to support learning at all levels,’’ she said. “I was ready for the challenge of a district level.’’

Meeting regularly with Superintendent Peter Marano and Director of Student Services Suzanne Michel, Dr. Perchase is updated on the fulfillment of the district’s goals and offers her input at those meetings. “It’s a team that supports student learning throughout the district,’’ she emphasized.

Marano is pleased to be adding Dr. Perchase to the administrative staff.

“We are excited to welcome Dr. Perchase to the Bellingham School District as the Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment,’’ Marano said. “She is an innovative educational leader and has a deep commitment to student success. She will be instrumental in enhancing our curriculum and ensuring that every student has access to high-quality learning opportunities. We are confident that her vision and expertise will be a tremendous asset to our schools and community.’’

Hired in July, Dr. Perchase will be working and collaborating with the district’s five school principals frequently. “I’ll support their work within their buildings and provide pre-K to grade 12 vertical alignments. That involves helping them achieve our shared vision pertinent to skill development.’’

Dr. Perchase, 51, will visit the district’s five schools twice monthly. “The first meeting will be with the principals to discuss any issues and how I can support them and their initiatives, and the second would involve visiting classrooms and students,’’ she said. “I want those meetings to foster collaborative relationships.’’

Dr. Perchase describes the principals as “awesome,’’ she said. “They’re strong leaders with a clear vision and they’re committed to fulfilling it.’’

School administrators face government regulations just like business and industrial leaders, so another role for Dr. Perchase is to keep Bellingham in compliance. “I’ll work to support the district in meeting state and federal regulations,’’ she said. 

A good example is MCAS testing, which is still a state mandate for graduating. “That’s a data point to assess student learning, but we use a variety of other assessments to support student learning,’’ Dr. Perchase said.

Although the time in her new position hasn’t been lengthy, Dr. Perchase, nevertheless, has a positive outlook on Bellingham’s school system. 

“The faculty and staff are committed to helping and assisting all students in all areas,’’ she said. “As I get to know the community better, we will celebrate success and identify opportunities for future growth. There’s no doubt that we’re taking the right steps to ensure educational opportunities and advancement.’’

Dr. Perchase enjoys working with Superintendent Marano, who’s been with Bellingham Schools 10 years.

“He cares about all children and works to support them,’’ she said. “He’s thoughtful and has extremely high expectations. He and his ideas are very motivating, and he provides autonomy for his leadership team.’’

Dr. Perchase, who, in her leisure time enjoys walking her two dogs, working out, visiting her family in South Carolina and enjoying the beach, knows that new trends will develop on curriculum and instruction, but says current trends “should make us focus on literacy, including the science of reading.’’ She added that “we need to look at social and emotional learning while focusing on educating the whole child.”