In-Person/Virtual – Community Town Hall Meeting on July 31, 2021

Dear Malden Public Schools Families,

It is an honor to serve as your next superintendent here in the Malden Public Schools. I am eager to begin working with our school leaders, school staff, parents, and School Committee members.

I am especially excited to meet our students and families. If you see me around, please stop by to say hello!

For some background, I spent the last 26 years in the Boston Public Schools. As I make this move to MPS, my commitment will be to the well-being of our educators and students. I will take a deep look at our curriculum and determine where we need to begin revamping or revisiting our teaching and instructional practices to address cultural competency.

We live in a world in which diversity is part of our DNA. We must respect, embrace, and learn from one another instead of using historical entitlements to create division. We are one city and one school district with one mission: to keep our students at the center of our work.

I am inviting you to share your ideas and personal history about your lives in Malden. We want our students who are our present and future to have a voice while respecting and valuing the fact that we are one community of learners. We can agree to disagree in harmony as long as we respect ourselves and others.

As an initial opportunity to get to know one another and communicate my vision for Malden Public Schools, Mayor Gary Christenson and I are hosting an In-Person/Virtual – Community Town Hall Meeting on Saturday, July 31, 2021 at 10:00am.

In Person Community Town Hall Meeting
Date: Saturday, July 31, 2021
Time: 10:00 AM
Location: City Hall Plaza at 215 Pleasant Street, Malden
The meeting will be held outdoors

To Participate Virtually
You are invited to a Zoom webinar.
Date: Saturday, Jul 31, 2021
Time: 10:00 AM
Topic: Superintendent Noriega and Mayor Christenson – Town Hall

Please click the Zoom link below to join the webinar:
https://cityofmalden.zoom.us/j/92509908732
Or One tap mobile :
US: +16465189805,,92509908732# or +19294362866,,92509908732#
Or Telephone:
Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location):
US: +1 646 518 9805 or +1 929 436 2866
Webinar ID: 925 0990 8732

Our school leaders, faculty, staff, and central office staff all have my utmost respect. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, they have been working incredibly hard to meet the needs of our students. They had to adapt and learn new things rapidly, using technology to bridge distances and deliver instruction online.

To our students who, for multiple reasons, could not engage with us consistently during the past school year, we ask that you please come back to school in the fall. We need to work together to close learning and socio-emotional gaps that were created by the global pandemic. Students, your resilience during extremely unpredictable times showed, and you became stronger. Please carry on with this resilience with a warm heart, open mind, and a commitment to keep learning when you come back to school.

Caregivers, please know that you are not alone. Let’s work together with our school leaders, social workers, guidance counselors, and partners to see how we can support you and our students.

Partners, I am looking forward to engaging in dialogues to determine how we can collaborate to provide wrap-around services to our families and district staff. A community is stronger when we all share the same goals and move in the same direction.

To our Mayor and Members of the School Committee, I know that trust, transparency, and accountability will be the blueprint of our work together.

School leaders, I will be looking to work closely with you to continue building stronger relationships with our students, caregivers, staff and partners.

Former superintendent John Oteri, thank you for your stewardship of Malden schools and for your helpful assistance to me as I take the reins of the district.

It is going to be a wonderful start of a new school year, where together we can strive to give our very best as members of this community of learners. I truly look forward to starting this journey with all of you.

 

Sincerely,

Ligia Noriega-Murphy, Superintendent
Malden Public Schools