[Superintendent's Update] Superintendent's Update

[Needham Public Schools Superintendent's Update]

Dear Faculty and Staff:

I am excited to announce that Ms. Karen Bourn has accepted my offer to
become the interim principal at Eliot effective July 12, 2017.

Karen has served in the Needham Public Schools since 2013 as the assistant
principal at Broadmeadow.  In her role as assistant principal Karen has
worked with Principal Gaberman and the staff to support an excellent
instructional program for all students.  She has led professional
development at Broadmeadow, coordinated the Collaborative Tiered
Intervention Team meetings, managed the school's schedule, and overseen
student behavior and discipline.  Karen has helped to lead the district's
efforts around cultural proficiency, and she has used her extensive
classroom experience to collaborate with and guide teachers. Karen has also
established strong and productive relationships with students and their
families.

Karen has a strong instructional background and a deep affinity for the
classroom experience. Before coming to Needham Karen taught for fifteen
years, most recently in the Natick Public Schools where she was a 4th grade
teacher.

Karen has the capacity, intellect, and experience to lead Eliot at this
time. She is a superb listener and has strong communication skills. Karen
does not pretend to have all the answers, but she collaborates with others
to ensure she has the information she needs to make good decisions.  Karen
relishes hard work, and she is very much focused on empowering
others—students and adults alike—to grow, learn and achieve.

During the upcoming year I am confident that Karen can lead an exceptional
Eliot school staff forward on your journey toward excellence. She knows
that the teachers at Eliot are smart, dedicated, and caring. Her main job
will be to support you in your efforts to improve learning for Eliot's
children.

Karen is excited to begin work, and I know within the next few weeks and
over the summer she will reach out to staff and families as we make plans
for a new school year.  In fact, I will be honored to introduce Karen next
Wednesday, July 12th at 10:00 a.m. to those staff members who can stop by
Eliot for a brief welcome on her first day.  I recognize this is not a
convenient time for everyone; Karen will make sure she provides additional
opportunities in the upcoming weeks to connect with teachers and staff.


Please join me in welcoming Karen Bourn as the interim principal at the
John Eliot Elementary School!


Respectfully,


Dan
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.needham.mec.edu/pipermail/superintendents_update/attachments/20170710/f1fe0830/attachment.html>