Mendon-Upton Regional School Committee Announces Dr. Maureen Cohen as Interim Superintendent of Schools
The Mendon Upton Regional School Committee would like to take this opportunity to thank Dr. Joseph Maruszczak for his 10 years of service to the school district. Under his leadership, the district earned both state and nationwide recognition for the quality of the education available to Mendon and Upton students. Not only has the district experienced progress and stability in its Spanish Immersion program and employed purposeful technology integration, Nipmuc Regional High School was recognized by Newsweek as one of the top 500 high schools in America and the district received designation as a Green Ribbon School from the U.S. Department of Education in recognition of its efforts to foster sustainability and reduce its environmental impact. It has been a pleasure working with Dr. Maruszczak and the members of this committee would like to wish him the best of luck as he pursues his passion project, the opening of a public charter school, Nuestro Mundo, in Providence RI.
As we begin the work of organizing a search for a superintendent of schools, the Mendon-Upton Regional School Committee is pleased to announce that, as of August 1st 2021, Dr. Maureen Cohen has been appointed as the Interim Superintendent of Schools.
With over twenty years experience in education, Dr. Cohen has worked across urban and suburban school settings as a high school teacher, school building administrator and district leader. In 2021, Dr. Cohen was honored by her colleagues with the inaugural Assistant Superintendent Leadership Award at the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents Executive Institute. In 2012, Dr. Cohen was the MSSAA Massachusetts Assistant Principal of the Year and was selected as one of the 3 national finalists for NASSP Assistant Principal of the Year. With undergraduate and graduate degrees from Bowdoin College and Northeastern University in government and international relations, followed by a doctorate in educational leadership, her educational background has focused on the impact of leadership in national, global, and educational institutions. Dr. Cohen is passionate about creating educational environments built on positive relationships that unlock students’ potential, empower student agency, and provide opportunities for relevant learning experiences that are authentic, innovative, and collaborative.
Prior to her appointment as Interim Superintendent, Dr. Cohen had been with the district for 8 years, serving as both the Director of Curriculum and as the Assistant Superintendent of Schools. Through her fulfillment of these roles, Dr. Cohen enriched our district in many ways. In partnership with stakeholders, Dr. Cohen developed, implemented, and evaluated a five-year district strategic action plan, Inspire, which includes innovative learning elements like flexible learning environments and student
agency, priorities such as global citizenship and inspired innovation, and forward-thinking strategic initiatives. She wrote and managed federal, state, local and competitive grant programs with recent awards for diversifying curriculum materials, elementary math programming, innovative middle school computer science programs, district civics implementation, and math acceleration. In her role as chairperson of the professional development committee, Dr. Cohen provided workshops and training to staff in topics such as: Project-Based Learning, Social Emotional Learning, cultural proficiency/anti-bias, standards-based grading, blended learning, growth mindset, performance-based assessments, genius hour, curriculum design, and student agency. She developed an in-depth three year mentoring and induction program to include mentor training, new teacher workshops, and cross-district learning walks in two other districts. Additionally, she led district committees such as the Social Emotional Learning (SEL) district committee to develop district SEL action steps, the district homework committee to create district homework guidelines, the wellness committee to recommend wellness policy changes, and the District Curriculum Accommodation Plan (DCAP) committee to develop a comprehensive district curriculum accommodation plan. Most recently and in preparation for a truly unprecedented year in public education, Dr. Cohen led the fall 2020 reentry planning working group for academic programming and participated in the writing and communication of the final school reentry plan for the 2020-2021 school year.
Although her many accomplishments certainly speak for themselves, Dr. Cohen is also widely respected by her peers for her leadership style, innovative practice, commitment to self-improvement, and her nurture and care for others. For these and many other reasons, the Mendon-Upton Regional School Committee looks forward to working with Dr. Maureen Cohen as our Interim Superintendent of Schools during the 2021-2022 school year.
Respectfully Submitted,
Kerry Laurence
Chairperson, Mendon-Upton Regional School Committee