Andover Candidate Profile: Lauren Conoscenti For School Committee

ANDOVER, MA — The Town of Andover's Annual Town Election is on Tuesday.

This year, four offices are on the ballot: Town Moderator, Select Board member, School Committee member and Punchard Free School trustees (two seats).

Here are more details about the upcoming election.

Patch is profiling some of the candidates. Today, we learn more about Lauren Conoscenti, who is an incumbent running in an uncontested race for School Committee.

Candidates were sent questionnaires and filled out the answers.

Lauren Conoscenti

Campaign website, social media

laurenforandover.org, https://www.facebook.com/laurenforandover

Age (as of Election Day)

44

Office sought

Andover School Committee

Family

Husband Tom, daughter Madelyn (14), son Jamie (10), dog Ruthie (2)

Education

BA in Psychology from Princeton University (2000), Ph.D. in Psychology/Clinical Science from Harvard University (2007)

Occupation

In August 2022, I was hired as the assistant head of school for Analytic Support and Assessment at Phillips Academy. In my work, I oversee data collection and analysis to support the academy's strategic initiatives. I also provide leadership for policies regarding the preservation, management and governance of institutional data.

Previously, I worked for 12 years in the Office of Institutional Research at Tufts University. I have also worked as a clinician and researcher at the Boston VA Research Institute and the Medical University of South Carolina, and I taught undergraduate courses and advised students at Harvard University.

Previous or current elected or appointed office

I am running for a second term on the Andover School Committee. I was first elected to this seat in 2020.

Why are you seeking elective office?

I first ran in 2020 because I wanted to support our schools in ways that might leverage my strengths in data analysis and in communication. I believed then — and still believe today — that our schools can be places of connection and pride for the entire community. I also want our schools to be places where all students can feel welcome and can grow. I'd previously served the schools and our community in other capacities, and felt that running for office was a logical next step.

It has been an honor and privilege to serve the schools in my first term. I'm running again to continue the hard, but rewarding, work of ensuring Andover Public Schools is a beacon of community pride, now and for generations to come. Continued leadership is important as we work to advance a number of high-priority projects in the district, including a new or renovated Andover High School facility, a revamped middle school schedule, and our ongoing recovery from the impact of a life-altering pandemic.

Describe the issues that define your campaign platform

As a data scientist, I'm passionate about using data to help initiate conversations that bring about change. As a former clinician, I bring empathic listening skills to every conversation. Finally, my experience working in secondary and higher education provides a unique understanding of what students need for success beyond high school, and the ways in which our public schools can provide strong foundations for those next steps.

If you are an incumbent, how long have you served in this position and what are your major accomplishments while in office?

I have served one term (approximately 3 years). In that time, we have:

• Hired Dr. Magda Parvey in the spring of 2021 and established protocols for how the superintendent and School Committee work together.
• Helped funding for the construction of West Elementary and Shawsheen Preschool get approved at Town Meeting and the ballot box in June 2021 (and again at Special Town Meeting in December 2022).
• Helped funding for critical improvements at Doherty Middle School get approved at Town Meeting.
• Eliminated fees for middle school after-school activities so that all students could participate in the variety of extracurriculars offered at our middle schools.
• Reduced transportation fees for families with students in grades 7-12 and expanded the bus fleet to improve service (including 5 electric buses as part of a pilot program).
• Expanded music education in the district so that elementary students now can learn string or band instruments during the school day. The number of elementary students currently learning an instrument is up nearly 60% since the 2019-20 school year!
• Partnered with GLTS through the "After Dark" program, so that AHS students have the opportunity to receive technical training at GLTS after the APS school day concludes.
• Added an elementary math coordinator, elementary math coaches, and a middle school math interventionist to the district to support teaching and learning math.
• Increased mental health and social-emotional supports and services across the district to address needs in the wake of the pandemic, largely supported by federal ESSER grants.
• Supported a security assessment of the school facilities by an outside firm in order to identify areas for improvement.
• Worked with the assistant superintendent of Finance and Operations and the Town of Andover on developing a Long Range Financial Plan — a data tool to help us in our annual budgeting process.
• Established communications protocols so that community members can identify the best person to connect with when they have a question or concern.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I have served on the School Committee with thoughtfulness and balance during a significantly challenging three-year period. In my first term, I worked collaboratively and constructively with other school and town leaders toward many shared goals. Additionally, I have worked in education for the last 13 years. In that domain, I have led complex, detail-oriented projects involving multiple stakeholders and produced public-facing work that has inspired change. I have served on working groups and teams with people from many different backgrounds and can navigate disagreement productively.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I work hard to understand the many sides of some of our most complex matters. I read every email carefully, I listen intently to every concern, and I spend countless hours outside of meetings assessing other information to help in my decision-making process. I do my best to approach issues with curiosity, not judgment. Ultimately, in a large town with considerable diversity, I accept that I will make decisions that not everyone agrees with. But, I always try to show that the path I took to that decision is sincere, thorough, and rooted in what I believe is best for students.