Melanie McLaughlin Running For Re-Election To School Committee

MEDFORD, MA — School Committee member Melanie McLaughlin announced her campaign for re-election Tuesday. McLaughlin is a documentary filmmaker, educational and disability rights advocate and member of the Federation for Children with Special Needs and Suffolk District Attorney's Human Trafficking Task Force.

She is the parent of two Medford High School graduates and one seventh-grader in the public schools.

Read McLaughlin's campaign announcement below:

I am pleased to announce my campaign for re-election as your Medford School Committee member. I continue to stand by my values of ensuring safety for every child, excellence in and access to a high-quality curriculum; thoughtful communication and family engagement; and the need for equity, accessibility, diversity and inclusion in our schools.

"I believe when we can address the needs of our most vulnerable students then every student can succeed."

KEY ACHIEVEMENTS IN FIRST TERM: Some initiatives I have helped put in place during my two-year term include:

Strategic Plan: Collaborated with the Superintendent and colleagues to establish a strategic plan for Medford public schools.

Universal Safety Committee: I am a founding member of the Universal Safety Committee. This year we distributed safety kits to teachers and emergency preparedness backpacks to the community. We meet monthly as a committee and quarterly with principals and central administration to ensure cross-district communication and collaboration.

Family and Community Engagement: I initiated Medford’s participation in a state-wide family and community engagement audit with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Medford was one of only six districts across the state to pilot this program. I also worked with students to produce a monthly talk show as part of our cable access program. During the pandemic, I especially appreciated how many community members joined my listening sessions and office hours to share concerns, and those who called by phone or emailed to share personal experience. Together we built relationships to improve our schools for our most valuable asset – our children.

Professional Development: I presented on human rights to our staff and students. I worked with administration and our special ed parent advisory council (SEPAC) to ensure ongoing professional development points for staff. I requested published annual reports on professional development offered to our staff.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion: As the chair of the Behavioral Health and Special Education Subcommittee, equity, diversity and inclusion are my top priorities. I have worked with the student-run CCSR group in supporting LGBTQI rights and building friendships. I have advocated for a disability awareness curriculum, teacher and family access to shared adapted materials, and accessibility for all learners. I have worked with the English Learner (EL) department to develop a Parent Advisory Council. I advocated for an inclusive name change for the Missituk Elementary School. As a member of our Rules, Policy and Equity Subcommittee I worked to establish a more inclusive school calendar recognizing religious holidays across our diverse
student body. I have advocated for translation of school documents and initiated closed-captioning as part of our regular Zoom meetings, and had campaign material translated.

Adapting to COVID-19: Though I anticipated there would be a learning curve in my first term in office, no one would have predicted the particular challenges the pandemic brought. As elected representatives, we scrambled to create an entirely new system of education that would balance life-threatening safety considerations with our students' need to continue to receive an excellent and appropriate public education. I worked closely with central administration, teachers, staff and families through community roundtables and a re-opening task force to create remote, in-person and hybrid models of education.

GOALS FOR 2022-2024

This is an exciting time for Medford Public Schools. For the first time in decades, we have an entirely new central administration team. We have additional federal funding to address long-term needs, such as investments in professional development, co-teaching models for improved inclusive practice, and strategies aimed at embedding equity in operational and systemic practices. We have moved the needle forward in addressing achievement gaps, disproportionality in discipline, equitable access to transportation and school lunch, and improved diversity among our middle schools. And there is a lot more work to do. Some of my commitments in the next term include:

Strategic Plan for Medford High School: We need a clear plan for the future of the Medford High School / Medford Technical Vocational High School building. Prior to the pandemic, a Vision Committee was initiated to review options and costs for repairing, restoring or replacing our current high school. I will ensure there is diverse representation on the re-established MHS/MVTHS Vision Committee to include family, staff, student and community input on a clear plan, identification of funding for the plan and a timeline of the plan’s execution.

Curriculum: I am committed to ensuring a high-quality and challenging curriculum for every child that is accessible and differentiated for all learners with continued professional development for staff on universal design for learning and best practices in inclusive education.

Social / Emotional Needs: We must focus on the social/emotional needs of our students and families. Anxiety and depression are significant concerns for our students, especially as we return to school after the pandemic. I will work on equitable access to before and after school programming and clubs, access to sports and recreation, best practices for trauma-informed schools and building friendships between diverse student groups.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion: The importance of equity, diversity and inclusion in our schools will remain the central focus of my work. I will actively outreach to our diverse communities to ensure culturally responsive schools and increased public access to meetings. I will work to ensure equitable access to resources between our schools and address disproportionality among our schools. I will support and reinforce the Superintendent’s initiative to hire and support diverse staff members across all schools.

MY BACKGROUND

I am the parent of three children, two recent MHS graduates and one seventh grader. My experience advocating for children began in my own childhood, when at 13 years old I left an abusive home and petitioned the court to become a ward of the state. Extended family, teachers and mentors helped guide me and formed my commitment to social justice; I am committed to paying this forward. After graduating from Fitchburg State College, I worked as a documentary filmmaker at WGBH and several national networks, and later produced and directed award-winning films advocating for the safety of children. After the birth of our third child, I became a disability rights advocate with the Institute for Community Inclusion at UMass Boston and Boston Children’s Hospital. While earning a master’s degree in education policy and management from Harvard, I worked in the Somerville Public Schools as an Equity Coach helping identify implicit and explicit bias, and at the Harvard Graduate School of Education as a Teaching Fellow for a course on how to implement inclusive education. Currently, I serve on the Board of Directors for the Federation for Children with Special Needs and as a representative on the Suffolk District Attorney’s Human Trafficking Task Force.

I believe when we can address the needs of our most vulnerable students, then every student can succeed. My life’s work has been advocating for every child. I humbly ask for your vote to continue to serve Medford’s children and families on our school committee. Please see https://melanie4medford.net to learn more about my accomplishments, priorities and background. Thank you for your consideration.