By Andy Dunn
Staff Writer
English teacher and curriculum coordinator Anita Goldberg announced she is planning to retire at the end of the month, after ten years at Westford Academy and thirty-four total years of teaching.
Her time at Westford Academy is packed with notable academic achievements, ranging from significant increases in MCAS scores to the virtual high school to new classes.
When Goldberg was first named curriculum coordinator, Assistant Superintendent Dr. Lorraine Tacconi-Moore gave Goldberg her first major goal: get MCAS scores up.
Goldberg heralded that charge, and the good work she has done is indisputably evident in the performance statistics.
Eight years ago, the English MCAS scores for Westford featured 89% of students at the proficient or advanced level, with 48% at the advanced level (the highest MCAS level). Additionally, 9% of students fell into the needs improvement category and the overall composite performance index (CPI) was a 95.7.
The recently released 2013 results in English report 99% at proficient or advanced, 75% at the advanced level, and only 1% at needs improvement. The overall CPI metric increased to 99.5.
During her time, Goldberg also helped grow the virtual high school out of its infancy. “I had been working on a five-year federal grant [for the virtual high school],” said Goldberg. “We are now a part of the virtual high school. I was really happy to see us become part of that bigger learning forum.”
Additionally, she was able to push for the creation of several new English electives, such as the popular film and literature and creative writing classes.
English teacher Janet Keirstead, the new curriculum coordinator, commented that she has “big shoes to fill” in replacing Goldberg.
“Ms. Goldberg has fought hard on behalf of the students and teachers in Westford,” said Keirstead. “She has done a great job at what we call vertical articulation, making sure that there is a progression from what they learn [from grade to grade]…Ms. Goldberg has really brought us together to be able to bring education forward.”
Now, Goldberg believes the retirement route is the best path for her currently, as she says she’s “just ready to retire” and is “ready.”
“I think I put enough time in, I feel really great and have a whole lot of things I still want to do, so I want to go out there and do them while I still can,” said Goldberg.
Part of the reason to retire now, in the middle of the school year, stemmed from recent changes in her role as curriculum coordinator, specifically a litany of new state initiatives that have been implemented.
“There is a lot more paperwork and administration involved with this,” said Goldberg, “I feel in many ways this takes away from working with students, teaching, and doing many hands-on things I like to do.”
“I can go through a whole litany of things that I’m required to stay on top of and each of these things requires a tremendous amount of time,” said Goldberg. “With teaching two classes and trying to do everything really well there wasn’t much time left for me.”
Once in retirement, Goldberg will suddenly find an abundance of time left for herself, which she fully plans on taking advantage of. She won’t miss waking up at 5:30 AM every school day and the 45 minute traffic-filled drive she encounters to and from WA.
Goldberg is looking forward to a three-week trip to South America she been planning for some time. An avid traveller, she will be trekking to Machu Picchu and the Galapagos Islands this March.
Returning to the education field is not out of the question either down the road, as she says she “might go back to teaching for the virtual high school” and will “probably do some other things with education, but the first thing I plan to do is take a break.”
Yet, even with such exciting plans on the scope, Goldberg still sees the retirement as “bittersweet.” Goldberg feels she will most miss the interaction with the students and working with teachers. “They are just such fabulous educators,” said Goldberg. “I’ve never seen such teachers work harder in my life than I’ve seen here. These teachers give 110% all the time to their students and I will definitely miss that.”
