Assistant Superintendent Kerry Clery and superintendent Bill Olsen have been working together for years, working through challenges and improving the curriculum in every way they can. Clery, is excited to continue to safely run Westford Public Schools alongside the new superintendent Dr. Christopher Chew.

Chew, principal at Stony Brook middle school, and Clery have worked with the leadership team for the past seven years on various missions, including the education program during COVID-19. COVID brought about many issues relating to health, so Clery worked with the leadership team, mainly with the principals, to keep students connected to the school.

“I feel as though Chew and I have already established a strong relationship,” Clery said.

Throughout these years, Chew has built respect among the leadership team, working with them through issues or planning.

Next year, Clery plans to create a safe return for all schools with Chew. The first goal is safety, and the second is to look further into the learning gaps that may have been caused due to the pandemic. Clery does not plan on having students learn a half year’s worth of education, as well as the new skills or new subjects in a short span of time. Clery believes this would hurt students social- emotional stresses and it wouldn’t be beneficial for education. While using old student data along with new data on educational levels and social-emotional levels she plans to create a strategy to bring students back to full in-person school.

“Let teachers look at what an appropriate year’s worth of growth will be for students, in thinking about what we want them to gain out of future grade levels,” Clery said.

Looking forward to the future, Clery is excited to plan out everything. Clery will be using her experience working alongside Olsen to create new plans.

Clery has been working under superintendent Olsen for seven years and Olsen has been supportive of the new ideas or plans. Clery believes that Olsen gave room to celebrate the leadership team’s strengths to further provide for the leadership team. Clery describes Olsen as a true leader who is approachable and kind.

“I feel comfortable going to him with any issues or concerns,” Clery said.

Clery believes the projects she worked on were never just her projects as the entire leadership team helped finish these projects.

“Creating and pursuing a hybrid model system was appreciated,” Clery said. “It was helpful for some but for others, it may have been frustrating”

Working with the support of parents, the leadership team, teachers, and Olsen, Clery was able to develop a functioning hybrid model during COVID-19.  Clery finds this more recent strategy one that was needed for a large group of students. Even with the major restrictions through state-level Westford, teachers worked to keep students educated and healthy.

“I feel proud of the leadership team, the teachers, the patient parents, and the flexible students. ” Clery said.

There will be a transition of getting to know Chew as a superintendent. Clery and Chew have worked together on a wider basis, but coming next year, they will work cohesively to get Westford Public Schools to a safe place.  Clery believes this transition will be very successful and they will work very well together because of these past relationships.

“There is lots to do moving forward in the system and looking ahead into the future,” Clery said. “I’m very excited to be collaborating with him on all of that.”