After a strong entry into office in 2021, CPSD Superintendent Victoria L. Greer received a “Needs Improvement” rating last July on her annual evaluation by the Cambridge School Committee and Mayor. The unanimously adopted motion highlighted four main areas of concern: hiring processes, communication, internal management, and community relationships. “This evaluation, as with any cadenced evaluation, is a snapshot in time and reflects the strengths of my leadership and professional practice as well as opportunities for growth from the school year.,” Superintendent Greer told the Register Forum. “I am deeply committed to continuous improvement and continuing our robust collaboration as we serve the students, families, and staff of our great district.”
School Committee Member David Weinstein told the Register Forum the committee stands by their evaluation, which followed the standard rubric of the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.“The best evaluation processes are opportunities for conversations that identify areas of strength to build on and areas of growth to work on… I believe we accomplished that in our recent evaluation of Dr. Greer.’’
Superintendent Greer serves as chief executive for Cambridge’s public school system (CPS). Her role is to oversee the duties of budget management, supervision of hiring processes, monitoring of student success, and overseeing district values.
Greer became interim Superintendent in July 2021 and received the permanent title in January 2022. This first evaluation conducted after only six months of the Superintendent’s intended year-long interim period received positive results: in November 2021, Greer was rated “Proficient” by the School Committee.
Superintendent Greer did well in measurable academic goals, such as the introduction of universal Pre-K set to launch in fall 2024. She stumbled, however, in the area of management and operations.
While Greer’s team’s outward communications—the cadence of email and ParentSquare updates—received praise in the evaluation, the report noted that her communication style was largely one-way and needed to include feedback from the community.
Greer’s process for hiring new principals for district schools was cited several times as an area that needed improvement. At Fletcher Maynard Academy (FMA), for example, Greer announced one hire to the community via email only to host a listening session weeks later introducing a different hire, Bobby Tynes. School committee candidate Eugenia Schraa who was at the listening session spoke for several community members who felt their feedback was undervalued in the process. “You need buy-in; you need buy-in from your principals and your teachers, and from families, and from students,” She told the Register Forum. “And I don’t think she’s taking that seriously enough.”
“We want the Superintendent to depart from the top-down approach more often,” the report read. “We hear that buy-in from staff is lacking and some feel mistreated.” The report continued, citing the departure of an unprecedented number of senior staff in 2022-23 and a “perceived climate of fearfulness” among staff.
“We have been a district resistant to change, and therefore Dr. Greer’s decisions along with her leadership will not be popular among everyone…” Betelihame Mamo, a director of Cambridge’s Special Education Parent Advisory Council, said in public comment at the meeting. “Doctor Greer is the best superintendent that the Cambridge School District has met in many years, and it is important that we recognize this.”
This article also appeared in our September 2023 print edition.
