10th Annual Parent University Offered Workshops and School Budget Forum
By Patrick DeVivo
Photo from Melrose Education Foundation
On Saturday, November 22nd, approximately 125 Melrose caregivers and community members attended Parent University, a half-day program sponsored by the Melrose Education Foundation. The program took place in the Learning Commons at Melrose High School.
The Melrose Education Foundation was established in 2013 to fund and provide grant money for Melrose teachers who wished to pursue innovative and job-enhancing initiatives. The foundation also supports collaboration between the Melrose Public Schools and the caregiver community, including through the popular annual Parent University event, which is now in its 10th year.
This year’s program began with welcoming remarks by Mary Caddle, the President of the Melrose Educational Foundation; Cari Berman, the Interim Superintendent of the Melrose Public Schools; and Ken Kelley, the Interim Deputy Superintendent of the Melrose Public Schools.
The Parent University program consisted of two 50-minute breakout workshops. Caregivers were able to select from a menu of 17 different workshops on topics that included: building inclusion, understanding youth anxiety, nurturing healthy relationships, understanding financial basics, supporting parenting LGBTQ+ youth, planning for college, and integrating technology into daily life in a healthy way. Presenters were all experts on their topic.
The timing of Parent University in relation to the November 4th successful property tax override vote offered school administrators the opportunity to open a conversation with caregivers and community members about the future of the Melrose Public Schools. Time was allocated between the two breakout sessions for a full group presentation from Berman and Kelley titled: The Override Vote is Over: Now What?
Kelley began with comments about the school budget and the difficulties during the past few budget cycles leading up to the override vote. But he was enthusiastic about the present. “This override provides us with an opportunity to start looking at things in a different way,” he said. “We’re looking now at strategic growth, a strategic opportunity rather than a strategic reduction.”
Interim Superintedent Cari Berman
Photo from Melrose Education Foundation
Then Berman spoke, building on the idea of strategic opportunity and growth. Her comments mixed excitement with a degree of caution. She welcomed the chance to move beyond the “survivor mentality” of the past couple of years, but she was clear that school administration is not planning a simple reversal of the last round of budget cuts. She reminded the group that although seventeen positions have been restored to the budget, over forty positions were cut in the past two years. She emphasized that new ideas and approaches are still necessary.
“We have to focus first on the second half of FY26 and FY27. They must be aligned – we don’t want to hire people now just because we have the money.” She added that the additional funds won’t even be available until January.
Berman views this moment as a unique opportunity to pause and think strategically about what is most beneficial to the schools over the next 3-5 years. “Like we do in education,” she said. “It’s backward design - you plan for your goal.” She emphasized that student safety and achievement need to be at the heart of all decisions.
Berman closed the full-group presentation by reminding the group that at a moment like this, feedback from all stakeholders is essential. To that end, she asked attendees for feedback in the form of answers to three questions:
- What specific investment do you believe will have the most impact on student achievement over the next 3-5 years?
- How do we ensure that funds are spent in a way that measurably improves outcomes for all students?
- How should we best utilize the seventeen restored positions?
Flip charts and markers were placed throughout the Learning Commons. Berman strongly encouraged those providing suggestions to also think about the reason for their suggestion, “The Why” behind their response. The exercise produced spirited discussion and flipchart pages full of notes for Berman and Kelley to take with them and digest as they formulate plans to address this important moment for Melrose schools and the city.
At the December 9th School Committee meeting, Berman and Kelley will propose a supplemental budget for the rest of this school year, which the School Committee will vote on. Members of the public can share their thoughts at public comment during the meeting.
