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Date: 7/13/2022
AGAWAM — School Committee members on June 14 gave Sheila Hoffman a resounding vote of confidence in her leadership as superintendent of schools, particularly her ability to effectively deal with challenges brought about by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Michael Perry, one of the committee’s two new members following last November’s elections, as part of the superintendent’s annual evaluation said that she “has demonstrated a high level of competence.” He added that since no blueprint existed for dealing with a pandemic, Hoffman had to be “a data-driven leader” with great concern for students and staff in Agawam.
“Her emphasis on the social and emotional well-being of students, the health and safety of students and staff, goal-driven focus on educational and administrative improvements, and prudent composition of the school budget have indicated proficiency in her role as superintendent,” said Perry.
The committee evaluated Hoffman on her progress toward meeting goals and assessed her performance in several areas. A compilation of individual evaluations resulted in an overall rating of proficient for the 2021-22 school year.
The state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) considers proficient to be “fully satisfactory” and an indication of the “rigorous expected level of performance” for a superintendent.
Mayor William Sapelli, who chairs the School Committee, explained that the proficient designation means Hoffman met all her goals and is “very proficient” overall.
Hoffman was appointed superintendent in fall 2021 after serving for several months as interim superintendent of schools following the retirement of former Superintendent Steve Lemanski in June 2020. The committee had planned to conduct a search for a new superintendent, but dropped those plans and appointed Hoffman because of the coronavirus pandemic. She previously had served as the district’s assistant superintendent.
Committee members — who voted unanimously to approve the proficient rating at the June 14 meeting — used a comprehensive evaluation process developed by the DESE to evaluate superintendents. They reviewed multiple “evidence-based” documents compiled by Hoffman, including student progress reports and detailed explanations from each school, before indicating her performance and progress ratings on their evaluation forms.
Committee members first assessed Hoffman’s level of progress in three goal areas: professional practice, student learning and district improvement. To indicate her level of progress in each area, they checked one of five boxes: did not meet, some progress, significant progress, met, or exceeded.
Albert Christopher was the only one of the seven members to indicate Hoffman had met all three goal areas. He wrote that what had looked like a challenging year because of the COVID-19, she made “look easy for the staff and students.” He added that when attending school functions with Hoffman, “you could see the connection and respect she has and receives from students and staff.”
Shelley Borgatti-Reed, Dawn DeMatteo, Perry, Wendy Rua and Sapelli all marked “exceeded” for professional practice goals; Kerri O’Connor checked “significant progress.”
For the student learning goal area, Borgatti-Reed, DeMatteo and Sapelli marked “exceeded.” Christopher and Perry checked “met” while O’Connor marked “significant progress.”
For the district improvement goals, O’Connor marked “some progress” while Borgatti-Reed checked “exceeded.” The other five committee members indicated Hoffman had met her goals.
The next part of the superintendent’s evaluation was Hoffman’s performance in meeting four standards: instructional leadership, management and operations, family and community engagement, and professional culture. For each standard, committee members had to select one of four ratings: unsatisfactory, needs improvement, proficient or exemplary.
Christopher again was consistent across the board — he rated Hoffman as “proficient” in all four categories. O’Connor, Perry and Rua gave Hoffman a “proficient” rating in three of the four standards.
O’Connor and Rua indicated the superintendent “needs improvement” in family and community engagement, while Perry checked “exemplary” for management and operations.
Borgatti-Reed, DeMatteo, and Sapelli gave Hoffman two proficient ratings and two exemplary ratings in their evaluations. All three gave “proficient” ratings for the professional culture standard.
DeMatteo rated the superintendent as “exemplary” in instructional leadership and family and community engagement. Borgatti-Reed and Sapelli were in tandem in their evaluations: both gave “proficient” ratings for family and community engagement and professional culture, but “exemplary” for instructional leadership and management and operations.
Borgatti-Reed and Sapelli were also in agreement in rating Hoffman as “exemplary” for their overall summary rating. The other five committee members gave an overall rating of “proficient.”
In the comments area of the evaluation form, many school board members focused on Hoffman’s effectiveness during the coronavirus pandemic. Leading a district during a pandemic is not something any superintendent was prepared to do, said Rua.
“Yet, Superintendent Hoffman exceeded in developing a comprehensive reopening plan to ensure the safety and well-being of our students, with increased support for both academic and mental health.”
Rua commended Hoffman for a plan that resulted in increased time on learning and a continuation of courses at levels. Rua added that she looks forward to seeing Hoffman’s strength grow even more without the constraints of focusing on coronavirus pandemic-related issues.
“We will be able to see what Superintendent Hoffman can truly bring to the district in terms of innovation, leadership and ingenuity,” she said.
DeMatteo gave Hoffman “kudos” for her strong leadership during the past year: “Her timely and transparent communications kept staff, families and the community informed of every step. Her communication to the committee was also continued throughout all the changes. All while district goals were met.”
Borgatti-Reed said she gave Hoffman an exemplary rating in management and operations because she “managed to seamlessly transition” the district from a “restrictive pandemic year to a somewhat normal year.” She called Hoffman “an asset” to the district and an “excellent example for other school districts to follow.”
Sapelli, a former superintendent of schools in Agawam before he was elected mayor, said Hoffman “set the standard in Western Massachusetts” for getting students into the classroom on a full-time basis. He said Hoffman faced many issues “with a calm demeanor” that “set an example of strong leadership tempered by compassion and understanding.”
While Kerri O’Connor praised Hoffman for executing and demonstrating leadership in dealing with the pandemic, she urged the superintendent to do more to improve access to mental health and social-emotional needs.
“Based on evidence presented of new partnerships to support emotional well-being of students and staff, there have only been minimally partnerships,” she said.