More than 350 women leaders from across the Commonwealth gathered in Framingham on March 18 for the 20th Annual M.A.S.S. Women’s Educational Leadership Network (WELN) Conference.
The theme of this year’s conference was “Standing in Your Power: Strengthening Your Confidence and Comfort in the Leadership Role.”
Highlights of the day included:
- A keynote address by Dr. Jennifer Cheatham, senior lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and co-chair of the Public Education Leadership Project at Harvard and the Collaborative on Political Leadership in the Superintendency.
- Presentation of the Dr. Bobbie D’Alessandro Leadership Award to Dr. Barbara Malkas, Superintendent of the North Adams Public Schools and Past President of M.A.S.S., who is retiring at the end of this school year.
- Panel discussions and interactive activities featuring female Superintendents and Assistant Superintendents, along with their colleagues and students from districts throughout Massachusetts.
The WELN presented a special tribute to Christine McGrath, M.A.S.S. Director of Support Networks, who recently announced that she will retire from the position in July. Chris served as Superintendent of the Tewksbury Public Schools for 19 years and is a former President of M.A.S.S. She is a founding member of the WELN and has been active in the planning of the annual conference since its inception.
We are grateful to the sponsors of this event: AlphaBEST, Renaissance Learning, and Wayfinder.
Thank you to the Planning Committee for their outstanding work!
Check out the gallery of photos from the conference, courtesy of Lifetouch:
