The Gardner News
Published On Friday, June 10, 2011
Pictured:
Mount Wachusett Community College (MWCC) Vice President, Patricia Gregson (Left); Massachusetts Governor, Deval Patrick; Ralph C. Mahar Regional School District Superintendent, Michael Baldassarre; MWCC Board of Trustees Chair, James Garrison (Right)
In a visit that was in the works for about a month, Gov. Deval Patrick spent time Thursday morning with area school officials and Mount Wachusett Community College administrators to discuss, among other things, the Pathways Early College Innovation School.
While the likes of Gardner Mayor Mark Hawke were among numerous officials on hand for a roundtable discussion that led off the governor’s visit — surrounded by a wide representation of public school officials from surrounding districts — the notable absence of any Gardner Public Schools administration was glaring.
It wasn’t long ago that Pathways’ predecessor, Gateway to College, incorporated a partnership between the Gardner schools and MWCC, from 2006 to 2009. That program was created as an alternative to students thinking of dropping out, and having fallen behind on credits, it offered a second chance to earn a high school diploma. But while Gateway might have left the Gardner public schools, it thankfully did not leave the region, moving 20 miles west to the Mahar Regional School District in Orange.
Even though Gateway to College is no longer represented in Gardner’s public schools (or isn’t involved in Pathways), this space was encouraged to hear Hawke acknowledge the benefit of having at least the college involved in both.
“The people in this room have touched so many lives, and I consider it incredibly fortunate to have Mount Wachusett Community College and these programs here in Gardner,” noted Hawke to the governor.
And from Gateway’s birth came Pathways last year, with the new program meant to provide motivated high school juniors a chance to earn a high school diploma while also earning college credits.
On paper, it sounds like a great idea, but unfortunately, so many public schools seem trapped into a focus that they are solely a K-12 operation, and fail to understand the need to collaborate with schools at the higher education level.
Pathways became possible with a unanimous vote last June by the Mahar Regional School Committee, as the state’s second “Innovation School” came into being.
While Mahar Superintendent Michael Baldassarre admitted to Gov. Patrick that some of the initial steps to create it were “actually very easy to do,” particularly with the help of MWCC, he added, “This is what the power of a partnership is, because we give (MWCC) what they need.”
Once implemented, upon hearing the oft-repeated reactions to the program from its students, Baldassarre wasn’t taken aback.
“With me, it resonated, as I was a teacher, then an assistant principal and a principal. I know what it’s like for a lot of the students,” he said. “You have students in any high school that go above and beyond every day, but do so quietly, humbly, and they don’t ask for anything. They just want to transcend the barriers and become something.”
Unfortunately, for these students, despite these aspirations, the Mahar superintendent acknowledged the numerous hurdles they must deal with at their age.
“Teenage life is sometimes very difficult. Teenagers — as much as we want them to be responsible, young adults — are developing socially and emotionally,” he said. “Sometimes that plays out in concerning ways. So for that student who doesn’t want to be a part of that, there’s a place.”
And for the 14 Pathways students on hand Thursday at MWCC, they each spoke highly to the governor about how the program has proven to be the right “place” for them. It was often framed in the context of how they’d become frustrated in high school, with issues ranging from having to deal with “the politics” at a school to the lack of course choices.
After discussing the program with area school officials, though, Gov. Patrick noted, “There are actually other models like this, which is one of the reasons I’m here. No. 1, though, is that we want to encourage innovation in education, because the more we try these things and meet kids where they are, the more motivated they are, the better the result.”
Among things the governor also took quick note of was the strength in the partnership between Mahar and the college.
“They have a great advantage here, and an extraordinary partnership with Mount Wachusett Community College,” said Gov. Patrick, who added that the program was also achieving the administration’s goal of closing achievement gaps, while promoting innovation and excellence.
While the governor might have deemed that there are “other models like this,” Baldassarre took a different view, stating, “This is the only one of its kind right now. There isn’t anything else that allows you to get the associate’s degree and high school diploma at the same time. It’s very unique.”
With what has been accomplished thus far, the Mahar superintendent went further, deeming it ready to be spread across the country. And proof of an interest to do just that, have been discussions with educators from as far away as Kansas, to want to learn more about Pathways.
“This program is certainly attracting attention, and for one program of 25 kids, people see that it can be replicated,” said Baldassarre. “We’ve established that it is successful, and we’d like to see it replicated to offer more opportunities for more students.”
At the current pace, approximately 20 students each semester are enrolling in Pathways. That was the size of the first class, spread across 11 different school districts, and Baldassarre voiced a hope it could annually graduate between 15 to 20 students annually.
Considering what the Pathways students had to say about the program, such a goal doesn’t seem outlandish.
“We all want to be here, and you are not forced to be here, as you are in high school,” noted Ashley Williams, formerly a Leominster High student. “Then there is the environment and the freedom. Here you have a choice and you want to stay.”
Or as noted by Lynea German of Townsend — who had attended a number of area schools, along with being homeschooled, having last attended Francis W. Parker Charter School in Devens — “School was dragging and dragging. I had been at every type of school and this is allowing me to realize my dreams.”
When Gov. Patrick asked German what she had been searching for, she quickly replied, “This program kicked me into gear.”
Even with options like Gateway or Pathways, Baldassarre emphasized Mahar hasn’t stopped there. Another alternative, he noted at Mahar is the “First Year Experience” program, where students are taught college-level courses by Mahar teachers at the school, with the credited authorized by MWCC.
“We’re acclimating students to the college experience as quickly as possible,” he said. “It started with seven or eight students, and now we have 44 students registered this year. So the partnership isn’t only alive and well on (MWCC’s) campus, but also in the school district environment.”
It simply comes down, he said, to offering students a multitude of choices to expand their education.
“So we have students earning college credits everywhere. They are earning them (at MWCC), they are earning them online, they are earning them (at Mahar) in our classrooms. And they are earning them for free. That’s a big thing. If a student leaves Mahar with 12 or 15 or 18 college credits, we’ve saved that family thousands of dollars, and the student has already developed a college transcript.”
(Andres Caamano is the Senior News Editor/NIE Director at The Gardner News. He can be reached at acaamano@thegardnernews.com.)
