On Tuesday, October 29, Acting Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education Russell D. Johnston announced his provisional decision to remove Holyoke Public Schools’ chronically underperforming designation at the end of the school year, anticipated for July 1, 2025.
“This announcement reflects the hard work, resolve, and steadfast commitment shown by students, families, staff, school and district leaders, the School Committee, and our entire community,” Holyoke Mayor Joshua Garcia said. “We are immensely proud of what has been accomplished together over the past nine years. Together, we have achieved so much.”
These accomplishments include:
A 14-point increase in the district’s graduation rate to 74.6% in 2023, with even more dramatic improvements for students who are English Learners (23-point increase) and students with disabilities (18-point increase);
Doubling access to pre-kindergarten programming to more than 500 seats, while dramatically expanding full-day PreK;
A majority of juniors and seniors completing advanced coursework (advanced placement, dual enrollment, early college, and work-based learning) as part of our high school redesign, reaching 56% last year;
A dramatic expansion of dual language programming, with more than 750 students in grades PreK-8 now enrolled in the program, representing 20% of our students;
A 19-point increase in teachers of color, reaching 32%; and
Investments of more than $100 million in the physical infrastructure of our existing schools and construction of a new middle school scheduled to open in August 2025.
“Together, we have rebuilt a school district that appropriately balances high expectations and high support for students and staff,” said HPS Superintendent Anthony Soto. “We have strengthened our students’ educational experiences by implementing high-quality, standards-aligned curriculum; by coaching our educators to apply strong teaching practices in the classroom; and by analyzing and acting on student performance data. We have dramatically improved the operations of central services, ensuring schools have what they need to best support students and families. Most importantly, we have witnessed students growing as readers, writers, mathematicians, scientists, musicians, artists, athletes, and community members.”
Mayor Garcia and Superintendent Soto acknowledged the work of the Local Control Subcommittee and the entire School Committee, who have been implementing the Capacity Building Plan since it was released on August 23. The Capacity Building Plan details concrete steps and timelines to ensure the district’s elected board is well prepared to assume its role in four major areas of school district governance—superintendent evaluation (with a focus on continuous improvement and collaboration), superintendent hiring, finance and budget, and policy development.
“We are committed to working with our partners at the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) and Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE), as well as the entire Holyoke community, to ensure a fruitful school year and successful transition to local control,” Superintendent Soto said. “We have much work to do together—this year and in future years—to achieve our mission that all Holyoke students develop the skills and access the opportunities to graduate high school prepared for life, career, and college. We will continue to provide regular updates to our community through the district’s communication channels and School Committee meetings.”
See video, below, of Commissioner Johnston's announcment.