“I have felt welcomed and appreciate how open and transparent the students, the families, and the community have been,” Essex Westford School District Superintendent Mark Holodick said.

Before entering his role, Holodick conducted research on the district, but said that you can only learn so much by reading or looking at data.

“I recognized that I really needed to be in schools, and so I try every morning to be in a different school to start the day and help with car line, talk with parents, talk with staff, talk with students, and spend the least amount of time in my office as possible,”  Holodick said. “And when I am in the office, I try to have very structured meetings so that it’s allowing me to be in schools, observing what’s happening, because nothing replaces direct observation.”

Holodick said he understands that it will take time for students to truly get to know him. 

“I don’t know the students like I did in my previous position, and so it’s going to take some time for the kids, the young adults here, and the younger students across the district, to really get to know who I am,” he said.

One area important to Holodick is AI. He believes that every time a new technology surfaces, things are going to be a problem, but in time, it can be a way to benefit students and staff.

“To do that, we have to have expectations that we clearly communicate to students and explain the why behind it,” Holodick said. “I’ve always believed that as both a teacher and an administrator, if I ever make a change or create a policy or a school rule that I can clearly articulate to students, staff, and parents, you’ll never hear me say we do that because I said so, or we do that.”

Holodick’s dream is to have 100% of students involved in a minimum of one club organization, activity, or sports team unless something is happening outside that warrants so much attention that the student can’t.

“The key is that there are young people around one another, doing things with other young people, and not being isolated,” Holodick said. “We know that students who are involved in activities with other young people and trustworthy adults have better attendance, they tend not to have issues with discipline, and they tend to get good grades.”

One of the challenges that had been faced was the budget cut. This situation has led Holodick to spend time in certain schools in the district to ensure that the students and families who are impacted that their voices continue to be heard and that their needs are met as best as possible.

“We’re never going to be perfect, so the key is just getting better each day, each week, each month, each school year. I always try to, like, you know, this time next year, we shouldn’t be dealing with the same challenges. If we are, the challenges should be less if we’re doing our jobs well.”

Holodick is motivated to help all the students and help them understand what students need support with.

“I like to meet with students and staff, so if there’s an idea, bring it to my attention.” 

If you would like to bring up ideas or contact Dr. Holodick, his email is:[email protected]