AHS Students Share Thoughts on School Committee Election Results

Articles, Education
May 6, 2024
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By Molly Borenstein
STAFF WRITER

In the wake of the recent close election for the school committee, ANDOVERVIEW reached out to a trio of first-time voters, all seniors, to reflect on the outcome, sharing their motivations and considerations in casting their votes.

STAFF PHOTO / Molly Borenstein
People celebrate in the voting “Victory After Party.”

Nick Vaccaro, a senior and vice president of student government, expressed neutrality regarding the election results. “Both Diffenbach and Murray were considerate and smart members of the Student Government’s Forum,” Vaccao shared. “The candidates this year all ran great campaigns, and it was exciting to see so many fresh voices appeal to Andover for a spot.”

On March 21st, Student Government hosted a forum where students prepared questions to ask the candidates. All candidates were present and given time to speak directly to the club and any other students present about their campaign.

For Vaccaro, it was his first time filling out a ballot which motivated him to vote. “The major factor that contributed to my choice was definitely performance by candidates at the school committee forum,” he explained. “There, I could see each candidate at the personal level and hear what they were hoping to accomplish if elected.”

Michaela Buckley spoke about doing her own research. “After the strike, public approval seemed to sway far more in favor of the teachers union, so it makes sense that the union-endorsed candidates won,” she says. Buckley emphasized the importance of civic duty in motivating her to vote, stating, “It really excited me that my vote could have such an impact on election results (and therefore the town politics).”

Spencer Bleson, senior, expresses confidence in the candidates no matter the election outcome. “Even before the election, I think we had a great pool of candidates,” he said. “That being said, I am very excited to see how Diffenbach and Murray will be able to revitalize the School Committee and use their experience as teachers to bridge the gap between town government and the actual schools.”

Belson highlighted the ease of voting and the importance of representing student voices in his decision-making process. “Seeing as most students in APS are under 18, I voted to represent the voices of the students,” he says. Belson also adds, “It literally takes 5 minutes, so why not vote?

Andoverview

Articles

NEASC Visit Highlights AHS Goals

April 3, 2026

Anushka Dole || ONLINE EDITOR

Andover High School hosted a re-accreditation visit from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) from March 16-18, as part of a decennial review process designed to evaluate how well AHS supports student learning and identify areas of improvement.

According to Assistant Principal Alicia Linsey, the process started during the 2023-2024 school year with a visit from the Collaborative Conference team, a group of visiting educators from across the New England area. In preparation for the visit, a team of AHS faculty members and administrators was formed.

“We picked out priority areas and presented those to this visiting NEASC committee … and they agreed with [our priority areas],” said biology teacher Lindsey L’Ecuyer, the AHS committee’s science department representative.

There were five priority areas that AHS pledged to work on starting in the 2023-2024 school year: developing the Vision of a Graduate, implementing consistent curricula throughout all departments, vertical/horizontal alignment across departments and throughout grades, promotion of school pride, and building infrastructure.

The Vision of a Graduate outlines the skills and values that the school hopes to instill in every student by the time they graduate.

Vertical alignment refers to improving coordination between teachers across grade levels to ensure student skills build progressively, while horizontal alignment emphasizes greater collaboration between teachers across departments.

“[The committee is] working on … finding time in the school day for teachers to collaborate more,” L’Ecuyer said, adding that AHS has begun standardizing curricula to support this effort.

“There are committees in the school that have been working on documenting curriculum in a consistent format for our core classes … freshman English, for example, [and] biology,” L’Ecuyer said.

Linsey mentioned that students and parents also play a role in the accreditation process. A team of visiting evaluators—distinct from the Collaborative Conference team—conduct interviews to gather student perspectives on the school climate and learning experiences.

Although the committee leads the reflection process, administrators are then responsible for implementing action plans based on their findings. In accordance with these plans, faculty members must provide evidence of integration of the district goals.

L’Ecuyer emphasized that NEASC accreditation is more about reflecting on and improving school processes than it is about recognition.

“It’s less of a badge as it is opening yourself up to reflecting on and documenting what you do well and what it’s like setting goals for your school,” L’Ecuyer said.

Beyond internal reflection and planning, the “badge” that the reaccreditation process provides does carry additional, tangible benefits for students. It reassures families and colleges that AHS maintains a rigorous academic program, and that it’s constantly working towards improving learning.

“My understanding is that colleges know Andover High School—they know what our programs are like,” L’Ecuyer said. “[Because] of [accreditation] … they know the kinds of students that graduate from here, and what skills that [they] have.”

Accreditation also plays a role in the school’s ability to receive funding.

“NEASC accreditation is required for eligibility to receive some private, state, and federal grants, loans, and other federal funds,” Linsey noted in an email.

Articles

School Committee Picks Interim Superintendent, Searches for Permanent

April 3, 2026

Clara Strong || COPY EDITOR

Following Superintendent Dr. Magda Parvey’s announcement on January 12 that she would be leaving the School District, the Andover School Committee appointed Keith Taverna as an Interim Superintendent until June 30.

Parvey, who had served as superintendent since 2021, has returned to New York to fill another superintendent position there. Her final day at Andover Public Schools was March 1. After that, Taverna, Andover’s Assistant Superintendent of Administration and Finance since 2022, took over. He has worked in school administration in Danvers and Andover for 17 years.

In a January 15 statement, the School Committee announced Taverna’s appointment and said he would “provide continuity and stability as the committee begins an extensive search for a permanent superintendent.”

School Committee Chair Shauna Murray explained that the committee was under time pressure to choose an interim quickly, but because Taverna was already deeply involved with financial and logistical matters, and with budget and redistricting issues coming up this spring, he was the natural choice.

Taverna said that his roles haven’t changed that much. Before, his oversight included the “budget … food services, transportation, custodial services, facility maintenance, [and] payroll.” He said that he didn’t want to change much as interim superintendent, “just keep steering us toward success.”

He also expressed excitement about “spending more time with students, getting to be in classrooms, really supporting our staff and our students, [and] hearing the voices from all of those different fronts.”

Taverna said that if he could stay on as permanent superintendent, “it would be a wonderful opportunity … and we’ll see what the School Committee decides.”

However, the committee is broadening their search to find a permanent superintendent by July. On February 9, they submitted a Request for Proposal (RFP) to alert search firms that Andover is looking for a superintendent. Search firms, companies that help communities find and hire candidates for positions like the superintendent role, then submitted proposals for how they would help by surveying the community and proposing candidates.

On March 10, the committee decided on the firm the New England School Development Council (NESDEC), who recently helped searches in Amesbury and Stoneham.

“So far NESDEC seems great.” Murray reported. “We’re really excited to start working with them.”

Murray said the current committee needs the help, as they were “essentially a rookie committee, and … [hadn’t] been through this process before.” While member Lauren Conoscenti had six years of committee experience, on March 24 she cycled off, and currently no one on the committee has more than two years of service.

If the committee is unable to find a permanent superintendent by June, they may either extend Taverna’s contract, or appoint a “bridge” superintendent. This position would be temporary, but longer than the interim position, and involve appointing someone to be superintendent just for the 2026-2027 school year. It would allow the committee to search more thoroughly and carefully for a permanent superintendent.

However, if a bridge superintendent was appointed, the permanent superintendent would take over next summer, right in the middle of negotiations for the teachers’ and instructional assistants’ contracts. Therefore, the committee hopes to fill the position permanently by July to ensure continuity in the superintendent position.

Murray emphasized the need to gather input from groups all over the community, including students, faculty, parents and families, administration, town officials, and more.

From March 30 to April 10, a survey will open to find out what the community values in a superintendent. Plus, during the week of April 13, NESDEC will conduct four focus groups from various town stakeholders, including students, and School Committee members will conduct community outreach.

“There’s a lot that I think high school students in particular can share about their experiences,” added Murray, “that will be really fascinating for [the committee] and helpful to us in our journey.”

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AHS Students Share Thoughts on School Committee Election Results

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