New Haven Independent

As their families applauded, students one by one collected their certificates and shook hands with school board members. The annual awards were given by the Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents in recognition of students’ leadership, academic achievement and community service. Musical accompaniment was provided by The Wilbur Cross High School band, led by director Matt Pickett, wrapped in a sousaphone. The band played the national anthem to open the meeting and “Eye of the Tiger,” the theme from Rocky, after the awards were handed out.

A New Leader

Before the awards could be distributed, the first order of business was to officially welcome Ann Levett, the latest member to join the board. After Mayor DeStefano swore her in by speakerphone, Levett thanked the board and the audience. “It is an honor of the highest privilege to be able to serve our children,” she said. “I look to learn as much as I can.”

Levett (pictured) is the executive director of the School Development Program at the Yale Child Study Center, where she oversees the implementation of school-improvement programs nationwide. Originally from Savannah, Georgia, she has been involved in education for her entire career, as a public school teacher, a special education teacher, an administrator, and a principal. “My whole life is around education,” Levett said.

Asked about the strengths that she brings to the board, Levett said that she has extensive knowledge of the “challenges and gifts of urban education.” She said that she sees opportunities where others see problems. “I’m like a glass three-quarters full person when it comes to children living in the city.”

Levett said that as a board member she will f ocus on student achievement and on the way that achievement is measured. She said that students need to “access to quality educational experiences, and not just academic experiences… We need education that looks at all aspects of the student. School is not just about test scores.”

Test scores do not form a complete picture of whether students are doing well, said Levett. “There’s a perception that children are not performing well,” said Levett. “But they may not be performing well on tests and still be learning.” Levett said that multiple measures of success are needed. “We can find a better way to assess whether the children are doing well.”

Children Doing Well

Noah Clark, an eighth-grader at Betsy Ross Arts Magnet School, was at the meeting Tuesday night to accept an award. Clark received an early morning phone call from his principal, letting him know that he was to be recognized for being an “outstanding student.” Clark, who said that he felt “great,” was accompanied last night by his father, his two sisters, and his mother, Kim Clark, who said that she was very proud of her son. “He has a great attitude, he gets along with everybody,” she said. “And his grades are alright.”

Noah Clark plans to go to Hill Regional Career High School next year. He said that he wants to be an entrepreneur and start businesses. Clark plays the xylophone; his favorite subject is math.

Janilee Sanchez, seventh-grader at Katherine Brennan school, also said that her favorite subject is math. Asked which high school she plans to go to, Sanchez said Eli Whitney High School because it has a culinary program. This response surprised her mother, Maria Beltram, who said, “Oh, it’s culinary now? I thought you wanted to be a model.” Sanchez conceded that yes, she does also want to be a model.

Beltram said that her daughter always does her homework without being asked.