Caroline Hunter
2021 Candidate for Cambridge School Committee

Home address:
23 Rockwell St.
Cambridge, MA 02139

Contact information:
email: vote4carolinehunter@gmail.com
phone: 617-299-9597
website: www.carolinemhunter.com
Facebook: facebook.com/votecarolinehunter
Instagram: @vote4carolinehunter/

Send contributions to:
https://secure.actblue.com/donate/votecarolinehunter
OR
Treasurer, Committee to Elect Caroline Hunter
c/o Lisette Williams
PO Box 449
Oak Bluffs, MA, 02557

Caroline Hunter is a new candidate this year.

Background
I’m Caroline Hunter, a veteran educator who’s lived in Cambridge for forty plus years, and I'm coming out of retirement to run for Cambridge School Committee. I was born and raised in segregated New Orleans, Louisiana in a Catholic household. After graduating from Xavier University Preparatory High School, I attended Xavier University of Louisiana and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry in 1968. I have a Masters of Education from Antioch University, focusing on adult education, and a Masters of Education from Harvard Graduate School of Education in administration and planning. I received the Conant Fellowship in 1998.

Because experience matters …
In the late 1970s after obtaining a masters’ degree in education and teacher certification, I started substitute teaching at Cambridge Rindge & Latin School (CRLS). I was subsequently hired as a Chapter One Math Teacher at the Group School, Cambridge’s alternative high school, before eventually moving to the main campus of CRLS as a member of the math department. Over the course of my 34-year career at CRLS, I held all of the roles in the educational equation (parent, teacher, and administrator) and I understand the challenges and demands of each. As a parent, I supported a growing, learning child. As a teacher, I fulfilled all of the requirements of student learning, including educational planning and classroom management. As the high school’s assistant principal, I supervised and evaluated teachers and curriculum, building custodians, and students' schedules; oversaw building operations and publications; and managed school-wide events (graduation, assemblies, class trips (domestic and abroad), club activities, dances, proms, etc.).

In the late 1980s, I was Chair of the Concerned Black Staff (CBS), an advocacy organization of the Black staff that provided support to staff members of color, advocated for positive improvements in CPSD, and fundraised and granted scholarships to Black students. I co-wrote the CBS Report: “An Enrollment Study of Minority Academic Achievement at CRLS, 1985-86”, the first statistical report on disparities in student performance and achievement at Cambridge Rindge & Latin High School. Many of the recommendations of the CBS Report were adopted by the Cambridge School Committee, including adding a parent liaison at the high school, establishing equal access to scholarships, and extending algebra access to all 8th graders.

Because service never stops...
In the 1970s, my late husband and I launched a successful international grassroots boycott against our employer, the Polaroid Corporation, for its critical involvement in apartheid South Africa. In 1998, I co-founded the Benjamin Banneker Charter School (BBCS) with other Black parents who wanted a quality alternative to the Cambridge public schools; I served on the inaugural Board of Directors and the BBCS Foundation Board. For the past 28 years, BBCS has continued to provide quality education, focused on math and science, to students from Cambridge and the greater Boston area. I have also evaluated charter school proposals and charter schools for the MA Department of Education.

I also co-founded the Ken Williams Memorial Scholarship Fund in honor of my late husband and was the Chair of the annual Ken Williams Memorial Scholarship Golf Tournament on Martha's Vineyard. For 14 years, we fundraised for college scholarships for high school seniors with demonstrated financial need from Cambridge and Martha's Vineyard.

I remain active in social justice movements and on February 10, 2020, I spoke to students at the Saint Sebastian School about my activism as part of their Black History Month program. I was one of the elders requested by Cambridge youth to speak at the Black Lives Matter Rally on June 7, 2020, at the Cambridge Common. On February 4, 2021, I delivered a presentation to Martha’s Vineyard Public Charter School students about my activism; that evening, I gave a similar presentation to the Martha’s Vineyard community at large. I have participated as an active citizen in numerous conversations and forums on education in Cambridge and beyond, continuing to lend my expertise and continuing to serve.

My Top Priorities

• Transparency
• Publish data on student performance
• Accountability
• Set standards for delivery of services
• The Achievement Gap
• Target factors that influence achievement

The disparities in student performance and achievement continue to challenge the Cambridge Public Schools despite its numerous resources and substantial funding. The District must prioritize its resources and target them to the neediest students and families.

Top 3 Challenges facing CPSD:

• Navigating COVID-19, remote and in-person learning
• School safety, student behavior, and attendance
• School Department Budget and Capital Needs

Cambridge must strategically plan the integration of classroom learning and remote learning while coordinating these plans with the training needs of the staff and the upgrade of the necessary technologies. We must be prepared for the contingency of another possible shutdown while continuing to provide quality remote learning to those who cannot attend due to health issues. We must assess students’ learning loss and provide additional support staff and tutorial services at all grade levels. We must align the budgetary goals with the student needs and desired educational outcomes to assure that we are getting a measurable return on our financial investment in education.

It is the breadth of my educational and professional experiences that qualify me to serve on the Cambridge School Committee.

Vote #1 for Caroline Hunter on Nov. 2nd...

...because experience matters and service never stops!!!