Via Community News Service, in partnership with Vermont State University Castleton, for The Lakes Region Free Press
Brooke Olsen-Farrell is the superintendent of Slate Valley Unified School District. She is in her eighth year as superintendent with over 20 years of experience working in schools. She started teaching in Granville, New York, before coming to Vermont to work in superintendent’s offices.
Q. You started as a teacher in Granville before becoming an administrator. What was that experience like for you starting as a new teacher?
A. I was fortunate as I grew up in Granville, went to high school there and got to return to Granville as a teacher only three years after I graduated. I taught middle school and high school science. It was a rather comfortable experience for me because the environment was something I was really familiar with. A lot of the teachers I had in high school were now colleagues, which in a way was a little strange. It was kind of returning home from being away at school and just being really comfortable with that new environment.
Q. Was it hard to leave the classroom behind and go to work for the Addison-Rutland Supervisory Union and then later as assistant superintendent for Mill River?
A. Yeah, it was really hard to make that transition from the classroom to administration. Especially (because) I made the transition to central office administration and not necessarily building administration, where you still have that day-to-day interaction with the students and central office. You have interactions, but it’s not daily. Students aren’t as familiar to you or you to them as you would be if you were in a building leadership role. Definitely missed the student interaction.
I think in my role now as superintendent and even as assistant superintendent and as director of curriculum, where I started my administrative career, I try purposely to make opportunities and make time in my daily schedule to interact with students frequently. I’m not an elementary teacher, although my training was in elementary, when I’m having a stressful day or just need to be reminded about why I’m in this role, I end up in a kindergarten classroom. I just think they really have this infectious joy for learning. It’s just a wonderful place to be and a good reminder about why we do what we do in public schools because the work can be hard.
I think when you’re in a central office role, you have to intentionally make time for those moments where you can interact with students. It’s so weird because I taught middle school and high school. Now all of a sudden I’m all about being in the kindergarten classroom. I do substitute too, especially in the middle school and high school because my office is located here. When they need somebody for a period and I happen to have a break in my schedule, I don’t mind pitching in and doing that. I enjoy that. I love that.
Q. In terms of Slate Valley USD, what do you feel are the biggest strengths of the district currently?
A. We have a lot of strengths right now that we’re celebrating. Our staff culture has grown tremendously, along with our staff retention rate in the district, and that is leading to better and better student outcomes in our elementary schools. Our testing data showing that we’re above the state average, which has not happened in Slate Valley in years and is really a testament to the hard work and dedication of our staff, because it makes a difference, the teacher in the classroom that’s in front of kids every day, and we don’t want to have constant turnover in a system.
Really proud of the alternate pathways and experiences for students. We have a really robust work-based learning program. We’ve added some digital arts and design programs. We’ve done some woodworking, shop-type experiences for kids. Our kids have access to early college and dual enrollment and (we’re) just really trying to create an experience for our students. It feels personalized and feels relevant to them, so that they can leave Fair Haven Union High School and have a plan for their future.
Q. Biggest current challenge facing the district?
A. I think really getting the community to understand how education has changed. I think, in a way, we all think we’re experts on education because we all went to school, right? We all went through the school system. But education is so, so, so very different than it was when I went to school or even five, 10 years ago. It has changed incredibly as our demographics have shifted in Vermont. Now it’s influencing what’s happening in the classroom and just getting people to understand that we’re not comparing apples to apples.
Teachers and staff are really doing some incredible work, but I think we have a lot of societal influences that are coming into the schools that are impacting on how we do that work and what that work looks like. And this is not just Slate Valley, I mean, nationally, statewide, there’s been an erosion of trust around public schools. I think it’s incredibly important for people to really educate themselves about the latest issues and want to come to the table and collaborate on how we solve these issues because they’re really complex problems. That’s a huge hurdle, along with financing for our district. We’re one of the lowest-spending districts in the state. In fact, our tax rates can’t get much lower. But yet, we continually have difficulty passing school budgets. I know affordability is a challenge for Vermonters and definitely a concern for our community in Slate Valley. Trying to balance that with the needs of the students and the staff in our schools is a huge challenge.
Q. What has been the most rewarding or exciting experience as superintendent?
A. I think for me it’s the little things. It’s the day-to-day and those interactions with students. I mean, just going into the classroom and sitting down with a kiddo who’s just learning to read and being able to sit beside him or her as they figure that out, or attend celebrations where students are being recognized for their positive contributions to the school culture and climate. Just seeing the joy in the faces of our students, I know that might seem cliché, but there is a lot to celebrate. This is our next generation. We should be encouraging and supporting them and raising them up.
Q. How about the most difficult experience to navigate?
A. In 2018, my first year as superintendent, we had an averted school shooting here in the district, and just the fallout and the school safety challenges and the legal challenges that persisted for many years after that, along with staff and student anxiety. I think that was really challenging for us to navigate and overcome, but I’m also really proud of the work that our staff and students and community all did through that time. That definitely was the most challenging experience of my superintendency and, I would say, my career. As a result, I do a lot with school safety at the state and even national level and advocating for changes, and I definitely think we’re a lot stronger because of it, but it was definitely a challenge.
Q. What do you see as the impact of Covid on students and are there any lingering effects still?
A. We see a lot of social and emotional, mental health challenges. Some really significant behavioral mental health challenges, especially from our young students that are coming into school. Maybe they haven’t been potty-trained, they don’t really know how to sit in a chair. These things that were expected years ago coming into kindergarten, those are not happening in some of the cases. Developmentally, some of our kiddos are significantly delayed in these areas.
I just think overall the impact of mental health and the lack of services in the community (means the issues are more visible in schools). Schools are one area where we can’t say, “Oh, you’re on a waitlist.” We don’t have that service right now. It’s an entitlement for our kids. Mental health agencies around the state can say, “We don’t have the capacity, and you’re on a waitlist.” Trying to balance all of that, and that’s all tied into financial resources for a school district, academic achievement, staffing, it really is putting a huge strain on the system. I would also say parents having some significant challenges as a result of the pandemic that have just been exacerbated in terms of work or mental health themselves.
Q. Personally, how do you maintain a well-rounded work-life balance?
A. If I’m being honest, I’m not good at it. That’s a scenario where I struggle. When you are in jobs such as these, the superintendent job, and you’re responsible for, in our case, almost 300 staff, almost 1,300 students, you’re on 24/7. You’ve really got to be okay with that, and you’ve got to be able to find the little moments where you can break away. I’m going to be honest and say it’s a struggle. I think if you were to ask my family, I’m not home a lot. They don’t see me a lot. I’m not able to make it to a lot of my kids’ events. Two of my kids are in college, and I have one that’s still in high school, but I’ve missed a lot. I think you give up a lot in these roles. That’s a personal choice that you have to make, but you have to know going into that. The balance thing is challenging, and I haven’t figured it out.
Q. When you’re not working, what can you be found doing?
A. Right now I’m finishing my doctorate, so that’s taking a lot of my time. Otherwise, it would be just being with my family … trying to find time to spend with them and my husband and my extended family who are pretty much all in this area. So, family time.
Q. What are you getting your doctorate in?
A. Educational leadership.