LENOX — Expanded security drills with local and state police.
Confronting challenging personnel issues.
Establishing a “think tank” to study the impact of artificial intelligence in and outside the classroom.
Those are among the highest-priority mid-year goals set by Superintendent William Collins in his progress report for the Lenox Public School District as classes at Lenox Memorial Middle and High and Morris Elementary resume following the holiday break.
In a presentation to the School Committee last month, Collins focused special attention on a goal to “elevate instructional excellence.”
He also stressed improved communication and greater trust and transparency both at LMMHS and Morris.
“District leaders function as the system’s trust brokers,” Collins explained. “How we communicate, follow through, and navigate conflict strengthens relational trust. Trust is a predictor of long-term academic improvement. This year’s work continues to solidify a trusting relationship across classrooms, buildings and the broader community.”
Reports on any symbols of “hate speech” discovered in the town’s schools are communicated to the community, Collins stressed. In December 2024, school officials and police probed the discovery of a swastika on the whiteboard of an LMMHS classroom. Principal Jeremiah Ames sent out a message to families and the School Committee about the incident.
“We tell the community it’s happening, we want them to know we’re transparent, open and we’re working to make a culture where those things don’t happen, but we don’t sweep them under the rug, and parents can trust we’re being straightforward,” said Collins. The committee session can be viewed on ctsb.com.
Following up on the safety and security assessment of the two school buildings he first requested and received two years ago, Collins cited expanded drills with local and state police as well as multi-hazard evacuation drills and relocation exercises. Behavioral threat assessment procedures have been improved, he said.
“We’re working to be as prepared as we can in the event that something happens that we hope never does,” Collins pointed out, noting that the district is among the first in the state to work with a Homeland Security trainer to assess potential threats.
As an issue that deserves higher-profile attention, the superintendent focused on “confronting challenging personnel matters rather than allowing them to linger or to erode trust,” leading other staffers to assume that the administration is ignoring problematic behavior.
Ames and Morris Principal Brenda Kelley, as well as Director of Student Services Brian Kelley, have taken on “difficult personnel issues and managed them decisively and responsibly, with the whole idea of doing what’s in the best interest of students,” Collins emphasized.
Because personnel matters are confidential, he suggested that action to resolve challenges doesn’t get enough attention. “But this is a team that doesn’t shy away from holding people’s feet to the fire and making sure they do what they need to do if they want to be part of our team,” he declared.
The in-house study group is laser-focused on artificial intelligence issues, Collins noted, as the district has partnered with the Lee schools for MIT’s exploration of AI’s impact, including opportunities for personalized learning, data use and reduction of educators’ workloads.
Collins represented Lenox and Berkshire County’s other K-12 districts on the Berkshire Innovation Center’s AI advisory committee. At the start of the school year, Collins cited AI challenges as “a new frontier."