MASS/MASC Joint Conference Update

The MASS/MASC Joint Conference, the Commonwealth's largest annual gathering of education leaders, starts Wednesday, November 2. We're looking forward to seeing you there! 

Please download the conference app - search "MASC Events" in the App store or on Google Play. If you're posting to social media, the event hashtag is #MASCconf16. 

Note that registration opens at 11 am on Wednesday at the Resort and Conference Center at Hyannis, 35 Scudder Avenue in Hyannis. If you weren't able to preregister, registration is still available on site! 

Those who are delegates from their district: delegate registration opens at 11 am. Please plan to register before the Delegate Assembly is called to order at 3:15 pm. There will, as usual, be a Resolutions Clinic at 2:45 pm (prior to the call to order); the report of the Resolutions Committee can be found online here. 

The Exhibit Hall opens at 3 pm.

MASS will conduct their business meeting at 4:30 pm. 

Wednesday looks to be sunny for the drive down; see you there! 

MASC/MASS 2016: Speakers - Mitchell Chester

Dr. Mitchell Chester, Commissioner of the Massachusetts public schools since May 2008, began his career as an elementary school teacher in Connecticut, and later served as a middle school assistant principal and district curriculum coordinator. From there he moved to the Connecticut State Department of Education where he oversaw curriculum and instructional programs. In 1997 he was named the Executive Director for Accountability and Assessment for Philadelphia, where he headed the offices of Assessment, Research and Evaluation, Student and School Progress, and Pupil Information Services. In 2001 he moved to Ohio, where he served as the Senior Associate Superintendent for Policy and Accountability for the Ohio Department of Education, where he oversaw standards, assessments, accountability, policy development, and strategic planning.

Dr. Chester has presented nationally on accountability, assessment and teacher induction and retention. He has served as a consultant to states and school districts regarding curriculum and instruction, teacher evaluation, student achievement, and assessment and accountability. Dr. Chester holds a doctorate in Administration, Planning, and Social Policy from Harvard University, as well as advanced degrees from the University of Connecticut and the University of Hartford. He and his wife Angela live with their son Nicholas in Winchester.

MASC/MASS 2016: Speakers - Maurice Cunningham

Maurice T. Cunningham is Associate Professor of the Department of Political Science at the University of Massachusetts at Boston and a co-founder and contributor to the blog MassPoliticsProfs which is featured at WGBHNews.org. He teaches courses in American government including Massachusetts Politics, The American Presidency, Catholics in Political Life, The Political Thought of Abraham Lincoln, American Political Thought, and Public Policy.

His book, Maximization, Whatever the Cost: Race, Redistricting and the Department of Justice examines the role of the DOJ in requiring states to maximize minority voting districts in the nineties. He has published articles dealing with the role of the Catholic Church in MA politics and on party politics in the state. His research interests focus upon the changing political culture of Massachusetts. He is a former assistant district attorney and assistant attorney general in MA. Professor Cunningham comments on MA and national politics in the Boston Globe, WGBH, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Boston Herald, and many other news outlets. Cunningham is a lifelong resident of MA. He earned his BA at the UMass Boston, his JD at New England School of Law, and Ph.D at Boston College. He currently lives in Cambridge, MA.

MASC/MASS 2016: Speakers - Nadja Reilly

Nadja Reilly is a clinical psychologist with over 17 years of experience specializing in children, adolescents, and families. Dr. Reilly completed her graduate training at the University of Miami, Florida, and her clinical internship and post-doctoral fellowship at Boston Children's Hospital. She was a staff psychologist in the Department of Psychiatry at Children's Hospital for 12 years.

Dr. Reilly is the Associate Director of the Freedman Center for Child and Family Development at William James College, as well as the Director of Training for the Center's internship and practicum placements. At the Freedman Center, Dr. Reilly focuses on prevention, school and community mental health work, consultation, curriculum and program development, and education.

Dr. Reilly is a core faculty member of the Clinical PsyD program, and faculty in the Children and Families of Adversity and Resilience (CFAR) concentration.

Dr. Reilly is the editor of Preventing Depression: A Toolkit for Schools, co-editor of the How Not to Keep a Secret peer leadership curriculum, editor and principal author of the Break Free from Depression school curriculum, and executive producer of Break Free From Depression, a documentary focusing on adolescent depression. Dr. Reilly is also the author of the book Anxiety and Depression in the Classroom: A Teacher's Guide to Fostering Self-Regulation in Young Students.

Dr. Reilly has presented in numerous local and national conferences, and continues to promote awareness of child and family mental health needs through her teaching, research, and practice.

MASC/MASS 2016: Speakers - Shella Dennery

Shella Dennery, PhD, LICSW, is the Program Director of the Boston Children’s Hospital Neighborhood Partnerships Program (CHNP), the community behavioral health program in the Department of Psychiatry at Boston Children’s Hospital. Dr. Dennery directs a comprehensive behavioral health program that provides services to Boston area schools and community health centers. The program provides prevention focused activities, early intervention services, and clinical assessment and treatment services to students in their educational home. In addition, Dr. Dennery oversees the Training and Access Project (TAP). TAP provides high quality professional development and consultation to educators, administrators, and school staff. The goal of the project is to help build schools capacity to better address the social, emotional, and behavioral health needs of their students, staff and community.

She has spent the majority of her career working as a school social worker in the Boston Public Schools and teaching and consulting on behavioral health related topics in community settings. Dr. Dennery has extensive experience uniting parents, schools, and neighborhood organizations to help strengthen the social and emotional health of children and adolescents. She holds a PhD from Smith College and an MSW from Simmons College. She also holds two post-master’s certificates in child and adolescent therapy and advanced clinical supervision from Smith College. Dr. Dennery is adjunct faculty in social work at both Simmons College and Smith College, and is an Instructor in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.

MASC/MASS 2016: Speakers - Jessica Minahan

Jessica Minahan is a board-certified behavior analyst (BCBA), author, special educator, and consultant to schools internationally. Since 2000 she has worked with students who struggle with mental health issues and challenging behavior in public school systems. She specializes in training staff and creating behavior intervention plans for students who demonstrate explosive and unsafe behavior. She also works with students who have emotional and behavioral disabilities, anxiety disorders, or high-functioning Autism. Her particular interest is to serve these students by combining behavioral interventions with a comprehensive knowledge of best practices for those with complex mental health profiles and learning needs.

She is a blogger on The Huffington Post, the author of The Behavior Code: A Practical Guide to Understanding and Teaching the Most Challenging Students, with Nancy Rappaport (Harvard Education Press, 2012), and author of The Behavior Code Companion: Strategies, Tools, and Interventions for Supporting Students with Anxiety-Related or Oppositional Behaviors (Harvard Education Press, 2014). She holds a BS in Intensive Special Education from Boston University and a dual master’s degree in Special Education and Elementary Education from Wheelock College. She has a certificate of graduate study (CGS) in teaching children with Autism from the University of Albany and received her BCBA training from Northeastern University in Boston. She is sought-after internationally to speak on subjects ranging from effective interventions for students with anxiety to supporting hard-to-reach students in full-inclusion public school settings.