TAUNTON — Superintendent John Cabral announces that Director of Student Services and Transportation Kathy Perry will retire at the conclusion of the 2021-2022 school year following a nearly 30-year career with Taunton Public Schools.
“For almost thirty years, Kathy has been a staple within the Taunton Public Schools community, having positively impacted thousands of students’ lives over the course of the years,” Superintendent Cabral said. “She has always been an advocate for our students and a leader amongst our faculty and staff. She will be greatly missed by students, staff and families alike and we wish her all the best in her well-deserved retirement.”
Director Perry began her career as a first-grade teacher in Mashpee. After seven years in Mashpee, Perry joined Taunton Public Schools in 1996 as a reading teacher at the elementary and middle school levels.
Over the course of her work career in Taunton, Perry has embraced a wide array of building, grade and administrative assignments that have included teaching at both the elementary and middle school levels, coaching teachers in effective reading strategies across the district and serving as assistant principal at the former Maxham Elementary School and as principal at Benjamin Friedman Middle School.
In August 2018, she joined the Central Office Leadership Team as the Director of Student Services, Transportation and Title IX Coordinator. As Director of Student Services, Transportation and Title IX Coordinator, Perry was responsible for all transportation needs in the district; addressing any student/parent concerns or issues; overseeing students’ 504 plans, attendance and discipline; coordinating district training and more.
As part of her role, she also collaborated with numerous community organizations, including the YMCA and Boys and Girls Club, and managed numerous staffing teams including all PreK-12 guidance staff, community facilitators and more.
Outside of the schools, Perry is heavily involved in the greater-Taunton community. She is a member of the Taunton Opiate Task Force, Drug Endangered Children Taunton Chapter and the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s Social Emotional Learning and Mental Health Academy Institute.
Perry also worked as an adjunct professor at American International College and a consultant to other school districts interested in improving student writing skills.
She received her bachelor’s in early childhood education and a master’s degree in Consulting Teacher of Reading Grades K-12 from Bridgewater State University and holds numerous professional certificates.
Perry will officially retire on June 30, 2022.
In light of her retirement, information about the district’s new Director of Student Services and Transportation will be shared as it becomes available.
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