Unity Charter School in Morris Township hires executive director after year-long search

Unity Charter School is undergoing changes at the top. Photo by Kevin Coughlin
Unity Charter School is undergoing changes at the top. Photo by Kevin Coughlin
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Editor’s note: One year after its administrative team departed, the Unity Charter School  in Morris Township has named a new executive director, Connie Pires Sanchez.  She has taught middle school science and chaired gifted and talented programs in the Elizabeth public schools. Sanchez holds several degrees, has been a vice president at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, and served in the Air Force Reserve. She will earn $98,000 in her new position as head of the K-8 public school, which has about 200 students and a staff of 31. Here is more from the Unity trustees.

FROM THE UNITY CHARTER SCHOOL:

It is with great pleasure that the Unity Charter School Board of Trustees announces the hiring of its new Executive Director, Connie Pires Sanchez. Executive Director Sanchez will begin serving Unity on July 1, 2015.

Ms. Sanchez comes to Unity from the Elizabeth Public Schools where she worked as a Middle School science teacher, an Instructional Peer teacher, curriculum writer for science and Department Chair and Coordinator of gifted and talented programs.

Unity Charter School is undergoing changes at the top. Photo by Kevin Coughlin
Unity Charter School has a new executive director. Photo by Kevin Coughlin

Ms. Sanchez brings to Unity advanced degrees in education and management. She earned an EdM in Educational School Leadership from Columbia University Teachers College, and an MBA from Texas A&M. She also earned an M.S. in Business Management with a focus in Organizational Change Management from the College of St. Elizabeth.

For the past year Ms. Sanchez has also held the position of Adjunct Professor/Supervisor of Science Practicums at New Jersey City University. Prior to her work in public education,
Ms. Sanchez worked as a Vice President at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney as the National Development Officer and National Training Officer, and she served in the U.S. Air Force Reserve.

The hiring of Ms. Sanchez culminates a year-long process led by Unity’s Director Search Committee, chaired by Board Trustee Stacy Havens and comprised of members of the Board, staff, and parents, who, with the assistance of a nationally recognized executive search and recruitment firm, presented a diverse pool of applicants to the Board for consideration.

Following a series of candidate interviews, and with input from staff, parents, and students, the Board unanimously voted to approve Ms. Sanchez at its meeting on May 4, 2015.

Ms. Havens said, “The interview process revealed Connie to be a collaborative leader, a creative problem solver, a global thinker, and an effective communicator. She has a track record of building strong relationships with students, parents, teachers and communities. In addition, she maintains a deep understanding of the important mission of Unity Charter School–particularly our mission of sustainability and the development of the whole child. We are excited to witness the ways Unity will benefit from Connie’s diverse areas of experience.”

With the hiring of Ms. Sanchez, the Unity community wishes a fond farewell to its interim Director Karen Lake.

Board President Robert Ghelli commended her, saying, “We are so thankful to Dr. Lake for her time as Interim Director. Through her efforts, as well as those of our administrative team, including Jillianne Steelman and Katine Slunt, our lower and middle school team leaders Jen Carcich and Mike Braverman, along with the commitment and dedication of all our teachers and staff, this year of transition has seen the school continue to improve, and our students continue to experience the exceptional mission-minded education available only at Unity.”

Connie Sanchez has the leadership qualities and skills of a visionary and effective leader who will build on the successes of this year and those born out of Unity Charter School’s long and rich history. We look forward to working with her and welcome her to our CommUnity.

MORE ABOUT UNITY CHARTER SCHOOL

13 COMMENTS

  1. I came on here to read positive feedback on the addition of a new staff member. I am pained to see that hurtful comments I see here. As the grandmother of a Unity child I am saddened. I don’t know of any school that is perfect far from it, in fact that is what I believe led to the founding of charter schools across the country. Unity has done for my granddaughter what other schools certainly could not and she was blessed with terrific teachers just their approach wasn’t the right one. She has awoken to the the amazing little girl I always knew she could be. She has opened up right before my eyes, thanks to Unity. I don’t understand why an organization that “cares about schools” would be so hurtful to this school. I think we have an opportunity to work with the members of the school. I want to commend Mrs. Sanchez on this opportunity and I hope that we can all figure out how to work for the betterment of our students. If the above truly are issues may we be able to sit and reach some resolutions. I have lived in Morristown all my life and all I want is a better community for all members and especially for all children. Please may we figure out how to work together.

  2. Regarding “coexisting compatibly” with the district: last month I attended the MSD budget presentation. Unity Charter School was featured prominently on many slides. The district will have to allocate an additional $300,000 out of reserves to cover the increase in enrollment next year. Superintendent Mozak said they had already contacted the state to see what could be done about the ever increasing allocation to Unity Charter School. I also heard Dr. Ficarra speak many times about Unity – with a measure of distain. He said they noticed that many families tried Unity for a while, then eventually came back to the district. He hoped that the school would eventually fizzle out. What Dr. Ficarra didn’t know was that by drawing from over 8 counties, Unity has essentially created a bottomless waiting list. This does bring up an interesting point: attrition. Attrition rates are very high for Unity, averaging 20% for the last three years and up to 45% in certain grades. Attrition rates are a new metric in the Performance Framework, and will certainly be a red flag for the DOE.

  3. Christie effectively wrote new legislation when he introduced the new Performance Framework for charter schools and required all charter schools to sign a new charter agreement in 2012. Not all charters were happy to agree to the new rigorous new standards which focused heavily on student achievement and less so on school specific goals. In fact, Unity was one of a handful of charters who took legal action against the state (using taxpayer funds) to oppose the higher measures of accountability.

  4. In response to the faulty logic of Morris Cares About Schools, do you really believe the charter authorization legislation should be rewritten to meet the agenda of any sitting Governor? Christie may very well believe that charters should exist only in underserved districts, but that was not the original intent. Fortunately, they were created to provide an educational alternative to all New Jersey students. Charters provide a great service in underperforming districts where the need is great, and to that we can all agree. That does not diminish their value and contribution elsewhere. We’ll just have to agree to disagree there. So, continue on Morris Cares About Schools, as you seek to eliminate a much loved, thriving school with a long and successful history that has coexisted compatably with the other public schools in our district for 15 years…you might want to change your name, though.

  5. Dear “Unity Family”, I would also like to comment about your use of “educational options for families”. When charters first started, “parental choice” was a buzzword. But the political landscape has changed. Carefully read Gov. Christie and the Education Commissioners comments about school choice. They emphasize school choice for families in “underserved communities”, i.e. failing school districts and for economically disadvantaged families.

  6. Dear “Unity Family”, you raise an important point about the number of sending districts. First of all, MSD is the legal home district and charter law requires that charter schools be compared to the home district for demographic and academic purposes. The most important metric for the DOE is student achievement, so you can see how MSD might struggle academically against Unity with having 10 times the number of economically disadvantaged children. Secondly, last year Unity drew students from 47 other sending districts across 8 counties. This is unprecedented for a charter school. As you say, only about 1/3 of students are actually drawn from MSD. We believe there is no other charter in NJ where the vast majority of students come from outside the home district. Essentially, this means that 2/3s of students are drawn from school districts who were never informed about the opening of the school, not informed about past or future expansions and have no right to compare their performance or comment about the school. We are named “MORRIS Cares About Schools” because more revenues come from the schools of Morris county than from the home district. This is more than unfair, it is a probable charter violation. Yes, charters are allowed to enroll from outside the home district, but this legislation was intended to fill a few underutilized seats, not fund the majority of the school.

  7. Congratulations and welcome to Ms. Sanchez. The Unity staff has done a stellar job through this transition and I look forward to her start as the new executive director.

  8. Welcome to Ms. Sanchez and congratulations to Unity! This school has made such a difference in the lives of my children and many, many others. Unity provides another educational option for local families who believe that, like most things in life, schools aren’t a one-size-fits-all solution. Most of the Morris School District families whose children attend Unity have other children in the High School and other school’s in the district. We are fortunate to have so many options available to us. It is unfortunate that Morris Cares about Schools continues to try to stir controversy with her misleading comments. The tax revenue follows each student from their home districts. At Unity, there are children from over 30 districts across northern NJ. Morris has a very small share in that pie. The author’s use of the term ‘segregation’ demonstrates nothing but her intent to create conflict and controversy. Again, I concur with the comments of Morris Cares About Unity. I feel sorry Morris Cares About Schools and this unhealthy obsession. I hope that she can find a more positive way to serve the children in our community.

  9. Dear Morris Cares About Unity I am sure that Unity is a lovely place with many committed parents like yourself. We care about education too, for all children. Charter schools are meant to serve “underserved communities ” and reflect the diversity of the home district. Unity simply does not.

  10. I would like to welcome Connie to the school and hope that the next school year is even better than the one just wrapping up. I would also like to encourage any people reading this to see through the quite sad trolling of Unity performed by “Morris Cares about Schools”. The school is an amazing place. I wish that people who have issues with any aspects of the school (and no school is perfect) would work to try to improve things rather than sit back and take cheap shots at a place that is working for many children of many different backgrounds. I am sorry for you if your experience was not what you expected in some way and hope you are having a positive experience wherever you are now. I also hope you find a way to fill your life with something positive moving forward that can replace your weird vendetta with this fine local school.

  11. Welcome to Ms. Sanchez! Unity Charter School is a wonderful education option in a district (and state) of choice, and welcomes all students to apply and attend. Unity Charter School, along with every other New Jersey public school, is open to every child on a space available basis regardless of race, religion, disability, intellectual, academic or athletic ability, English proficiency or any other basis. Charter schools first accept applications from students living within the charter school’s local school district and if places are unfilled can then accept out-of-district children, meaning that Unity Charter School must, by law, accept applications from Morris School District first; all enrollment is done by lottery and is open to all families and students in New Jersey.

  12. My children attended Unity for a number of years and are now in the local public schools. The people at Unity are well-meaning, but it is true the school doesn’t really offer anything that would appeal to poorer families like before-care services, free breakfast, bilingual classes or textbooks, free afterschool clubs and sports with busing home, Chromebooks for all grade 6-12 students, summer programs, full time guidance counselors and psychologists for at-risk children, etc. Our principal rides the school bus to meet with families who cannot make it into the school. Charter schools may have a place in Newark or Camden, but not in this diverse and innovative district.

  13. What this press release doesn’t disclose is the fact that you, dear reader and taxpayer, fund this essentially racially segregated school at over $1 million per year and growing. As we all know, our town is very diverse. Unity is not. Last year, Morris School District had 32% Hispanic students in the K-8 population. Unity had 4%. MSD had 9% of students who were Limited English Proficient. Unity had 0%. However, the most important distinction is MSD served 36% of students who were economically disadvantaged. Unity served 3.6.%. NJ charter school average is 65%. Unity Charter School serves among the lowest percentage of economically disadvantaged students in the state. This segregation is particularly egregious as MSD is the only school district which was consolidated by the state for racial balance reasons. The demographic disparities at Unity are more than just unfair, they are probably illegal as state law requires charters to recruit a cross section of the population. Unity is up for charter renewal starting fall 2015. Let’s hope Gov. Christie remembers his commitment to charter schools for “underserved communities”.

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