Rachel H. Monárrez, Ph.D., believes in the possibility of every child, and this approach has guided her leadership of Worcester Public Schools. Following three years leading the district through great progress, Dr. Monárrez announced she will return to her home state of California to become Superintendent of the Orange Unified School District near Los Angeles, the area she calls home, effective July 1, 2025.

Due to the strong desire to continue the forward momentum of the work begun under Dr. Monárrez, the Worcester School Committee voted 8-1 to appoint Brian Allen as the Superintendent for the next three years, beginning July 1, 2025. Mr. Allen has been a close member of Dr. Monárrez's leadership team, serving as Deputy Superintendent, Chief Financial Officer, and Chief Operations Officer. He is a Worcester native and has worked for the district for nearly three decades.

Mr. Allen, who chaired the committee that implemented the WPS Strategic Plan: Our Promise to the Future, has pledged to continue the district's ongoing strategy for success, while Dr. Monárrez has said she fully supports Mr. Allen as the next Superintendent.

This page outlines the district accomplishments of Worcester Public Schools from 2022 to 2025.

Worcester Public Schools (WPS) continues to utilize its 2023-2028 Strategic Plan: Our Promise to the Future, which was developed through an extensive listening and learning process with more than 60 staff and community members.

The Strategic Plan is rooted in six key priorities for how WPS operates through 2028:

• Equitable Resources and Educational Programs

• Family and Community Engagement

• Culture and Climate

• Acquire and Retain Talent

• Modernized and Safe Facilities

• Health and Wellness

The core focus of Worcester Public Schools is to increase academic outcomes for scholars.

The district now embraces the "Vision of a Learner" framework with the goal of all students possessing the following skills and dispositions upon high school graduation: being a Problem Solver, a Curious Learner, an Empowered Individual, an Effective Communicator, and an Engaged Community Member. We want all scholars to leave us future-ready to succeed in a rapidly changing world.

While there is much room for improvement, we are glad to see reading and math performance at its highest level since the 2021-22 school year based on benchmark screeners.

Launched in 2023, the Quadrant Team ("Q Team") model reorganized district support staff from various departments into four cross-functional teams to service each of the district's four geographic quadrants: Burncoat, Doherty, North, and South. Each Q-Team is led by the quadrant's Executive Director and has a designated number of coaches from the departments of Culture and Climate, Multilingual Education, Special Education, and Innovation (formerly Educational Technology), along with instructional coaches.

The model greatly increases the number of hours that district support staff work in schools instead of the district offices, and reduces unintentional silos by having departments working together collaboratively. Importantly, the creation of the Q-Teams allows schools to know who their designated support coaches are from respective departments and allows for coaches to build deeper relationships with a smaller number of schools.

The number of students receiving the Seal of Biliteracy has grown from 74 in 2022 to 213 in 2025. The State Seal of Biliteracy is an award provided by state-approved districts that recognizes high school seniors who attain high functional and academic levels of proficiency in English and at least one language. A seal is placed on their diplomas to support them with future college and career opportunities.

The U.S. Department of Justice released WPS from a nine-year monitoring agreement in 2025 after demonstrating substantial compliance with its obligations to provide instructional services for English Learners.

A positive culture and climate is fundamental to the success of students and staff alike. WPS has made great efforts to enhance the culture and climate of schools through the use of culture and climate teams, which include school deans, to proactively address issues and develop relationships with students, staff, and families.

Since 2022-23, Worcester Public Schools (WPS) has taken a renewed focus on safety through a combination of efforts that emphasize standardized training, facility investments, and proactively focusing on culture and climate.

• In 2022-23, WPS onboarded the I Love U Guys Foundation's Standard Response Protocols with schools and district staff, using easy-to-understand, color-coded terminology that clarifies what to do during various types of emergencies. Staff are now routinely trained on these protocols, which include reunification procedures in the event of a large-scale school evacuation.

• In 2023-24, WPS finalized a Crisis Response Protocols manual for staff that provides instructions on how to respond to various scenarios along with how to effectively communicate to families.

• In 2024-25, WPS launched an internal digital dashboard for school leaders to keep track on conducting the required number of drills per year, which are fire drills, bus accidents, I Love U Guys Standard Response Protocols, and medical incidents.

• Since 2022-23, WPS has increased the number of staff working as Culture and Climate Assistants at schools across the district, mostly at middle and high schools, to help provide a positive culture and climate and to build relationships with students to address and prevent issues from occurring. Culture and Climate Assistants also respond to safety incidents if needed.

• WPS continues to make facility investments to improve building safety following a comprehensive audit of all WPS buildings that was conducted in 2022-23, which included a full threat assessment. Enhancements include reconfiguring vestibules, replacing classroom door locks, and purchasing cameras and card readers, among other items.

• In the annual culture and climate survey for caregivers, those who felt a positive sense of safety at their children's schools increased from 72% in 2024 to 75% in 2025.

• In the annual culture and climate survey of staff, those who felt a positive sense of safety increased from 79.6% in 2024 to 85% in 2025.

• In 2024, WPS established the Safety Advisory for Education (SAFE) Working Group with various community members to routinely and proactively examine safety issues.

WPS launched the Office of Family and Community Engagement in 2023. Since then, the community has overwhelmingly shared positive feedback on the increase of meeting the diverse needs of our families, connecting them to organizations and resources, and working with schools to enhance engagement.

Since 2022, Dr. Monárrez launched spaces to elevate the voices of students and educators, with the launching of the Superintendent's Student Advisory Council for high school and middle school students, along with an Educator Advisory Committee.

At the Student Advisory Committee, students participate in workshops and discussions on leadership development and provide feedback directly to the superintendent and administration on issues they face. At the Educator Advisory Committee, members tackle challenges and collaborate on strategies that support teachers, enhance classroom experiences, and improve outcomes for students.

The district's first Communications Department was established in 2023 with the creation of the role of Chief Communications Officer, a Cabinet-level position. Over the past two years, there has been a dramatic increase in two-way, multilingual and accessible communication along with a greater sense of belonging due to the sharing of accomplishments of scholars and staff. This work was noted nationally when Dr. Monárrez was named one of 25 Superintendents to Watch by the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA) in 2023-24.

After several years of planning, Worcester Public Schools moved all of its school bus transportation operations in-house during the 2022-23 school year, resulting in $5 million in annual savings and a 76% drop in parent complaints within the first year. The wide-ranging success of Worcester's in-house school transportation is now used as a model by school districts statewide and nationally.

For these efforts, WPS was honored with the 2023 Donald D. Johnson Operational and Cost Efficiency Award from the Massachusetts Association of School Business Officials (MASBO); WPS also received the 2023 Pinnacle Award from the national Association of Business Officials (ASBO).

The Transportation Department is preparing to launch a tap-card system for student identification along with a new smartphone app for caregivers in the next year.

In 2025, WPS invested $16.6 million in maintenance, safety, and capital upgrades of district buildings, which is a 103% increase from FY22, when the district invested $8.2 million.

Two milestones in facilities projects have taken place during Dr. Monárrez's tenure: the 2024 opening of the new Doherty Memorial High School, and the 2023 announcement that Burncoat High School was accepted into the project pipeline for a state-funded building construction project through the Massachusetts School Building Authority, which progressed into a Feasibility Study in 2025.

The Worcester Public Schools Budget Office received the Meritorious Budget Award from the Association of School Business Officials for the 12th year in a row in January 2025.

Under the leadership of Deputy Superintendent Brian Allen and Administrative Director of Finance Sara Consalvo, the Budget Office was awarded for the level of thorough detail included in the annual Worcester Public Schools Budget Book, which outlines all aspects of the district’s budget. 

Dr. Rachel Monárrez and Mr. Allen launched an Equity-Based Budget Process for fiscal year 2026 that allocated new spending based on levels of individual student need.

A reimagining of the Human Resources Department led to a restructuring of its staff and a renewed emphasis on relationship-building with labor unions, a recruitment and retention, diversifying staff, and building efficiencies over various aspects of people management.

The district has seen sustained and measurable progress in diversifying its workforce.

From 2022 to 2025, the percentage of staff of color increased from 23.4% to 26.6%, representing a 13.6% relative increase. This growth outpaced the 1.2% rise in student diversity over the same period (from 73.1% to 74%.)

While a meaningful gap between students and staff remains, the consistent year-over-year gains point to targeted and effective strategies in recruitment, retention and leadership development. The accelerated pace of staff diversification reflects a systemwide commitment to building a workforce that more closely mirrors the students it serves — and to fostering a more inclusive, representative educational and working environment across all schools and departments.

From 2022 to 2025, WPS has seen a dramatic decline in district-level staff grievances — from 32 in 2022-23, to 12 in 2023-24 to just four in 2024-25. This 88% reduction is a powerful testament to the district's improved responsiveness, increased trust between labor and management, and the intentional focus on early resolution.

The administration has prioritized transparency, accountability and collaboration — resulting in more proactive issue resolution and fewer formal disputes. Leaders are resolving concerns at the school or department level more effectively, and union partnerships have strengthened through consistent communication and shared problem-solving.

This trend underscores a healthier labor-management climate and a cultural shift toward addressing issues constructively and equitably — ultimately benefitting staff morale, operational continuity, and the overall well-being of our schools.

From 2022-2025, the cost of placing staff members on administrative leave dropped by a significant $780,000 (from $934,167 in 2022-23 to $153,750 in 2024-25).

This cost reduction was the result of shortening the duration of employees who are placed on administrative leave by ensuring internal investigations are conducted promptly for the benefit of both the impacted employees and the district.

Ask the Superintendent Video & Podcast

Leadership Team

Evening of Innovation Awards

FAQs About Federal Actions

Messages from Monárrez: Weekly Updates

Strategic Plan: Our Promise 2023-2028

Superintendent's Evaluation Documents 2023-24

Superintendent's Evaluation Documents 2022-23