Super Says Pittsfield Schools in 'Turnaround'
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — While the Pittsfield Public Schools are not formally identified as a turnaround district, interim Superintendent Latifah Phillips has declared it as such.
Two-thirds of Pittsfield schools need focused or targeted assistance, according to 2025 accountability data from the Department of Secondary and Elementary Education. The district's suspension rate is also four times the state average, and principals don't find their jobs manageable.
"We are a district in turnaround, and, no, we have not received a district designation identifying us as that, but I am naming us as that in looking at our data," Phillips said during last week's School Committee meeting.
The administration will present a draft fiscal year 2027 budget on March 11, and has been focused on equitably distributing resources based on need while bridging a $4 million funding gap without layoffs.
In Massachusetts, a turnaround district is a school district designated as underperforming or chronically underperforming (Level 4 or 5) by DESE because of sustained low student performance on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System exams. Pittsfield has seven schools performing in the bottom quartile of the commonwealth, including both middle and high schools:
- Crosby Elementary School
- Conte Community School
- Morningside Community School
- Reid Middle School / Herberg Middle School
- Taconic High School
- Pittsfield High School
Crosby, Conte, and Morningside have between 5 and 7 percent accountability scores, indicating that between 93 and 95 percent of state elementary schools are performing higher. On the other hand, five elementary schools were identified as high growth and moving toward high achievement: Allendale, Capeless, Egremont, Stearns, and Williams.
In 2024, Williams was designated as a National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education.
"I share this because when you look at how we are distributing funding, we're acknowledging that some schools may need more than others in order for us to bring everyone up," Phillips explained.
For 2025, DESE has the district listed as "not requiring assistance or intervention" or an overall classification because the district is making "moderate progress towards targets."
Phillips was appointed to lead the district last summer and has been gathering data to measure its current conditions and what can be done to improve student and staff experience. She shared her initial findings about PPS in advance of the budget discussion, explaining that it follows the same strategy.
During this process, zero percent of principals reported their role as manageable. This results in high turnover and schools that are always in flux, she said.
Teachers also reported being "heavily impacted" by a high volume of behavioral incidents and a lack of specialized support. PPS has one of the highest suspension rates in Massachusetts, and students with disabilities account for 50 percent of suspensions.
Interim Special Education Director Melissa Brites gave a presentation on the department during the meeting. Pittsfield was identified as having disproportionate suspension data, especially for students with disabilities, and submitted documentation around its policies, procedures, and practices in October.
"I'm really happy to announce that when we got our findings back in early January, in early February, that we were 100 percent compliant with all of our practices policies around student discipline," she reported.
"So, although we still find that we have some disproportionate data, we have really strong practices in writing and as part of our documentation that can help drive those improvements. We have no further action to take, other than to really work on our suspension rate."
Phillips shared the district values that attracted her to the position: Pittsfield's vision to create a supportive, equitable, and challenging learning environment where all students experience joy and learning while becoming intellectually, emotionally, and socially ready to succeed through graduation and beyond.
Pittsfield is seeking up to 80 percent reimbursement from the Massachusetts Schools Building Authority to rebuild and consolidate John C. Crosby Elementary and Silvio O. Conte Community School on the Crosby property.
Running alongside the building effort is the middle school restructuring, which will send Grades 5-6 to Herberg and Grades 7-8 to Reid.
Phillips emphasized the need for community engagement during this time.
"We cannot turn it around by ourselves. We need to do it in partnership and relationship with families and the community," she said.
"We definitely are supporting family resources in our turnaround schools, but the question is, how do we embed that into the system as a value and as a priority?"
Tags: MCAS, Pittsfield Public Schools,
