To the editor:
To date, 2025 has been a year of great success for Lynnfield Public Schools, and as Thanksgiving approaches, I wanted to take an opportunity to reflect, give thanks for our supportive community, district leadership, and educators, and share with the community the progress that the district has made over the past year.
In June, the Town passed budget measures that have provided our schools the resources needed to continue the educational excellence that our town has always prided itself on. This support was a signal to both our staff and our families that Lynnfield values student achievement, strong school culture, and the talented educators that are the backbone of our students’ experience and success.
The School rating service Niche has just released its 2026 Best School Districts in Massachusetts rankings. Niche, a nationally respected and often cited rating service, has ranked the Lynnfield School district among the top 10% of the 236 districts rated in our state. According to Niche, their ranking is based on rigorous analysis of key statistics including state test scores, college readiness, graduation rates and teacher quality.
Even given our overall successes, our dedicated educators spend an incredible amount of time poring over results to inform curriculum. I am consistently impressed by the way our administrative leadership team identifies areas of opportunity and presents proactive plans for improving the students’ experience.
This year, the school department is in a strong financial position moving forward, thanks to excellent and thoughtful management by our Superintendent and his team. The leadership team, many of them relatively new to the district or new to these positions within the district, have helped set a course for progress and student success. I am thankful for their strong and thoughtful leadership, excellent collaboration, fresh eyes and perspective, and their focus on creating a unified educational experience for every student in our district, from pre-K to grade 12.
As a parent with three children in the district, I have the opportunity to see firsthand what is happening inside our schools. The emphasis on core values, belonging, and citizenship has been clear in both what our students are seeing in the classroom and within the information that is sent home to caregivers. Our superintendent’s school culture goal will allow the community a glimpse into these initiatives throughout the year, all part of a larger effort to ensure that the student experience is marked by a focus on empathy, kindness, citizenship, and the ability to better understand one another and the world around us.
I am continuously amazed by the positive improvements that our school leadership and educators — with the crucial support of the community — have been able to implement. I hope you will follow along as the district’s Strategic Plan takes shape this year and provides us with a clear vision for our schools’ immediate future. There is much more in store for the Lynnfield school community as we continue to move forward.
The opinions expressed in this letter are Elworthy’s alone and do not reflect the opinions of the School Committee.
Sincerely,
Kristen Elworthy
Chair, Lynnfield School Committee
