North Adams Public Schools -

After almost nine years heading one of the largest school districts in Berkshire County, Dr. Barbara Malkas is calling it a career.

“When I took this contract, I had notified school committee that this would be my last contract, mainly because I'm hitting a significant birthday, and I will be maxing out my retirement benefit, and so it's time – chronologically, it's time – but also it's a really good time for the transition, because there are certain initiatives that are that have been in play in the district, and this is a good time within those different processes to be able to hand it over to someone who's going to bring some fresh energy and take it to the next level,” said the superintendent.

On top of the day-to-day running a district with over 1,200 students, Malkas was faced with the unique disruption of the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020.

Her decision to leave comes after helping to shepherd a plan for a new $65 million school building after a tight vote in October.

“I'm proud of the body of work that has been accomplished," Malkas told WAMC. "We've now really institutionalized some shared leadership structures with regards to district leadership and then instructional leadership and student support leadership at the school levels, we have really expanded our early education programs, particularly through the Comprehensive Preschool Partnership Initiative, and partnered with both Head Start and Childcare of the Berkshires in really being a providing a high-quality early childhood experience.”

Malkas says her successor will have to face major questions.

“Regionally, there will need to be a reckoning with respect to whether or not we're going to holistically try to attract new families into the region, but that also triggers other related issues around transportation and housing and employment, or we're going to have that reckoning with regards to increasing opportunities for shared service and regionalization,” she said.

Another question concerns how the second Trump term will impact the district.

“There are funds that are allocated towards specific populations, particularly low-income students, and where that goes in the next four years is of great concern," said Malkas. "And then for North Adams, particularly, the next superintendent will be entering into the construction phase of a very long process and project for building the new elementary school, and so really having to think about facilities as foundational to education, but really making the best use of those facilities in terms of bringing the educational vision to reality."

North Adams Mayor Jennifer Macksey chairs the school committee.

“First off, it's a tremendous loss for us," she told WAMC. "Barbara has been a great superintendent, a great leader throughout Berkshire County, and, most importantly, a great leader for the city of North Adams, to our school system.”

With Malkas’s departure date set for the end of June 2025, Macksey says the effort to replace her will kick off early next year.

“At our last meeting, we met with a consultant from [Massachusetts Association of School Committees], and the school committee in December will decide what kind of search we want, which will really boil down to, do we need to hire a consultant or are we going to do it internally?" explained the mayor. "And from there we will set dates and goals, but our hope is we will have someone you know on board, maybe in the last few months of Barbara's tenure to do some cross training, but the school committee has yet to determine the exact steps that we will take. We will do that at our December meeting.”

The mayor promises an open and transparent search process.

“We will include family members, staff, administrators, everyone across our stakeholder group," Macksey told WAMC. "And this is a time to continue to move North Adams forward, and that's what we will do. At this juncture, what exactly the process is, we, I can't define that as it's a school committee decision in December. But, of course, I'll put my two cents in on what I want. But I think everybody should rest assure that we will attempt to hire the best, most qualified individual for the position, and the North Adams school system will continue to move forward.”

Malkas says she’s exploring a return to teaching in a social-emotional learning master's degree program with Breathe For Change in retirement.