It is my great pleasure to announce that after a long process of an extensive search, which began in early May of 2022, and an interview process comprised of staff, district leadership and a member of the Board of Trustees, Ms. Hali Castleman has been appointed as Principal of LFDCS. She will assume this role starting January 3, 2023 upon her return from family leave. There will be a transition period during November-December to facilitate a seamless change over in January.

Ms. Castleman began her career at LFDCS twelve years ago as an ESL teacher. She also served as the Response to Intervention (RTI)^[1] Coordinator/English Language Learner (ELL)^[2] Coordinator for grades K1-8. Through her efforts, she identified at-risk students and designed personalized interventions and supports for students. For the past four years, she led the Lower School as its Head of School/ELL Coordinator. She has a strong grasp of blended learning and technology integration to support planning, instruction and professional development.

Ms. Castleman is certified as a Principal and has a Bachelor's degree in Psychology, a Master's degree in Curriculum and Teaching and is also fluent in Spanish. Her work has been recognized throughout the country by presenting at school conferences in Massachusetts, Georgia and the National Charter School Conference in Washington, DC. The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education recently asked her to conduct a statewide professional development program on best practices to make hands-on learning more effective for ELL students.

Ms. Castleman's vision for extending learning opportunities through an interdisciplinary approach and using blended learning and project-based methodology further solidifies that she is the right leader to advance the great work of teachers and staff at LFDCS. Her commitment to parent engagement exemplifies the mission of LFDCS and her commitment to the school is driven by her belief that all children are entitled to an excellent education regardless of where they live.

Please join me in congratulating Ms. Castleman as she assumes the responsibility of our next Principal of LFDCS. We wish Ms. Castleman the very best and look forward to her leadership.

[1] RTI is a methodology for making sure students who are behind grade level receive proper interventions