TAUNTON – Superintendent John Cabral announces that Director of Student Services and Transportation Kathy Perry will retire at the end of the 2021-2022 school year after a nearly 30-year career with Taunton Public Schools.
“For nearly thirty years, Kathy has been a fixture in the Taunton Public Schools community, having positively impacted the lives of thousands of students over the years,” Superintendent Cabral said. “She has always been a champion for our students and a leader among our faculty and staff. She will be greatly missed by students, staff and families and we wish her the best for her well-deserved retirement.
Director Perry began her career as a first-grade teacher at Mashpee. After seven years at Mashpee, Perry joined Taunton Public Schools in 1996 as an elementary and middle school reading teacher.
During his professional career at Taunton, Perry embraced a wide range of building, grade and administrative duties which included teaching at the elementary and middle levels, coaching teachers in effective reading strategies throughout the district and the position of Deputy Director. at the former Maxham Elementary School and as Principal of Benjamin Friedman Middle School.
In August 2018, she joined the Central Office leadership team as Director of Student Services, Transportation, and Title IX Coordinator. As director of student services, transportation, and Title IX coordinator, Perry was responsible for all transportation needs in the district; respond to student/parent concerns or issues; supervising student plans, attendance, and discipline; coordinate district training and more.
As part of her role, she has also worked with numerous community organizations, including the YMCA and the Boys and Girls Club, and managed numerous staffing teams, including all PreK-12 orientation staff, community animators and more.
Outside of schools, Perry is heavily involved in the Greater Taunton community. She is a member of the Taunton Opiates Task Force, the Taunton Chapter of Children at Drug Risk and the Institute for Social, Emotional and Mental Health Learning in the Department of Primary and Secondary Education.
Perry has also worked as an assistant professor at American International College and a consultant to other school districts interested in improving students’ writing skills.
She earned her bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education and a master’s degree in K-12 Reading Counseling from Bridgewater State University and holds numerous professional certificates.
Perry will officially retire on June 30, 2022.
In light of her retirement, information on the district’s new Director of Student Services and Transportation will be shared as it becomes available.
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