ALLENTOWN, Pa. - Allentown School District recently took on its sixth leader in 12 years with the appointment of the city’s newest acting school superintendent, Carol Birks.
On Tuesday, Birks joined Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk for a community conversation focused on her new role as the head of schools and how she plans to address a number of issues—including that the NAACP has called for the state to take over control of the district.
- Allentown's new acting school superintendent is focused on building partnerships throughout the community to support students
- Birks hopes to address issues of violence in the city's schools with coordination of the police and efforts aimed at the social and emotional wellness of students
- The new superintendent also plans transparency in response to calls for the state to take over the district
The event was held by LehighValleyNews.com and PBS39 at Miller Symphony Hall in Allentown.
And for the most part, Birks—who has been on the job less than two weeks—said she is focused on building and strengthening partnerships throughout the community.
“We are in service to the community,” Birks said of stepping into the role.
Birks hopes to be a "fierce advocate” for students and, already, in meeting students and parents, said she believes that many feel their voices aren’t being heard by the district.
To combat that, Birks promised open office hours to allow members of the community to voice concerns directly to her and to provide ways for the community to contact her on the district’s website.
Birks also wants to hold meetings outside of school district buildings—she suggested barbershops and hair salons—to meet people where they are and engage in conversations with the community.
“I want the community and families to see that I am part of the community,” she said.
And, although the two only recently met, Tuerk said he believes Birks is compassionate, capable and has the students' best interests in mind.
“In a lot of respects, this is the toughest job in the Lehigh Valley,” Tuerk joking said about the role of school superintendent.
During the evening, Tuerk and Birks fielded questions from audience members. They were confronted with the fact that the school board appointed her to the post after the controversial departure of former Superintendent John Stanford.
Some wondered whether she might feel a need to continue his work.
“We are focused on the future and not what Dr. Birks will do differently than the other superintendent,” the mayor answered.
Yet Birks said she hopes to build on successes of the past and is looking into creating a task force of parents and community partners to help “move the district forward.”
Birks and Tuerk also were questioned about recent violent incidents involving students. For example, in September, a 16-year-old was charged with first-degree homicide in the shooting death of a William Allen High School student in the city's Stevens Park.
“I want the community and families to see that I am part of the community."Carol Birks, acting superintendent of the Allentown School District
The victim, Treshawn Tracy, was a member of Allen's junior varsity football team.
That incident came just weeks after a 14-year-old student was arrested with a loaded semi-automatic handgun inside the school.
Birks responded that she already has met with Allentown Police Chief Charles Roca to discuss some of these concerns.
But she also noted that she hopes to implement programs that will focus on “the whole child,” saying students need to have outlets for emotional and social wellness in response to trauma.
“We can’t over-police our schools," she said. "We have to change the narrative.”
And, when asked to address the NAACP’s call for state takeover of the district and a 30-year audit, Birks noted the group has long been a partner of the district and she hopes to address their concerns directly.
“We have a great opportunity, here in the district, to be more transparent,” she said.
For example, Birks plans to make audits of the district more readily available on the district’s website.
The event was moderated by LehighValleyNews.com News Director Jen Rehill and education reporter Sarah Mueller.
LehighValley+ members are able to live stream the event exclusively on LehighValleyNews.com, and the public can watch the full broadcast at 7 p.m. Friday on PBS39.
