Amy Rex
I am an educational leader who is passionately committed to learning that encompasses equity and excellence for all students, the collective capacity of the professional staff, and my own growth and development as an educator. I am also passionately committed to a shared model of leadership; one that includes teachers, the voices of students, and provides opportunities for each member to develop his/her own leadership skills in authentic and meaningful ways.
I believe that a school district is a learning organization, and the educational system is built on the tenets of rigor, relevance, relationships, and shared responsibility. Students are at the center and are empowered to take ownership of their learning and future while being supported by collaborative, symbiotic partnerships with all stakeholders.
I am also passionately committed to the cultural and physical landscape of Vermont which at times seems to be one of the same – formidable courage and perseverance, tranquil beauty, and stoic humor drawn together by a common experience and appreciation for community. It is the cornerstone of Vermont's public education.
I grew up in Foxboro, Massachusetts in the 1970s. I was the youngest of six and my parents were educators on different paths – one a school nurse, the other a high school principal, and both were committed to the well-being of all children regardless of learner profile, race, origin, or socioeconomic status. They both held the belief that every child had the inalienable right to proper health care, a quality education, and enriching extracurricular experiences. And although I never heard them ‘speak their creed’, their actions over the course of my development, spoke volumes. Subsequently, these actions influenced my passion and commitment to equity and excellence in education; a passion I hope to instill in my own two children as well as all the children I serve.
My career in education began in a residential program for adolescent boys in need of intensive academic and social/emotional support. I then taught middle school social studies for 10 years at Lamoille Union Middle School in Vermont where I was also a team leader.
In 2009, I accepted my first leadership position as principal for the Danville School, a K-12 rural Vermont school. Partial to serving adolescents, in 2012, I accepted a position as Co-principal at Harwood Union Middle and High School in Duxbury, Vermont. After five years of incredibly rewarding work focused on creating a system of personalized learning, I took a one-year hiatus and returned to Massachusetts. During this time, as a principal in the Berkshires, I was able to visit more regularly with my elderly parents while reflecting on the next phase of my career stage, and this drew me to the superintendency.
I received my Bachelor of Arts from the University of MA, Amherst, and my Masters in Educational Leadership from the University of Vermont. I also attended the Vermont Snelling Leadership Institute and the Vermont Superintendent’s Academy. As a Principal, I maintained my own ‘blog-folio’, but have decided to archive this work and replace it with an electronic platform dedicated to my work here at the Milton Town School District.
I continue to learn and be active professionally connecting and serving via regional and state networks like the Vermont Superintendents Association and the Vermont School Boards Association as well as New England and National organizations like the Nellie Mae Foundation, the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, and AASA - School Superintendents Association. I continue to learn every day - from faculty/staff and students, community, and through professional networks and relevant courses in the field of education, policy, and administration.
I am honored to be the Milton Town School District superintendent. In my eyes, Milton reflects the values of Vermont to which I have grown so attached. My early visit highlighted a community of genuine, hard-working, and caring people; I felt very connected. I am excited to learn every day from my faculty and staff, students, parents, and community. It feels like a natural fit, and I look forward to my service to Milton in the role of superintendent.