BPS Superintendent Finalist Mary Skipper Faces Public Community Partner Panel in Boston

BOSTON — July 20, 2026 — Boston superintendent finalist Mary Skipper faced a public community partner panel Monday as part of the Boston Public Schools superintendent search. Mary Skipper, Superintendent of Somerville Public Schools, and Dr. Tommy Welch, Region 1 School Superintendent at Boston Public Schools, are the two remaining finalists after the search committee began with 34 candidates in March, narrowed the field to eight, and on June 16 voted to advance finalists to the School Committee. The panel, moderated by Jose Valenzuela of Beat the Streets New England and Boston Latin Academy, featured seven community panelists from organizations including Edvestors, Benjamin Franklin Cummings Institute of Technology, Youth Guidance Boston, and the Boston Centers for Youth and Families. Skipper cited a drop in BPS high school dropout rates from roughly 7 percent to below 2 percent during her time leading the BPS high school network, and described building her Somerville leadership team from nearly all white to between one-third and one-half educators of color through a deliberate pipeline program. Technical difficulties forced the session to restart approximately 30 minutes late; a School Committee interview with Skipper followed the same evening from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.