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Jane S. Hirschi, founder of the educational nonprofit CitySprouts and parent of two former Cambridge Public Schools students, is running for School Committee to push for a more widespread adoption of project-based learning in Cambridge classrooms.
Hirschi, who has lived in Cambridge since 1993 and seen both her daughters attend CPS from preschool through high school, launched the CitySprouts program 25 years ago. The nonprofit has built gardens in all of the district’s elementary schools, which they use to teach students about ecology and hands-on science skills.
Hirschi stepped down from leading CitySprouts in 2023, but said her experience partnering with teachers to offer project-based curricula to students across the district has taught her what classrooms need to thrive.
“I love our Cambridge Public Schools, and I feel like I’ve got the skills and the experience and desire to make them better, protect the things that I think are important in our schools, and to work on some of the issues that I think keep them from being as good as they could be,” she said.
Hirschi was endorsed by the Cambridge Education Association — the union representing teachers and staff in the district — and said that the School Committee must do a better job taking educator opinions into account.
“I think that teachers really need to have a say and how our policies are being enacted, how they’re going, on what they see is the gaps,” Hirschi said.
Hirschi also criticized the district’s recent superintendent search for its lack of transparency, and said the district must do a better job communicating with local stakeholders.
The search received extensive backlash from educators, parents, and some current School Committee members for lacking transparency and public engagement. In August, the CEA released a scathing statement calling for the process to be restarted, a demand that has been echoed by many of the challengers.
“There’s a lot of information shared with parents,” she said. “Sometimes it feels like it’s not a coordinated effort or intentional communication.”
“I think sharing the processes or the outlines, sharing the dates and expected times when things will happen — that sounds so basic, but sometimes that’s missing, and that’s frustrating,” she added.
Hirschi also said she would like to see CPS better incorporate strategies such as project-based learning and differential instruction, a teaching approach that personalizes learning to individual needs, into their curriculums.
“Project-based learning is a really, really important strategy for kids of all different abilities to learn the content and skills that they need to learn,” Hirschi said.
She added that differentiated instruction could help address achievement gaps, especially in a district like Cambridge that hosts students of a “wide range of academic abilities in each grade, life experiences, background knowledge.”
“We need to make differentiated instruction work better in our school district, and not move away from it to separated classrooms, or classrooms for advanced learners and kids at grade level, and kids struggling to master grade level,” she said.
Hirschi said that achievement gaps are “at least one of the most important issues” currently facing CPS.
Gaps in achievement between demographic groups have been a central issue driving many candidates in this year’s race — data released last month revealed a widening gap in standardized test scores between Black and white students in the district.
“It’s connected to the social, emotional well-being of our students, of families trusting our schools, of teachers having the resources and the support that they need,” she said. “It’s not just about the test scores, but I think the test scores are indicative of things that are missing.”
“Let’s figure out how we can close those equity gaps,” she said.
—Staff writer Ayaan Ahmad can be reached at ayaan.ahmad@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @AyaanAhmad2024.
