Superintendent Update

Dear Bedford Public School Community,

Today, the Lane School thanked local veterans in a wonderful ceremony on the morning of November 9, 2023. Thank you to all of the Lane staff and students who created such a welcoming environment, to the high school chorus and others who shared music and words (including Colonel Michael McGinley, parent of a BPS students), and especially to our veterans. Due to the Veterans Day holiday, this is an abbreviated and early (Thursday) update, with a reminder to join me for Coffee & Cocoa Chats with Cliff (note some updates on the HAFB and Boston chats), and a reflection from one of our alums/staff for Native American Heritage month.

Sincerely,

Cliff Chuang 莊 宏 毅

Superintendent, Bedford Public Schools

• November is Native American Heritage Month
• November 10, 2023: NO SCHOOL - Veterans Day
• November 11, 2023: Town of Bedford Veterans Day Service at Noon
• November 12, 2023: Diwali
• November 14, 2023: School Committee Meeting
• November 13, 2023: Coffee & Cocoa Chats with Cliff at 7:30 am, Superintendent's Office
• November 16, 2023: Coffee & Cocoa Chats with Cliff at 7:00 pm, HAFB
• November 17, 2023: Coffee & Cocoa Chats with Cliff at 10:00 am, Bedford Plaza Hotel
• November 22, 2023: Early Dismissal
• November 23, 2023: Thanksgiving
• November 24, 2023: NO SCHOOL - Thanksgiving Break
• November 28, 2023: School Committee Meeting

I will be hosting a final series of community engagement events as I enter the last month of Phase 1 of my Entry Plan, which will be Coffee & Cocoa Chats with Cliff (CCCC). These will be both in-person (here in Bedford, in Boston, and at HAFB) as well as virtual (though you'll have to bring your own beverages for those...). For dates with full details, plus for communication purposes, please register here, though drop-ins are also welcome. Talk to you soon!

My family grew up in Bedford, Massachusetts. There were the 5 Fox Tree-McGrath children.

We were very well known for our long last names and also as the “Native American family that

did the drumming at school every year.” My mother was determined to share and educate others

about our culture back when we were going through Bedford Public Schools, as she is now

through her various social justice work. We are Indigenous to what is now known as “the

Americas,” but from the Caribbean, not the United States. Growing up here, though, people just

said, “Native American,” but now they say, “Indigenous.”

Growing up multi-racial was hard for me due to the fact I am white passing and I felt like I had

to prove my authenticity as an Indigenous person to everyone. I was relentlessly asked questions

like, “But, what are you reeeeaally?” Once I said, “I am Native American,” those questions

became stereotypical and personal, “Do you get to college for free? How much Native are you?

Do you do this dancing as a hobby?” It would only be when people saw my mother or

grandfather that I would get the “OOOOHH you are Native…” Or “No way! THAT is your

mother (or grandfather).” This was from both peers and teachers. My own words were not

enough and I was constantly questioned. Questions were related to stereotypes because most

people know so little about the history of the country where they live that they make a lot of

assumptions. We don’t ask someone how much Jewish or Christian they are, but everyone wants

to know how much “native” someone is, and that’s a personal and inappropriate question.

Then I found art. Art was a huge outlet for me to express my identity and struggle in a way that

empowered me through what I was creating. I did not have that much access to art until high

school, but my grandfather and mother were artists, so they always had supplies and encouraged

art at home. After a lot of encouragement and mentoring from my high school art teacher, Katie

Sussman, I then realized I wanted to pursue art in college. I then went on to earn my degree in

Studio Art while also playing college lacrosse at Framingham State University. I grew so much

as a person and artist there. I found an awesome community in their Center for Inclusive

Excellence who helped me feel more confident in being multi-racial and an activist on/off of

campus. My lacrosse team was amazing and helped me grow in my leadership skills. They also

always supported me in my Native American presentations I did on campus and often joined me

at my holidays and Pow Wows throughout my years there. I then returned to Bedford as a

Teaching Assistant and lacrosse coach as I was deciding on whether or not I wanted to pursue

my Master’s degree in Art Education.

Eventually, I did pursue Art Education, and by 2022 I was serving as a long term substitute art

teacher at JGMS for an entire year. During that first year, I had a variety of projects that I

introduced with BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) artists as inspiration. I felt like I

wanted to provide a diverse curriculum that reflected multiple students’ identities or at least start

to think about how identity and art are related. I found that it made my students' art feel more

important to them. I even included a project for my 8th graders that was introduced with a lesson

about the Equinoxes and the Solstices because those are the observances/ holidays my family and

I grew up celebrating. Although I have recently moved on to teaching in another district I still

stay connected to the Bedford community by coaching high school girls lacrosse and middle

school field hockey.

Thank you,

Indigo Fox Tree-McGrath

Bedford Public Schools, Student/Teacher, Alumni