Saugus special ed administrator Joyce announces intent to retire

SAUGUS – Cynthia Joyce, executive director of pupil personnel and special education for Saugus schools, will be retiring at the end of July, four years after taking over the position.?I?ve been thinking about it for a few months,” said Joyce. “One of the biggest things is that I live in western Massachusetts and it?s been kind of a hard commute. I?ve been in Saugus for four years which is a huge thing because I?ve never even left my hometown.”Joyce, who hails from Holyoke, said she made up her mind in December, but noted she doesn?t want to ever be “fully retired.”?I?m looking for other opportunities for maybe a 40-hour week, which for me would be retired,” said Joyce, who?ll get to spend more time with her twin 2-year-old granddaughters.Joyce said her proudest accomplishment in Saugus was providing students with severe disabilities a high quality-learning program that allowed them to stay in their home district.?Watching them grow has been a really moving experience for me,” said Joyce. “It?s a very wide range of disabilities that we provide services for. When I came to Saugus, there were a few classrooms for kids with disabilities with no plan for inclusion. They were also staffed by teachers that weren?t licensed. That just wasn?t acceptable to us.”Joyce, who was brought on at the same time as Superintendent Richard Langlois, said she and Langlois set out to find “highly qualified” staff and visited surrounding communities and spoke with countless parents to see what Saugus could do to provide for their kids.?Families were requesting out-of-district placements ? so we kind of went there incognito to try to figure out why they were so attractive to families,” said Joyce. “We were able to develop these programs and we felt comfortable and confident to suggest to families that they would consider bringing their child back to Saugus. Our goal is to keep them here in the district and we?ve done that.”Joyce started her career in special education 36 years ago after graduating with a master?s in Special Education Administration from Westfield State College. Special education was a new field back then, said Joyce. But she said huge strides have been made since then, especially in Saugus.?When I talked to parents and said, “What do you want for you child?? I had answers like, ?I want to hear my son?s voice,? ?I?d like to have my child toilet trained,?” said Joyce. “Every one of those parents are now experiencing those milestones for their kids.When I see that happen it?s just the most rewarding experience of my career.”School Committee Chairman Wendy Reed said Joyce was key to rebuilding the district?s special education program.?She was a magnificent choice ? because she brought services back in-house,” said Reed. “That was great for the system. Just look at the programs we?ve developed. Before she came we had just started an autistic program, and that has spread now from pre-kindergarten all the way to the 12th grade.”Joyce, whose expertise ranges from civil rights issues, to English Language Learning, psychology services and nursing, attributed much of the progress made in Saugus to Langlois, who?s support she said has been “critical” over the years.?We have a great team he and I,” said Joyce. “I?m just really thankful for the experience to work with a great superintendent who has given me the opportunity to do those things.”Joyce also said she?s going to miss the four secretaries she?s worked with over the last four years: Joyce Pantano, Jan Pfeil, Jill Nichols and Robin Kelleher.?I have four of the finest, greatest secretaries that anyone could have,” said Joyce. “They make the work that goes on in Saugus unbelievably great. They?ve been magnificent. They?ve been my family 125 miles away and probably the reason I survived.”Matt Tempesta can be reached at [email protected].