LYNN — After interviewing five candidates for the position this week, the district has decided that Molly Cohen will be Lynn Public Schools’ newest deputy superintendent.
In the more than 20 years Cohen spent serving as an educator in Lynn, she held numerous leadership positions, serving as interim deputy superintendent for a year following Secretary of Education Patrick Tutwiler’s resignation from his position as superintendent in 2022.
From 2015 until 2022, Cohen served as principal at Marshall Middle School. She currently serves as LPS’s interim executive director of curriculum and instruction.
“I jumped at that opportunity because I wanted to learn more about how we prioritize our budget spending and how that will connect directly to our core values and our priorities. I wanted to work with the curriculum and instruction team here. They’re very passionate about their work and are entirely student-centered and school-centered,” Cohen said.
Cohen began her career in education working as an English teacher in Chile 25 years ago. She said she fell in love with teaching during that time and took a job teaching at the English as a Second Language Institute for Adults in Boston.
After leaving Boston, Cohen began her career in the public school system, working as a teacher at Salem High School. As a Nahant native, Cohen was excited to later move to Lynn, where she began teaching as a Sheltered English Immersion teacher for English Language Arts at Lynn Tech. She also offered professional development in the sheltered instruction observation Protocol course and race equity book talks.
“What I love about Lynn and what has kept me in Lynn is the people,” Cohen said.
Cohen later became a bilingual guidance counselor at Lynn English High School, where she served as co-chair of the Accreditation Steering Committee before becoming a vice principal at Breed Middle School.
When asked about her priorities for the district, Cohen said she wanted to assist LPS with its goal of enhancing student-teacher relationships and growing opportunities for Lynn’s diverse student body.
“Our biggest priority right now is developing an inclusive instructional design,” Cohen said. “We are elevating the professional development of our educators by supporting all learners. We have many diverse learners, and by building scaffolding for the students, they can access rigorous grade-level material and content. That requires building efficacy for the teachers in how they teach diverse students. For the students, there’s a sense of well-being that comes with accomplishing high-level rigorous learning.”
Cohen will be replacing Deputy Superintendent Kimerlee Powers, who will retire at the end of the school year. After a transition period in the spring, Cohen will serve alongside Deputy Superintendents Deb Ruggiero and Maricel Goris next year.
“I’m privileged to work alongside the great educators and collaborators in Lynn. I really do believe that the future of Lynn is bright and that the collaboration between our community partners, our teachers, our families, and our district leaders is what will lead us forward into the future,” Cohen said.
