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The Superintendent is supported by a seven-member Cabinet or Leadership Team.
Dr. Aaron T. Jennings, Chief of Staff
Before joining CPS, Dr. Jennings was the Vice President of Education and Impact for a national EdTech startup where he provided thought leadership and K12 technical expertise on chronic absenteeism, the whole child approach, and the Multi-Tiered System of Supports. He brings experience working on behalf of students and families in New Jersey, Washington DC, Missouri, Virginia, and Massachusetts. In his CPS role, Dr. Jennings leads capacity building for schools and departments to develop and consistently implement equitable and inclusive policies and practices across the school district. Dr. Jennings received his Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies and Government from the University of Virginia, Masters of Social Work from Washington University in St. Louis and Doctorate of Education Leadership from Harvard University. In his spare time, Dr. Jennings loves building and deepening new relationships with Chelsea students, families, and community members.Dr. Tamara Blake-Canty, Assistant Superintendent for Teaching and Learning
Dr. Tamara Blake-Canty served as a principal of an elementary school in the Boston Public Schools and a middle school principal in the City of Cambridge. Under her leadership, her school improved from an underperforming school to a high performing school becoming a “gem” in the Boston Public Schools. Dr. Blake-Canty worked with Dr. Maria Brisk (Boston College professor and Former Chair of the Lynch School of Education) for over a decade with improving the academic performance of second language learners using Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL). They also presented their work at conferences throughout the country. Most recently, Dr. Blake-Canty worked in Chelsea Public Schools (CPS) as the Literacy and Humanities Coordinator 5-12. Dr. Blake-Canty obtained her doctorate from the University of Massachusetts, Boston. She has also garnered a CAGS in Urban Leadership from the University of Massachusetts, Boston in 2008. She holds a master’s degree in Urban Education from Wheelock College in Boston and an undergraduate degree in Child Psychology from Emmanuel College.
Michelle Martinello, Assistant Superintendent of Schools
Prior to her Assistant Superintendency, Ms. Michelle Martinello served as the Principal of the Eugene Wright Middle School from 2015-2024. As a part of the Wright team, she led many initiatives that helped contribute to the school’s growth both academically and culturally. She leads by centering relationships and connections in her work, truly valuing every student and staff member’s “name, strength, and story.” Prior to the Wright principalship, Ms. Martinello served as the Assistant Principal, Math Coach, Math Interventionist, and 6th grade teacher. Her tenure at Chelsea Public Schools spans 20 years,19 of them at the Wright, and her first year at the Clark Avenue School. Michelle earned her Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education and Master of Arts in Teaching Middle School Mathematics from Salem State University. In 2014 she completed a fellowship with The National Institute of School Leadership (NISL) and is currently an Influence 100 fellow.
Christine Lee, Director of Human Resources
Prior to working with CPS, Christine was a Human Capital Manager at Boston Public Schools working with all high school leaders on staffing related matters. Her work included performance management and talent management support for school leaders, developing hiring and retention strategies, onboarding employees, and providing guidance around personnel matters. Christine was formerly a middle school science teacher working to deepen her students’ curiosity and understanding of the world around them. Christine began her professional career as a paralegal at Cravath, Swaine, and Moore LLP. Christine earned her M.Ed. from Harvard Graduate School of Education, teaching certification from the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education, and her B.A. from Smith College. She enjoys playing tennis, skiing, traveling, and volunteering in the community.
Billie Jo Turner, Chief of Finance and Operations
Billie Jo Turner has over 24+ years of financial and operational management including accounting, payroll, purchasing, human resources, grant management, transportation, food service, facilities and risk management. She began her career in school finance in 1998 when she took on the role of Budget Analyst for Lowell Public Schools. After serving for almost 13 years in various roles within LPS, she left to serve as a CFO in both charter and regional school districts. She understands the fine balance between building relationships while ensuring accountability to effectively lead. She has gone through several pivotal periods during her career including the financial management of Ed Reform, 2000 conversion, navigating a pandemic while managing the finances during a tumultuous period and the implementation of Fair Student Funding. Most recently, she was the Chief Financial Officer for Lowell Public Schools. She holds a BA from the University of Massachusetts Lowell in Accounting and a Masters in Education from Cambridge College.
Malik Howshan, Officer of Innovation, Access, and Opportunity
Malik came to Chelsea during the summer of 2021 overseeing our extended learning programming. He arrived from Methuen, having plied his trade by successfully designing and overseeing Methuen High School's multiple "Alternative Ed" programs. He came with a breadth of knowledge in regards to extended day programming, grants, pathway designs, and knowing how best to support the needs of our students and families as they work toward graduating college and career ready. Since joining CPS, Malik has overseen all of CPS' after school, vacation school, and summer school programming, as well as building a growing network of local, non-profit, and university partners. In the two years since Malik joined Chelsea, he has built and reimagined all of CPS' extended learning programming. He has centralized and streamlined all of the operations for extended learning, creating a robust and equitable extended learning program for every school across the district, and has been driven to put together an enrichment program that supports the wants and needs of ALL of our students.
Michael Sullivan, Communication Director
Michael arrives at Chelsea Public Schools after serving as the Assistant Athletic Director for Communications at Merrimack College. He brings a diverse background of skill sets to the position including media relations, social media management, content creation and public relations. Michael will strive to further connect Chelsea Public Schools to the Chelsea community, and spread the word about all the happenings at CPS. Michael was born and raised in Haverhill, Massachusetts, and has family roots in Lawrence as well.
