Noelle Colbert Hired As BIS Principal
A new principal for Bourne Intermediate School has officially been hired. Noelle Colbert was introduced to the school committee earlier this month and is set to begin her new role on July 1, replacing longtime Principal Jane Norton.
Superintendent Kerri Anne Quinlan-Zhou and assistant superintendent Barbara Starkie introduced Ms. Colbert during the school committee’s meeting on April 3, with Dr. Zhou thanking Dr. Starkie for having spearheaded the search and interview process. An announcement of Ms. Colbert’s hiring was made by the district the following week.
The search for a new principal at Bourne Intermediate was headed up by Dr. Starkie and came after the announcement of Ms. Norton’s retirement after 30 years with Bourne Public Schools.
“The very first thing I did when Dr. Zhou bestowed this task upon me was meet with Jane Norton and speak to her about the building and, from Jane’s perspective, what kind of person she thought would take over the reins at Bourne Intermediate School,” Dr. Starkie told the school committee, “and it was a great conversation.”
From there, Dr. Starkie said, she compiled a survey that was sent to parents, caregivers and staff at BIS to solicit input on the principal search. Parents of 2nd graders at Bournedale Elementary were also surveyed, as those students will be heading to Bourne Intermediate in the fall.
A committee of 12 individuals representing various constituencies was formed, and candidate profiles were compiled by Dr. Starkie and Bournedale Elementary Principal Elizabeth Carpenito. A total of 10 candidates were interviewed in round one, and five were moved forward to round two. Three site visits were conducted as part of the process, and the final two candidates were invited to meet with constituents at BIS, including parents, school administrators, education support professionals and, as Dr. Starkie put it, “probably one of the most-important groups: the students in the building.”
“We had 18 students who represented the many voices here at BIS,” Dr. Starkie said, taking time to thank Ms. Carpenito and teachers for helping prepare those students to interview candidates. “They met twice, they developed their own questions—well, first they made their own candidate profile, which was adorable. And then they developed their own questions and then they took part in that interview process that afternoon.”
Both final candidates were moved forward to have meetings with Dr. Zhou, Dr. Starkie and director of business services Jordan Geist. After six weeks, Dr. Zhou “brought the process home and offered the job to Noelle Colbert,” Dr. Starkie reported.
Ms. Colbert was present at the school committee’s April 3 meeting and took to the podium to express her gratitude to the district for its comprehensive vetting process.
“I do want to also reiterate a great thank-you to Dr. Starkie,” Ms. Colbert began. “In all of my years in education, I have to say I’ve never seen such a thoughtful, thorough process that had been put forth for this. And to the entire BIS community and administrators who sat in on my interview; again, I have never seen so many volunteer to come to an interview process. I think I probably met…over 40 people in one day from the entire community, so thank you to anybody that had come.”
According to the district’s release, Ms. Colbert has a range of educational experiences to bring to Bourne: she served as principal of Benjamin Phelps School in the Agawam School District from 2014 to 2020, where she established a building-wide strategic plan and developed a Multi-Tiered System of Support, which focuses on developing proactive practices to offer academic, behavioral and social-emotional support to all learners, staff and school community members.
Additionally, Ms. Colbert is the owner of Colbert Education Consulting, which she founded in May 2022 to provide ongoing professional development, coaching and strategic plans to school districts. Ms. Colbert works with schools to establish and develop Multi-Tiered Systems of Support, and provides training opportunities to develop an effective understanding of how to respond to students presenting with social, emotional and behavioral challenges.
“This consulting work focused on issues of importance to the role of principal such as promoting positive school climates and meeting the needs of all learners,” the district’s announcement said.
Ms. Colbert also held the title of educational consultant at James Levine & Associates, and as assistant principal of the Bellamy Middle School for Chicopee Public Schools, the district’s announcement said. She holds a master of education degree from the College of Our Lady of Elms and a bachelor’s degree from Westfield State University, and is currently enrolled in American International College to earn a doctorate in mental health counseling.
Originally from eastern Massachusetts, Ms. Colbert said she and her family are excited to return and make their home on Cape Cod. Two of her three daughters, she said, will be entering high school on the Cape next year, while her oldest is off to college.
“I have to say I am thrilled to be here, and my family is super excited,” she said. “And my dogs—who the children met virtually in my pictures, my two Labs—are thrilled also to be ocean and beach dogs. So thank you all for having us all.”
A sentimental exchange then unfolded at the podium, with Ms. Norton joining Ms. Colbert to address the school committee.
“I want to thank Dr. Starkie and Dr. Zhou for the thorough process because you may have heard, it is my baby and I wanted to make sure that it was in good hands—and you can just tell from all the comments that everybody gave that you are the right person,” Ms. Norton said.
“So, I just wanted to make sure you had a little bit of bling before you started,” Ms. Norton added, handing Ms. Colbert a purple gift bag containing two t-shirts bearing the name Bourne Intermediate School.
“Thank you very much,” Ms. Colbert said before embracing her predecessor. “I will wear this with pride.”