Schools Chancellor Joel I. Klein and Deputy Mayor Dennis M. Walcott today announced that Chief Family Engagement Officer Martine Guerrier will serve as a Senior Policy Advisor for Community Partnership and Engagement in the Mayor’s office. In her three years leading the Office for Family Engagement and Advocacy—which she also established—Guerrier oversaw the creation of a division dedicated to serving public school parents and families, conceived a range of family engagement initiatives and events, and formed a new citywide council for parents of students learning English.
“Martine helped make family engagement a cornerstone of our efforts to improve student achievement,” said Chancellor Klein. “She has been a tremendous advocate for public school families, and has pushed us to consider parents in all of our decisions. We will miss our ‘Chief Mom,’ but I look forward to working with Martine in her new capacity at City Hall.”
“Martine has done exemplary work in building the Office for Family Engagement and Advocacy,” said Deputy Mayor Walcott. “I’m excited that she will join our team to focus on just the same issues that have made her so successful.”
Among other initiatives, Guerrier established a series of Native Language Forums presented in 10 languages; monthly District Family Days; the Family Reunion, a citywide end-of-year festival; the Family Back-to-School Kickoff; and SchoolSource NYC, a valuable online resource for parents produced in partnership with Channel 13. This school year, Guerrier created the Citywide Council on English Language Learners, which represents the interests of more than 153,000 public school students who are learning English. A new director of the Office for Family Engagement and Advocacy will be in place before the start of next school year.