Draft:Haverhill Public Schools

The Haverhill Public Schools district is the public school district for the town of Haverhill, Massachusetts. Overseeing 17 educational facilities, ranging from pre-kindergarten to the 12th grade, the district is administrated by superintendent Dr. Margaret Marotta-Smith, who reports directly to an elected school committee. , the district has about 7,700 students.

Departments
The Haverhill Public Schools district is operated by the following departments:

Business Department
The Business Department of Haverhill Public Schools oversees and manages the financial, budgetary, and operational aspects of the school district.

Food Services Department
The Food Services Department of Haverhill Public Schools oversees and manages food aspects of the school district, including serving and cooking.

Facilities Department
The Facilities Department of Haverhill Public Schools oversees and ensures the physical integrity of district buildings. The department is responsible for troubleshooting, repairing, and improving all systems related to the physical plant of the schools.

Office of Human Resources (HR)
The Office of Human Resources (HR) at Haverhill Public Schools is responsible for overseeing the recruitment, hiring, employee retention, and administration of benefits for the entire workforce of Haverhill Public Schools. The school district employs a diverse staff of over 1,800 individuals, encompassing full-time, part-time, and per diem positions.

Security Department
The Security Department of Haverhill Public Schools oversees and ensures the safety of buildings around the district.

Technology Department
The Technology Department of Haverhill Public Schools is responsible for distributing, maintaining, and repairing the electronic devices and online services owned by the district.

Transportation Department
The Transportation Department of Haverhill Public Schools oversees and operates aspects of transportation for the district, including bussing.

Academics
The Haverhill Public Schools district contains the following departments for academic-related affairs:

History
A new K-8 Hunking School building was planned in 2015 with a budget of $64.5 million. The Hunking School Building Committee successfully approved the submission of design development documents to the state school building authority, advancing the district one step closer to obtaining full approval for construction. The Massachusetts School Building Authority had agreed to provide reimbursement for more than two-thirds of the construction expenses for the new Hunking School. This new facility is replacing a 55-year-old middle school structure that had experienced significant deterioration due to water infiltration into the crawl space. To fund the construction, Haverhill voters endorsed a debt exclusion measure, which will have an estimated cost of between $21 and $24 million, translating to an annual expenditure of $71 per year over a 20-year period for taxpayers. The new school, designed to accommodate 1,005 students, was anticipated to be ready for occupancy following the winter holiday recess in 2016.

In late December 2016, the Hunking School had completed construction and was officially opened to the public.

In April 2021, a ransomware attack disrupted the district's computer system. The attack prompted the shutdown of the school's network and remote learning platform to prevent widespread system corruption. This incident occurred as ransomware attacks were becoming increasingly common in Massachusetts, affecting numerous communities, with some resorting to paying hackers with taxpayer money to regain access to their files. The Department of Homeland Security, Haverhill police, and Haverhill Public Schools initiated investigations into the incident.

In late October 2022, a strike was initiated by Haverhill teachers as part of the local teacher's union, the Haverhill Education Association (HEA). The purpose of this strike was to renegotiate teacher contracts as well as future salary increases to adjust for inflation. A lower average pay for the district in comparison to the overall state average lead to years of tension between the union and Haverhill school committee, eventually culminating in the strike. Schools closed for four days as negotiations proceeded between union representatives and members of the school committee. The strike ended after an agreement was met between both parties. Both the strike and the eventual agreement met were overwhelmingly supported by HEA members during internal votes within the union; with over 600 members supporting the strike and 25 against it, and 99% of the union supporting the eventual negotiated agreement.