Rachael Gazdick has been named executive director of the Syracuse chapter of the
Say Yes to Education and Economic Development program, according to Douglas
Biklen, dean of Syracuse University's School of Education.
Say Yes to Education Inc. (Say Yes) is a national, nonprofit education foundation
committed to dramatically increasing high school and college graduation rates for
inner-city youth. The program provides comprehensive support-including the
promise of a full college or vocational education-aligned with what research
indicates is needed to enable every child in the program to achieve his or her
potential. The Syracuse Say Yes initiative is unique because it is the first Say Yes
chapter to embrace an entire city school district, making it the largest school
improvement program of its kind in the nation.
"Rachael is a dynamic leader who knows our kids and our systems," says Syracuse
City School District Superintendent Daniel Lowengard. "She will be a perfect match
to lead the most exciting initiative the school district or community has ever
undertaken."
"We engaged in a national search to find the very best leader to engage in this
unprecedented initiative in school improvement," Biklen says. "We wanted to find
someone who has a vision for what is possible and also the experience of working
hand-in-hand with teachers, school administrators, superintendents, community
agencies, foundations, and, above all, families and students. We found all of these
qualities here at home in the person of Rachael Gazdick.
"She is the ideal person to help mobilize us all to achieve the promise that the
Syracuse Say Yes demonstration affords. She has a host of ideas for how to engage
public school students in the excitement of education," Biklen says. "She will enlist
the entire community-from SU students, faculty and staff, to parents and other
volunteers-to help make sure that Syracuse students blossom. I am grateful that
Rachael has agreed to take on this crucially important position."
Syracuse is the latest Say Yes chapter. Housed within SU's School of Education, the
Syracuse Say Yes initiative has been funded by a grant from Say Yes to Education
Inc. and functions as a collaborative partnership among SU, the Syracuse City
School District (SCSD) and 25 private colleges. Other Say Yes chapters are located in
Cambridge, Mass.; Hartford, Conn.; New York City; and Philadelphia.
"To have a good program, you've got to have somebody who can really
communicate with all of the partners," says Anne Larkin, professor of education at
Lesley University in Cambridge, Mass., and director of the Cambridge Say Yes to
Education chapter. Larkin was a member of the Syracuse Say Yes chapter director
selection committee. "With Rachel, we discovered that she had all of the qualifications
that would make her a real leader, but also a team player."
Prior to accepting her new position, Gazdick was director of the Office of
Community Engagement and Integration for SU, reporting to the dean of Hendricks
Chapel. Gazdick also has taught at the University since 1999 and is an assistant
professor of communication and rhetorical studies in the College of Visual and
Performing Arts.
Her extensive experience in community-based programs includes serving as executive
director of Syracuse's Near East Side Community Development Organization.
Gazdick also has served as site director for Citizen Schools in Boston and as a special
needs elementary school teacher for Teach For America in Los Angeles and Lake
Arthur, La. She currently serves on the boards of OnPoint for College and Refugee
Resettlement. She was chair of SU's 2008 Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration and is
past president of the Syracuse Inner City Rotary Club.
As director of the Office of Community Engagement and Integrative Learning,
Gazdick has been responsible for overseeing a number of community-focused
programs, including the International Young Scholars Program, the Sojourner
Storytelling Conference, Hoops for Peace, Chess Camp for Kids and Roots & Wings.
Roots & Wings, an after school apprenticeship program for children at the Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr. and Bellevue elementary schools, invites fourth- and fifth- graders to
engage in hands-on learning through apprenticeships. These apprenticeships
introduce young people to the world of science, journalism, government,
photography, law and the arts.
"I have seen firsthand how remarkable our young people are in the Syracuse City
School District," Gazdick says. "I am honored to be able to continue working across
the city with countless individuals who work tirelessly to educate, mentor and inspire
our students."
"We are thrilled to have such a skilled leader head up our efforts in Syracuse," says
Mary Anne Schmitt-Carey, president of Say Yes to Education Inc. "Rachael has a
clear track record of success, and we believe that she can help nurture and grow our
program to help children in the Syracuse schools reach their full potential and
achieve academic success."
Gazdick holds a bachelor's degree in speech communication from SU, a master's
degree in community organizing, planning, policy and administration from Boston
College, and a master's degree in education policy from Harvard University. She
currently is working to complete a doctorate in the Cultural Foundations of
Education program in SU's School of Education.
