May 7, 2019: The following is a statement from Hamlet Hernadez, Branford Superintendent of Schools: After completing a comprehensive process to select a highly qualified educator to become the principal of John B. Sliney [JBS] School, I am excited to share that Dr. Maria Clark is the District's choice.

The Board of Education (BOE) will appoint Dr. Clark at the May 8, 2019 Special BOE meeting in the lower Media Center of Branford High School.

Dr. Clark's body of work in public education is impressive! She comes with a variety of experiences, with the most recent being an assistant principal at Brennan-Rogers Magnet School, in New Haven where her responsibilities included supervision of the school's Pre-K to 3 campuses, instructional and curricular leadership of these campuses, and serving as the acting principal during a recent transition. Prior to her administrative experience, Maria served as a special education teacher, an elementary teacher, and a literacy coach. Maria has worked in both New Haven Public Schools and Guilford Public Schools.

Dr. Clark graduated from Boston College with bachelor and master degrees in education and received her advanced degrees, including a doctorate in education, from Southern Connecticut State University.

She is thrilled to be joining the Branford Team and upon being offered the position she said, "I am extremely honored to be joining Branford Public Schools as the Principal of JBS! I look forward to working with the entire school community - students, staff, parents and community partners. I know that through collaboration and hard work, we can all work together to continue to reach the district's mission and vision of fostering continuous growth toward excellence in each student, class and school!"

The District looks forward to Maria having a long and positive impact on the JBS learning community.