A new job started during a pandemic is likely not going to come with a road map that can strictly be followed. But Madison’s new Superintendent of Schools Dr. Craig Cooke, just finishing up his first full week in the district, said that despite the unique circumstances, restrictions, and struggles of 2020, he has found an extremely welcoming environment here on the Connecticut shoreline, with more than two months of preparation paying off as he settles into an outsized role steering the schools through crisis.

“For me it feels like a seamless transition,” Cooke said. “This district has set up great processes and procedures around [the pandemic], and the principals and central office team has just been so helpful to me. And so that was definitely something I had some stress level over—taking over during a pandemic—but it’s really been so seamless.”

Cooke also thanked interim superintendent Dr. JeanAnn Paddyfote, who led the schools through the reopening process, for both keeping him informed about ongoing work and decision making between his appointment in early October and now, as well as sticking around most of last week to provide support for the transition.

Most recently serving as superintendent of Windsor Public Schools, Cooke grew up in Old Saybrook. He was hired after an approximately four-month long search, replacing Tom Scarice, who left the district somewhat abruptly for a job in Westport last April.

Cooke said he has a tremendous amount of respect for the reputation Madison’s schools have earned and also an appreciation of the shoreline and what kind of community the town is.

“I grew up on the shoreline, and though I have not lived here in 25 years...I’m thrilled beyond belief to be here,” Cooke said.

As the schools near the end of their budget process internally and with plenty of other moving parts already in place, Cooke said he also felt strongly he didn’t need to come in and begin trying to reinvent the wheel.

But he added that he also felt empowered that he was in a place that would reflect his strengths and priorities, which he described as broad and comprehensive communication, building consensus, and a commitment to equity.

“I like to talk about my school district more so than myself,” Cooke said. “There’s a lot of people around me that know Madison a lot better than I do right now, so I’m utilizing that and building on it going forward.”

That focus on a collective action and convening of different groups and viewpoints is something that former Board of Education chair Katie Stein, who oversaw Cooke’s hiring, highlighted as one of the most important qualities he brings to the district.

Cooke also said that he takes a very long view to education, saying that most initiatives and changes don’t happen overnight, and also carrying a personal commitment to seeing these longer-term projects through.

“As I shared with the [BOE], I plan to be here a long time,” Cooke said.

Cooke will be charged with addressing some significant larger issues and projects as he settles into Madison, with the aging facilities—one of the most debated and discussed issues before the pandemic—still needing to be addressed.

A planned referendum for a $129 million plan to close two elementary schools and build another one was put on hold indefinitely in April as the town evaluates the new circumstances around the pandemic.

Cooke said that he was very cognizant of this need, and believes that will be a priority at some point going forward.

“I’m incredibly impressed with the teachers so far that I’ve met and observed, and what I know of the teachers and read about the teachers, so I know we have first class education,” he said. “Bringing the facilities up to that first class is certainly a task early on in my time here.”

Conversations around racial justice and equity sprang up all around the country this summer, and in Madison students have publicly raised issues with how the school has addressed these things. Cooke said that for him, it was a “non-negotiable” to come to a district that was committed to addressing these issues.

“The more experiences, real-life education, and equity work we can provide [students], they’re going to be more successful,” he said. “I think there’s a tremendous amount of opportunity we have here in this community to partner with area districts, to make sure there’s the strong educational program that teaches...and is respectful of different cultures.”

Cooke added that he hoped to work toward diversifying the staff in Madison, something that was also brought up by student activists over the summer.

Though the pandemic has prevented the kind of hand-shaking and introductory gatherings or meetings that might otherwise help a new superintendent get to know the parents and staff they are overseeing, Cooke said he is also fully committed to being available and transparent with the community as much as possible.

“Families are so busy, you need to be flexible with how you do your communication,” Cooke said. “Families want to know what’s going on in their schools...and we have to make it really tailored to what they want.”

Cooke said he planned to use social media like Twitter, but was also “a big believer” in newspapers, and promised to meet the community with whatever they need. And though maybe not every parent or teacher will get to sit down with him face-to-face over the next few months, Cooke said that making connections and building trust in Madison was going to be a primary goal as he moves forward in his new job.

“Unfortunately for now, it’s going to be sight unseen,” Cooke laughed. “But I appreciate building those relationships over time.”