Introducing Mort Sherman

Mort Sherman has more than 30 years of administrative experience in raising academic standards, closing achievement gaps and uniting stakeholders. He has served in public education for more than 40 years, 25 as a public-school superintendent. Now serving as the AASA associate executive director, leadership network, Sherman is responsible for programs which support aspiring and sitting superintendents. Recent initiatives include the creation of the AASA Collaborative, the Urban Superintendents Academies in cooperation with Howard University and the University of Southern California, the Personalized Learning Cohort and the Aspiring Superintendents Program.

Sherman’s service includes being superintendent for eight years in Cherry Hill, N.J., where he was a founding member of the Southern New Jersey Standards Initiative and the Delaware Valley Minority Achievement Consortium. Sherman was superintendent for South Orangetown Central School District in New York for five years; superintendent and principal at the Norwich Free Academy in Connecticut for four years; superintendent in Tenafly, N.J.; and assistant superintendent in Westport, Conn. He began his career as a middle and high school English teacher.

As superintendent of the Alexandria City Public Schools in Alexandria, Va. from 2008-2013, Sherman helped implement significant improvements, including: academic plans for secondary students, professional learning plans tied to student outcomes and the district strategic plan, an International Academy for English Language Learners, revised professional evaluation systems, introduction of AVID and IB, the creation of Family and Community Engagement (FACE) Centers, as well as a School-Based Health Clinic and a pre-K initiative.