Bloomfield Public Schools
Paula Sicord is an experienced educator and certified health and life coach, currently serving as an EL Tutor at Bloomfield Public Schools since October 2020 and as a Health and Life Coach at Restore Wholeness Coaching since February 2018. With a background in teaching English language learners at South Windsor Public Schools from 2006 to 2017, Paula focused on enhancing reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills for students from diverse backgrounds. Earlier, Paula worked as a Milieu Counselor at The Griffith Center, where daily counseling groups and grief support were facilitated for teenage boys. Paula holds a Bachelor of Arts degree, magna cum laude, from Southwestern University and has completed a certificate program in Life Coaching and Health and Wellness Coaching at the Health Coach Institute.
Bloomfield Public Schools
Our Bloomfield Blueprint, designed around the four priorities and detailed in our District Accountability Plan, has a track record of increasing student performance. The district continues a tradition of strong regional, statewide and national arts contributions, as well as state-wide athletics recognition. Transitions to the Smarter Balanced Assessment in 2015 and the redesigned SAT in 2016 have introduced a need for a systemic renewed academic approach aligned to Common Core Standards at every grade level. One indicator of effective academic programming is reflected in the graduation rates of our high school students. According to the State Department of Education, the graduation rate for the Bloomfield School District rose from 74% in 2011 to 92.3% in 2019. Over the last nine years, an average of 78% of our graduates enrolled in a college within two years of high school graduation, and 80% of those students return to college for a second year. In line with our expectations for high achievement, Advanced Placement (AP) success at the high school has more than doubled over the past nine years, with pass rates for AP tests increasing by more than 20%. As we look to the future of Bloomfield Public Schools, our goal is to ensure that all of our students graduate well prepared to excel in college and careers. To support this, partnerships with colleges and universities have been cultivated for students in all grades. Students visit MIT, Yale and UConn. Since 2015 we have intensified our focus on STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math). We proudly partner with UConn’s Pre-Engineering program, Goodwin College, Asnuntuck’s Additive Manufacturing program, Capital Community College, the Connecticut Business and Industry Association, Eastern Connecticut State University and the Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology. Additionally, students enjoy enriched STEAM offerings, including a daily focus on STEAM during extended day programs.