Portia Bonner ’88
Portia Bonner ’88 has been appointed as the new superintendent for Northampton Public Schools in Massachusetts. As a superintendent of schools, her approach has been to enhance learning environments, empower students and educators, and foster a culture of collaboration, innovation, and inclusivity by building partnerships within schools and the surrounding community.
Before her current role, Bonner was interim superintendent for the Bozrah Public School
District in Connecticut. She has served as superintendent for East Haven Public Schools
in Connecticut and New Bedford Public Schools in Massachusetts. At all three districts,
she was the first person of color to serve as superintendent of schools.
“It is a celebration of achievement to be at such a level in my career, which models to others that it is possible to achieve dreams,” she says.
Bonner’s career in education spans over three decades. She began as a high school science teacher. Her leadership trajectory grew from there as department chair, principal, assistant superintendent, and superintendent.
A core value that defines her leadership success is the pursuit of equity and inclusion. She has worked in both urban and rural districts, introducing anti-bias and anti-racist training programs long before national conversations on race became the norm. “Every student, regardless of background or circumstances, deserves access to a high-quality education,” she says.
Bonner is also author of the book “Possibilities of the Impossible: Obstacles of Educational Reform, Nets, Trenches, Sinkholes and Cisterns” (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2022).
Through case studies and metaphors, Bonner reflects on her career as a top education leader over the past 20 years and offers thoughts on why the education system has failed many of its children.
“It is a cathartic review of lessons learned as a district leader, the importance of building trusting relationships, and what future superintendents can expect in the next five to 10 years as we come to grips with who we are as a nation,” Bonner says.
Bonner, who grew up in Waterbury, Connecticut, holds a bachelor’s degree in biology and sociology from Skidmore. She earned her master’s degree in biology at Purdue University and her doctoral degree in curriculum and instruction at the University of Connecticut.
