New Leadership in Stamford, Norwalk Public Schools

As the current school year winds down, Stamford and Norwalk public schools are looking ahead to next year. For the first time in years, both districts will have new leadership at the helm starting July 1. 

Norwalk Superintendent Alexandra Estrella is leaving to become the superintendent of Gwinnett County Public Schools in Georgia after leading the city’s school district since July 2020. Stamford Superintendent Tamu Lucero is leaving to lead a private pre-K–12th grade international school in Africa after leading the city’s school district since April 2019.

“Serving as Superintendent of Stamford Public Schools has been the most rewarding experience of my career,” Lucero said in a statement. “Throughout my time in Stamford, I have built strong connections across the community—visiting all 22 of our schools on a regular basis, supporting local organizations, attending hundreds of events each year, and engaging with thousands of students, staff, families, and community members

Both superintendents helped lead two of Connecticut’s largest districts through the COVID-19 pandemic. Both launched new facilities plans that have resulted in millions of dollars of investments in school facilities. And both faced growing populations of special education students and multilingual learners and worked to provide additional resources for those students. 

However, at the same time, both also ran into challenges. Lucero came under fire for pushing for a 4x4 block schedule that many parents and teachers opposed. The teacher union also filed a formal ethics complaint against her citing “retaliatory management practices, disregard for educator input, and a pattern of behavior that undermines collaborative decision-making.”

Estrella and her staff bumped heads with city officials during multiple controversial budget processes, particularly last year. Members of the teachers union said that they conducted a survey that showed “95% of our Norwalk teachers have a general lack of trust in this administration.” 

As these two leaders get set to leave, let’s take a quick look back at their tenures and look ahead at what’s next for both districts. 

Stamford’s Leadership

Lucero joined the school district in June 2013 as an assistant superintendent. She was unanimously appointed to lead the district in April 2019, and when she departs, she’ll be the longest-serving superintendent of Stamford Public Schools since William Papallo (1983 to 1992). 

According to Stamford Public Schools, Lucero’s accomplishments include: 

• Launching the first curriculum audit in 20+ years followed by a three-year plan to design and implement “gold-standard” pre-K–12th grade curriculum 
• Strengthening safety and security across the district
• Developing a long-term facilities plan to upgrade or replace school buildings across the district. As a part of this work, Lucero and her team secured large state reimbursements to make some of these projects possible.
• Partnering with the city to secure additional funding following the COVID-19 funds expiring
• Expanding support and services for multilingual students and those with disabilities 

But as noted, there were multiple public controversies. In particular, Lucero faced backlash from parents, students, and teachers over a decision to move the high schools to a 4x4 block schedule, where students would take four classes per semester, instead of taking courses across a full year. She and her administration said the 4x4 allowed for great flexibility, while opponents said it could cause learning loss as students could go months without taking core courses. In the end, the Board of Education voted to repeal the 4x4 and transitioned back to an A/B schedule where students take two sets of classes, alternating between the days over a full year. 

In addition, students at Westhill High School staged walkouts this year to protest her decision to remove their principal. 

The Stamford Board of Education voted unanimously to appoint Adrian Talley as the next superintendent of the district. He joined the city from Indian Prairie School District 204 in Illinois.

“The Board was fortunate to meet with a number of highly qualified candidates, but Dr. Talley stood out from the start as a leader who had driven meaningful, lasting change in school districts with profiles similar to Stamford,” Board President Andy George said in a statement. “His commitment to equity and achievement, experience managing complex systems and budgets, and reputation as a relationship builder made him the clear choice to lead Stamford Public Schools.”

In Illinois, Talley developed his district’s first comprehensive strategic plan, strengthened school improvement processes, increased AP Scholar recognition by 28%, and secured approval of a $420 million capital bond referendum to enhance safety, infrastructure, and long-term operational efficiency, according to a statement from Stamford Public Schools. 

“Public education is a community enterprise, and a school system belongs to the community it serves,” Talley said in a statement. “As the next Superintendent of Stamford Public Schools, I am committed to bringing people together around a shared vision to ensure the district achieves measurable, sustainable improvement, particularly in advancing equity, strengthening student outcomes, and maintaining public confidence.”

Norwalk’s Leadership

Estrella joined the school district in July 2020, when the district was in the heart of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. 

According to Norwalk Public Schools, Estrella’s accomplishments include:

• Developing and implementing a five-year strategic plan that aimed to review “equity and disproportionality, special education, school facilities, and the overall structure of the district.
• Achieving a 92.6% graduation rate, while seeing a decline in chronic absenteeism
• Strengthening services for students with disabilities and those who are multilingual, which has improved the graduation rate for both populations
• Advancing equity across the schools to support “inclusive learning environments, and ensure every student feels valued and supported.” 
• Leading significant school construction and facilities improvements, including two new schools—the first local school in South Norwalk in decades and a new Norwalk High School

“This decision comes with mixed emotions. Professionally, the opportunity to lead one of the largest and most diverse school districts in the nation represents an important milestone in my career,” Estrella wrote in a letter. “Personally, however, it is incredibly difficult to step away from a community that has meant so much to me and my family. Both of my sons graduated from Norwalk schools, and the relationships we have built here will always remain deeply meaningful. My family and I will always carry Norwalk with us.” 

Still, she also faced some controversies with the teachers’ association and community. There was a very public budget fight last year, which included State Senator Bob Duff said Estrella created a “manufactured crisis, because back in January when we knew we were going to have some budget challenges, I said to the Superintendent, ‘Trust the process.’”

Multiple times the Norwalk Federation of Teachers stated its “lack of confidence in the leadership of Superintendent Estrella. In particular, the union cited high staff turnover and low morale as some of the main reasons. 

The Norwalk Board of Education appointed Sandra Faioes to serve as the district’s interim superintendent beginning on July 1. Faioes first joined Norwalk Public Schools in 2013, as a curriculum and instruction site director, instructional coach, and reading specialist. She served as the principal of Brookside Elementary School, before moving to the superintendent’s cabinet in 2020. She’s served as the deputy superintendent since December 2023.