Nicole Shadeed appointed as PALS Director

Nicole Shadeed has been appointed the next PALS Director. As a complement to her work as the associate director of college counseling, Shadeed will take over leadership of the PALS program from its current interim director, Sean McCarthy, in September 2019.

Shadeed brings to the role a deep personal knowledge of Lawrence, Mass., along with prior professional experience as a school counselor focusing on the needs of 9th graders and supporting successful 8th-to-9th grade transitions through the creation and execution of summer and academic year programs within Massachusetts public schools.

Shadeed has served as a teacher at Lawrence High School, her alma mater, and noted that, “Growing up in Lawrence has been a defining aspect of who I am and how I both see the world around me and my position in it. I attended public school through 12th grade and, though I am not sure I would change that, I also never knew to even look at other possibilities. PALS is an opportunity to inform a community of middle schoolers and their families about other high school options that exist, to provide and educate them about resources, guide them through the process, and ultimately support, without reservation, whatever decision they make.”

Building on the work of fellow PA faculty and previous directors Tom Cone, Greg Wilkin, and Marvin Coote, Shadeed will lead PALS into its fourth decade of serving Lawrence middle school students.