About Dr. Lang

Dr. Jay Lang has spent his entire professional life devoted to public education in the Merrimack Valley. He has demonstrated consistent, effective leadership in six successful years as Superintendent of Chelmsford Public Schools.

His many accomplishments in Chelmsford include:

  • Launched 1:1 Chromebook Initiative in 2019; all students grades 5-12 receive a district-issued Chromebook laptop to support and further their education.
  • Developed a partnership with Middlesex Community College to provide dual enrollment courses at Chelmsford High School, enabling students to earn college credit.
  • Enhanced literacy and reading programs.
  • Negotiated and ratified contracts for teachers, administrators, and other professional staff.
  • Implemented a 10-year capital plan and roadmap for short- and long-term facility improvements, as well as school and district enhancements and upgrades to safety and security (including ALICE protocol).
  • Established a therapeutic continuum of programming and services for elementary and middle school students with behavioral challenges.

In 2016, Dr. Lang secured $7.9 million in funding for the construction of new modular classrooms at each of Chelmsford’s four elementary schools to meet projected enrollment demands. The result was 22 new classrooms added town-wide, a project completed on-time and $1 million under budget. Dr. Lang also led the transition in the 2017-18 school year to full-day kindergarten in the Chelmsford Public School system, a long-desired goal of parents, the school committee, and the community.

Among his most notable achievements, however, is his leadership during the Covid-19 pandemic. Dr. Lang oversaw the transition throughout the District to a fully remote learning environment through the final months of the 2019-20 academic year; to a hybrid learning model for the 2020-21 year; with the goal of returning the student body to its regular, in-person environment in 2021-22. During the 2020-21 year, Chelmsford Public Schools offered all students meals and transportation free of charge.

Success in the Numbers

Consistent with Dr. Lang’s belief that all children can learn and achieve at high levels given the proper time and support, and that all teachers can teach to high standards given the right conditions, Chelmsford Public Schools consistently perform ahead of state averages in many categories, including:

  • 2019 Graduation Rate (95.6 percent/7.6 percent over the state average)
  • 2019 College/Post-secondary enrollment in four-year institutions (82.3 percent/16.9 percent over the state average)
  • Students participating in the arts (88.7 percent/8.0 percent over the state average)
  • Massachusetts Core completion (100 percent/17.8 percent over the state average)
  • Juniors and seniors completing at least one advanced course (92.8 percent/27.1 percent over the state average)
  • Students that pass all freshman year courses (97.6 percent/13.9 percent over the state average)

(Taken from 2020 Massachusetts DESE School and District Report Cards unless otherwise noted)

Success at City of Lowell Schools

Prior to accepting the Superintendent’s post in Chelmsford in 2015, Dr. Lang spent the previous 20 years serving the City of Lowell Public Schools, including 12 years as Deputy Superintendent of Finance and Operations.  Among many roles, he provided advice and counsel to the Superintendent and the Lowell School Committee on all finance-related matters as he was responsible for all accounting, budgeting, and financial reporting of the district’s $175 million budget.

Additionally, Dr. Lang oversaw the departments of Operations and Maintenance, Food Service, Transportation, Grants Management and Payroll, Technology, and the Office of Personnel and Recruitment. Dr. Lang authored the Massachusetts School Building Authority application for a new Lowell High School, which was subsequently approved, with construction underway on the $210 million project.

Aside from financial matters, Dr. Lang served as the administrative representative for collective bargaining with all Lowell Public School unions, overseeing the negotiation and implementation of contracts, dispute resolution, and arbitration.

Prior to his appointment as Deputy Superintendent, Dr. Lang served as the Coordinator of Extended Time Programs at Lowell Public Schools from 2001 to 2003. In this position, he hired, supervised and evaluated all staff employed with the after school, summer, and other extended learning time programs. With an eye on the academic performance data, Dr. Lang implemented professional development initiatives for staff and collaborated with community-based agencies to strengthen academic support for students. He advocated for a continuum of programs and services to support students’ academic, social-emotional health, and wellbeing in and outside of the traditional school day.

From 1995 to 2001, Dr. Lang served as Director of Community Schools for the City of Lowell. He established a network of neighborhood-based community centers in partnership with the Lowell Public Schools. Schools served as community centers providing before and after school academic, enrichment, and recreational programs to school-age neighborhood children and their families.

Success in Preparing to Serve

Dr. Lang graduated from Merrimack College with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration in 1995. He then earned a master’s degree in Educational Administration from UMass Lowell in 2000 and taught in the Business Department at Chelmsford High School. In 2015, Dr. Lang received his doctorate in education, in Leadership in Schooling, from UMass Lowell. He holds educator licenses, including Superintendent, Principal, and School Business Administrator.

A graduate of Lowell High School, Dr. Lang resides in Lowell, Mass., with his wife, Lori, an Assistant Principal in the Lowell Public Schools and their grown children: Connor and Timothy, juniors at Merrimack College; and Aidan, a senior at Lowell Catholic High School.