Essential Elements of School Threat Assessment (On Demand)
Completed September 22, 2026 · 1.0 contact hour (online training).
About
About Dr. Brenda Ortiz McGrath
An educational leader, district administrator, consultant, author, and researcher who builds and transforms PK–12 systems — leadership, policy, social-emotional learning, student support, and community partnership. She is the creator of the MijaLumbre Leadership Framework™, a culturally grounded model designed to strengthen the identity, voice, and leadership of Latina women, and a consultant to districts and organizations through Innovate-Lead-Elevate.
My Story
A builder of systems, people, and possibilities
Brenda Ortiz McGrath has built her career at the intersection of educational leadership, systems change, student success, equity, and community impact.
Her work began closest to students and families, where she developed a deep understanding of the realities that shape learning, belonging, opportunity, and achievement. That foundation became the lens through which she would go on to lead schools, teams, programs, and districtwide systems.
Over more than two decades in education, Brenda has served in progressively senior leadership roles spanning family and community engagement, school administration, high school leadership, and PK–12 district administration. Today, her work reaches across social-emotional learning, student support systems, mental health, organizational strategy, leadership development, policy, equity, and innovation.
Brenda is an educational leader, consultant, district administrator, researcher, and author. Her early training as a social worker is the foundation beneath that leadership — not the limit of it. It is why her systems thinking is grounded in the real experiences of students, families, and educators, and why she leads with both strategy and humanity.
As a Latina leader, she has broken barriers throughout her career, including becoming the first Latina to hold several of the leadership positions in which she has served. Her approach is grounded in a simple but powerful belief: people do their best work when they are known, valued, challenged, supported, and given meaningful opportunities to lead.
That philosophy now extends beyond traditional educational systems through the MijaLumbre Leadership Framework™, Brenda's culturally grounded model for Latina women who are ready to lead with greater clarity, identity, purpose, voice, and power.
Her leadership is not confined to one role, one discipline, or one institution. It is about transforming systems while creating space for others to rise.
Leadership Journey
From direct practice to district systems
Each role built on the last — always closer to the people the system is meant to serve.
School Adjustment Counselor
Waltham Public Schools · 2006–2014
Eight years of direct practice with students and families — supporting transitions, emotional well-being, peer relationships, and academic stress, and connecting families to community resources.
Head of Family & Community Engagement / Dean of Students
Bentley Academy, Salem · 2014–2017
A founding member of the school's turnaround work, partnering with families, staff, and community organizations as the school achieved Level 1 status.
Associate Principal
Waltham Public Schools · 2017–2021
The district's first Latina administrator. Led high school house operations, student-success systems, school climate, and discipline, advancing the School Improvement Plan with department leaders. Provided staff supervision, coaching, and professional learning, and introduced and scaled restorative practices as a schoolwide approach to belonging, accountability, and culture.
Principal
Waltham High School · 2021–Aug 2022
First Latina and first woman to lead the school in 53 years. Directed schoolwide instructional strategy, operations, culture, and student-success priorities through an improvement plan centered on academic growth and belonging; led the Instructional Leadership Team in developing the Quality School Plan; supervised and evaluated faculty and school-based teams; and expanded family partnership through the PTO, School Site Council, home visits, adult education, and the Latinx Parent Leadership Group.
First woman and Latina principal of Waltham High School
District Administrator, PK–12
Chelsea Public Schools · 2022–Present
Leads districtwide strategy across an 11-school PK–12 system serving approximately 6,300 students, aligning academic, attendance, behavioral, SEL/MTSS, family-engagement, and specialized-support priorities. Leads and develops professional teams through PLC structures and data-informed routines, advises central office leaders, principals, and school teams on crisis response and compliance, and directs grants, vendor and community partnerships with families, public agencies, healthcare and crisis providers, and regional organizations.
Education
Degrees & doctoral research
Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), Educational Leadership & Supervision
American International College — 2026, GPA 4.0
Master of Social Work (MSW)
Boston College — 2006, clinical and school social work practice
Bachelor of Social Work (BSW)
Wheelock College
Educational Leadership
University of New England — 2017–2018
Doctoral Dissertation
Reducing Dropout Rates Through Social-Emotional Learning in Urban Public Schools: A Qualitative Document Analysis
A qualitative document analysis exploring how social-emotional learning can support efforts to reduce dropout rates in urban public schools.
Read the dissertation on ProQuest — Now published and available through ProQuest.
Credentials
Massachusetts Educator Licensure
Department of Elementary and Secondary Education licensure spanning student support, school leadership, and district administration.
- Superintendent (Professional)
- Principal K–12
- School Adjustment Counselor
- Director of Pupil Personnel
- Director of School Counseling
- Attendance / Truancy Supervisor
Additional Training & Certification
External training completed outside of state educator licensure.
Title IX Investigator
External certification training in Title IX investigation and compliance.
Crisis Prevention Intervention (CPI)
Trained facilitator in de-escalation and crisis prevention practice.
Restorative & Mediation Practice
Training in restorative approaches, mediation, and conflict resolution programming.
Current District Work
Districtwide leadership, PK–12
The systems Dr. Ortiz McGrath leads as a PK–12 district administrator reach far beyond any one department.
As a district administrator, Dr. Ortiz McGrath leads social work, social-emotional learning, school mental health, and specialized student supports — and equally the infrastructure that makes them work: grant development and management, data and continuous improvement, crisis response, staff supervision and development, and family and community partnerships across the district.
Young Parenting Program
Oversight of the grades 7–12 program supporting pregnant and parenting students to stay enrolled and on track.
Districtwide SEL
Leading PK–12 social-emotional learning implementation, curriculum alignment, and staff professional learning.
Mediation & Intervention Specialists
Building a program that resolves conflict early and keeps students connected to school.
School Mental Health & Telehealth
Coordinating clinical supports, telehealth providers, and youth mental health programming across schools.
McKinney-Vento, Migrant & Military Families
Ensuring students experiencing housing instability and transition receive enrollment, transport, and support.
Crisis Response & Safety
Leading crisis response protocols, de-escalation training, and districtwide safety coordination.
Grant Development
Writing and managing grants that fund student support, mental health, and family engagement work.
Data & Continuous Improvement
Using YRBS and districtwide survey data to shape priorities and measure whether supports are working.
Staff Leadership & Development
Supervising school social workers and multidisciplinary teams, and leading professional learning across the district.
Community Partnerships
Connecting schools with community organizations that extend care beyond the school day.
Service
Boards & Appointments
Civic, statewide, and national service extending this work beyond any one district.
Current
Elected School Committee Member, Policy Chair & DEI Chair — Lynn School Committee
Providing public governance, budget oversight, policy review, constituent communication, and accountability for district priorities; chairs Policy and Diversity, Equity & Inclusion work through a student-centered, equity-minded, fiscally responsible lens.
Current
Vice President, Lynn Hispanic Scholarship Fund
Supporting access to higher education for Latino students in Lynn.
2023–2026
Commissioner, Essex County Commission for the Status of Women
Served on the National Association of Commissions for Women, advancing equity, opportunity, and women's rights across Essex County.
Current
Board Member, Lynn Housing Trust Fund
Advocating for housing stability as a foundation for student success.
Current
National Advisory Board, Alongside
Advising on youth mental health supports and how schools can reach students earlier.
Current
Massachusetts Association for Mental Health Advisory Council
Contributing a school-systems perspective to statewide mental health policy and practice.
Current
Healthy Families Advisory Board
Supporting programs that strengthen young families and early childhood well-being.
Current
Advisory Council, Eliot Family Resource Center
Guiding family-centered services that connect caregivers to mental health, wellness, and community resources.
Photo Gallery
See the work in action
Keynotes, MijaLumbre sessions, CoreKind360 family moments, public service, and time with educators and families — captured in photographs.