I teach early college courses at University of Massachusetts Boston. Mary worked with ESL 12th graders taking a first-year writing course. She came to campus with the students and offered exceptional support to a group of ESL students. Mary is adept at getting the most possible from students by giving support, encouragement, specific techniques or simply modeling classroom expectations when needed.

Mary is terrific to work with. I believe I learned almost as much from her as the group of students did. I know absolutely that the group of students she worked with would not have passed this typical writing 101 college-level course without her expertise. She never did the work for them, but patiently helped each student work through what they needed. -Clarissa Eaton, UMass Boston

I had the pleasure of working with Mary at Boston Community Leadership Academy and in the context of our school's merger with the John W. McCormack Middle School to create Ruth Batson Academy. Mary is a dedicated educator whose primary focus has always been on supporting students (especially English Language Learners) as they strive to achieve academic and personal success in school. I found Mary's flexible disposition to be particularly admirable considering the changing context of our school. From supporting ESL 3 students in grades 9-12 at BCLA, to transitioning to supporting ESL 2 middle school students and teaching History, Mary's commitment to accommodating and adjusting to the changing needs of our school community was undoubtedly unique and refreshing. She is someone that recognizes the value of supporting students beyond the context of the classroom as a means of enhancing her relationships with students. -Milagros Gonzalez, Assistant Principal

I was Mary’s supervisor for one year at the West Roxbury Education Complex, and in the last two years in my role with the district, I have been able to observe Mary’s classes several times. Mary has a commitment to high expectations and innovative pedagogy that consistently elevates student performance. In her History courses, I have seen an emphasis on building students’ literacy skills, while also teaching the content. She has the training and skills to teach all of Boston’s students, including Multilingual Learners and Students with Disabilities. 

Mary designs high-level tasks that challenge students to step outside their comfort zones. An example that I have seen is a complex debate on WWII history. While doing this, she creates a safe, structured environment where students are able to take intellectual risks. Their focus on evidence-based discourse—requiring students to cite text during both writing workshops and verbal debates—ensures that every student develops the critical thinking skills necessary for academic success.

Beyond teaching, Mary has been a proven leader and collaborator. As a grade-level facilitator, she successfully led inquiry cycles using observational data to drive systematic interventions. She also has been a mentor to new teachers, as well as peers. -Rajeeve Martyn, History Program Director, BPS

I do not know what I would do without Mary this year, as we co-teach during my 5th period class. She is the Multilingual support teacher during this particular period, and I have seen far more growth in my students since she joined our class after first term. Her expertise in explaining difficult vocabulary, modifying assignments so they are accessible to students while remaining on grade level, and working one-on-one with specific students when they struggle has been a lifesaving learning experience for me. Any school community will be lucky to benefit from Mary's pedagogical wisdom, flexibility, commitment, and patience. -Paula Grillo, ELA teacher

Mary Grady is an excellent, trusted colleague and teacher who always creates a safe learning environment. Mary and I worked together in the SEI department at BCLA/Ruth Babson Academy for 3 years. Mary consistently challenges her students to do their best by engaging them in learning which gets them conversing, debating, and on their feet to make connections to master content and reach standards. She realizes that students’ academic success is dependent on building confidence and becoming culturally aware. She has secured funding for outdoor education trips to Tree Top Adventures and Ramblewild. School year 2025-206 Mary received a grant to take students on Boston based educational field trips. She then used the experiences in conjunction with her history content to have our ESL students create term projects they presented at a school wide fair attended by administrators, teachers, and students. Evaluations showed that student skills advanced through the steps of this successful process.

These past 8 years Mary successfully created a relationship with Company One Theater and our ESL classes to co-teach with visiting artists from Company One Theater. She is always mindful of students who are struggling and finds the resources to support them. For example, she has hosted tutors from Boston Partners in Education for past 7 years to assist individual students who need extra support. -Kathy Brucker, ESL teacher 

I have the pleasure of working with Mary Grady in one of my English 12 classes. She provides English language support to students. She consistently checks in with all students on her caseload, reinforces information from lessons with her students and provides clarifications, step by step directions and informal check ins. Grady’s support hase been invaluable in and out of classes. In addition with help on classwork assignments, she helps me to make family calls and helps students with homework assignments. -Monique Symes, ELA teacher

I have had the pleasure of working with Mary for 7 school years. My first year at the school, we co-taught an inclusive community action seminar weekly called Sewing for Good where students learned about the environment, the plastic bag ban in Boston, and sewed and sold cloth bags to reduce plastic waste in their community. Mary never wavered in her efforts to make sure the class was inclusive of students with a huge variety of learning, behavioral, social emotional, and language needs. She connected with community partners to get the physical resources (i.e. used fabric donations) and opportunities for meaningful learning and field trips. While we have not been working as closely together since that seminar, I have witnessed firsthand her flexibility and professionalism whenever tasked with a totally new challenge (i.e. new content, new building, new student population, new grade-span). I admire the way she connects with community resources (city counselors, Boston Partners in Education, Company One Theater, and more) to get her students the opportunities they deserve to thrive. She has been a role model to me in too many ways to list! -Zoe Summit, BCBA teacher 

Mary cares deeply about giving students, especially newcomers, opportunities to be part of the school and city community. She plans interesting field trips that allow them to explore the city through museums, nature, and educational institutions. In addition, she makes sure that all students are aware of the in school opportunities that go beyond the classroom. She has done a tremendous job of getting our middle school newcomers involved in the sports and after school activities, most recently with the unified basketball league. Whenever there is an opportunity to do something extra for the students, like take them to a production at the Opera House, Mary offers her time because she believes in the importance of this cultural exposure for all students.

Mary is an advocate for giving our students real-life scenarios in the academic setting. She often has students writing and talking about problems and solutions that exist for the community, particularly teenagers in Boston. She has organized student showcases where students presented their findings and offered reasonable solutions based on their research and experience. -Lori Brodeur, ESL teacher