Ms. Ludes' Journey to Mass Academy

The Massachusetts Academy of Math and Science would be nothing without its staff and students. At the head of the amazing school is Mass Academy Director Anne Ludes. In her role leading such a unique program, her responsibilities include those of a traditional superintendent, principal, and much more. With how brightly she shines in her role, it’s hard to tell that she’s only in her third year at MAMS.

The start of Ms. Ludes’ journey to Mass Academy began when she was completing her bachelor’s degree in mathematics and secondary education at Providence College. “I always knew that I wanted to be a teacher,” said Ms. Ludes. During her time at Providence, Ms. Ludes fell in love with math and decided to complete her master’s degree with a focus in mathematics which led her to Boston College where she completed a teaching fellowship in addition to her master's.

After completing her tertiary education, Ms. Ludes taught at Framingham High and then took some time off to start a family. She returned to teaching for one year at Taunton High School before a position opened at Framingham High. There, Ms. Ludes spent the rest of her teaching career. She bounced around teaching Algebra 2 and Pre-calculus, but every single year, Ms. Ludes taught AP Calculus AB and Algebra 1. “I enjoyed teaching those classes the most because I had students who didn’t always believe in themselves. I wanted to guide students who thought they weren’t capable of success,” recalling her career as a high school teacher.

When asked what made her transition from teaching to administration, Ms. Ludes explained “I never thought that one day I would end up in administration. In fact, when the math department head seat opened, I had to be recruited for the position.” That job ended up being her favorite as it allowed her to continue teaching and gave her a broader view of education. She then transitioned into an associate principal role, before she started working at the central office as the director of secondary education before becoming an assistant superintendent. In each of these roles, she was inspired to take on that role due to the vision of the people she was working alongside.

However, each new position in Ms. Ludes’ journey brought her farther and farther away from students and the joy of working with them. Then, she found the Mass Academy Director job posting. Ms. Ludes explained, “It was my dream job, I would be able to work at an administrative level and work with the students daily.” At first, she was hesitant to apply, but knowing that she would never forgive herself if she didn’t apply, Ms. Ludes filled out an application. As she got further and further into the interview process, her hopes rose and rose. After many interviews, and speaking with many members of the community, Mass Academy made their decision and former Director Mike Barney called to offer Ms. Ludes the job. 

After a few years in the role, Ms. Ludes found that Mass Academy was everything she dreamed of and more. “The collective group here of students and faculty is beyond a dream,” Ms. Ludes gushes when asked about her favorite part of the school. She states that the environment is made up of awesome people who are incredibly inspiring. In the future, Ms. Ludes hopes to increase outreach in order to promote the Mass Academy vision. “The thing that I really want to do is have more schools do what Mass Academy does,” Ms. Ludes states in regard to the type of teaching and learning that occurs in this wonderful school.