Pendergrast Named Superintendent Of The Year In NJ

MORRISTOWN, NJ — Mackey Pendergrast has been named the 2020 Superintendent of the Year by the New Jersey Association of School Administrators for his work with the Morris School District.

"This award is a two-fold honor - first, it is an immeasurably rewarding experience for me to be part of the Morris School District’s unique 'community of communities' and to see it ascend," Pendergrast said. "And secondly, the privilege of representing an ascending state, also a unique 'community of communities' that is at the forefront of high-quality innovation in public education, is an especially profound honor."

Pendergrast was previously honored as the Region 1 Superintendent of the Year in September.

Under Pendergrast's leadership, reading and writing scores at Frelinghuysen Middle School have improved across all grades and demographic groups, and enrollment in honors and AP-level classes has climbed. The number of students passing AP exams has doubled since his appointment in 2015. Morristown High School also had the most students enrolled in the highest level math and science classes of any high school in the county.

These district-wide improvements show "greater access to exceptional opportunities for more and more of our students to engage their intellectual curiosity and pursue their passions - which means they graduate from MSD with better preparation for their futures," Pendergrast said.

Before joining the Morris School District, Pendergrast was the superintendent at West Morris Regional High School District. Before that, he worked as a high school history teacher and varsity basketball coach for the Summit Public Schools and held central office administrative positions for the Westfield Public School District.