Superintendent Hart is pictured with (L-R) State Senator Sal DiDomenico,
JCCHCE Executive Director Elvira Pinjic, and Mayor DeMaria.
Superintendent Hart Receives JCCHCE’S Champion for Children Health Award
Described as a "transformative leader” who has “changed the trajectory of the Everett Public Schools,” Superintendent William D. Hart accepted the 2025 Robert Restuccia Champion for Children’s Health Award from the Joint Committee for Children’s Health Care in Everett (JCCHCE) during its 31st Annual Gala on Thursday, September 25, 2025, at Spinelli’s in Lynnfield.
JCCHCE Executive Director Elvira Pinjic introduced Superintendent Hart and presented him with an award it has presented every year since 1996. “Mr. Hart is the ideal combination of ability and passion,” Pinjic said “His distinguished track record as an educational and organizational leader makes him an ideal candidate to lead any school district, but his love and commitment are reserved solely for the Everett Public Schools.”
Pinjic also credited Mr. Hart for “recognizing the value of stakeholders” and for “broadening the district’s ambitions in addressing the multi-faceted challenges our students face.”
Mr. Hart was also presented with City of Everett and State House citations from Mayor Carlo DeMaria and State Senator Sal DiDomenico, respectively. Both lauded the job the Superintendent has done since he was appointed in December of 2023 and credited him for prioritizing students and creating an unprecedented level of collaboration between the EPS and the city’s leaders and elected officials.
In addition to the Everett Public Schools (EPS) teachers, administrators, and staff members who attended the event, School Committee Chairperson Samantha Hurley, Vice Chairperson Jeanne Cristiano, and members Robin Babcock, Kristin Bairos, Margaret Cornelio, and Joanna Garren were on hand to celebrate the occasion. Mr. Hart’s niece, Danielle, a public-school teacher in a district north of Boston.
In his remarks to the capacity crowd, Superintendent Hart thanked the School Committee, Mayor DeMaria, and Senator DiDomenico for their advocacy and partnership. He praised the past and current leaders of the JCCHCE for helping students and families access health insurance and quality health care. He remembered the late Robert Restuccia and Dr. Peter Masucci Jr., two of the central figures in the growth and influence of the JCCHCE in Everett and beyond.
In accepting the honor on behalf of the entire EPS, the Superintendent told the gathering: “I have an unobstructed view of what transpires when good people do good things. When positive motivations are matched with great energy. When noise is replaced with clarity. When scattered agendas are swapped with a unity of purpose.” He implored everyone to ignore misguided negativity, and to continue to work together for the betterment of the city and its students and families.
“My acceptance of the Robert Restuccia Champion for Children’s Health Award is a sign that the Everett Public Schools are doing great things,” Superintendent Hart concluded. “And be assured that it will serve as motivation to push for even greater successes in the future.”