Carlos M. Gramata

Hillside Elementary School
Livingston Public School District
Livingston, New Jersey
cgramata@livingston.org

Carlos M. Gramata has spent the majority of his 12-year administrative career as principal of Hillside Elementary School, where he launched a comprehensive character education program that develops the whole child through service learning. Hillside has twice been recognized as a State and National School of Character for these efforts, which include a 4th and 5th grade learning partnership with a nearby school for children with multiple disabilities. To promote community integration and understanding across differences in ability, the program includes sensitivity training using art and adaptive technology. Gramata credits the effectiveness of programs like these to his leadership philosophy of empowering others through peer mentorship, leadership development, and targeted professional support for those closest to impacting student achievement. This leadership style has also produced a culture of data and assessment at Hillside, where Gramata facilitates thoughtful instructional decisions based on a variety of data sources as leader of the school’s multidisciplinary Data Leadership Team. Hillside teachers are curious and confident in their engagement with data, and the school was first in the district to pilot the use of data warehousing and benchmarking software. Gramata is currently pursuing an Ed.D. for K-12 Leadership at St. Elizabeth University. He holds M.A. degrees in Educational Leadership and Early Childhood Education from the Graduate School of Education at Rutgers University and a B.A. in Sociology from Rutgers College.