District 9 Team Member Spotlight

Dr. Jasmin Varela, Deputy Superintendent

Dr. Jasmin Varela is a proud graduate of the New York City Public Schools (K-12). She started her educational journey as a Spanish-speaker in a K-2 bilingual program at P.S. 152 Gwendoline N. Alleyne. She credits her early childhood teachers and parents for her academic success, which led her to pursue a career in education. They set high expectations and established a solid foundation for Dr. Varela to thrive socially, emotionally and academically. As the daughter of young, divorced, immigrant parents with limited formalized schooling, she quickly learned to leverage her linguistic and cultural identities to advocate for herself and others. Always championing for marginalized and discriminated groups, including non-English speakers. Her greatest inspiration came from her first student, her late father, Héctor Varela. He was an avid reader, prolific writer, and progressive beyond his years. As she learned, she taught him how to read, write, and speak in English, and he sparked in her the confidence and leadership to teach.

Her career as an English Language Arts and Title I Reading Specialist began in Jackson Heights, Queens–serving children and families in one of the most ethnically diverse counties in the nation–in the same school district she had attended during those formative years. As a teacher, she was also afforded the opportunity of teaching English as a New Language to adults and overseas in Latin America and East Asia. With exposure to rich classroom experiences, she was hired as an Instructional Specialist for English Language Learners for District 9 and 10. During that time she collaborated on a proposal for an international school for newly arrived students (6-12) and became its founding assistant principal. Thereafter, she went on to become assistant principal at a dual language school (K-8). In 2008, she joined The NYC Leadership Academy: Aspiring Principals Program and completed her residency at a National Blue Ribbon School. That year she accepted the position of principal of a prek-5 school, which at the time was a SURR or School Under Registration Review. Under her administration, the school transformed from SURR to good academic standing during her first 3 years. Most recently she served as the Director of Renewal Schools, collaborating with students, families, pedagogues, school leaders and administrators from several schools under NYSED oversight, 5 of which were receivership schools who came off. Her co-director and her were invited to present at City Hall for the mayor’s office and on promising practices at a receivership forum at the State level. All of these collective opportunities have prepared her well to serve as deputy superintendent.

Dr. Varela holds a B.A. from Hunter College, a M.Ed. from Cambridge College, a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, a Literacy Certificate from The CUNY School of Professional Studies, and certifications from Harvard Graduate School of Education, including the National Institute for Urban School Leaders and Harvard Institute for Superintendents and District Leaders, among others. Most recently Dr. Varela completed her doctoral studies in Instructional Leadership at St. John’s University. Her core values center love, belonging, equity, collaboration, perseverance and growth and are woven into the fabric of her personal and professional interactions.