The Backstory - Paula Brault

Paula Brault is not the Dean of Mohawk Trail Regional High School, but she used to be. Brault first started working at Mohawk Trail as a Dean last year, and quickly advanced to the position of Assistant Principal. But many still mistake her as “Dean Brault”.

Although Ms. Brault is an administrator now, she hasn’t always had this role. She started her working life on her parent’s farm. She began her professional adult career wanting to be a Nurse, she started her college studies, and had 3,000 hours of volunteer work helping her towards that goal. Before switching over to the education path, Brault worked as an EMT.

Her dad was a teacher, “Teaching is in my blood.”, She said. Although she knew what she wanted, she also knew what she didn’t. When Paula switched plans and tried to start her education in college, she realized she wasn’t ready for that life. She moved back from her dorm, which held more people than her hometown, and started attending Greenfield Community College, a school she speaks very highly about.

From here, her teaching career blossomed like the Chrysanthemums that she used to pick on her family farm. She became a paraprofessional, and went back to juggle more schooling alongside that position, aiming for a math degree. Paula’s schedule was stacked, taking 6 classes: Calculus 3, Linear Algebra, Spanish 3, Physics AND 2 education classes. From there, she got another degree in Human Services.

Because she loved education so much, she continued that homage.

So, she became a math teacher. This part of her life started at Pioneer Valley Regional High School, as a long term substitute math teacher, and she continued on to work there for 14 years.

When Brault’s daughter left for college, life changed completely. “I had to think, what will life look like now?” Brault said. From her past experiences, she learned that she loves to be an advisor for others. For the final time, she went back to school, to get a Masters degree in Counseling. Her piece of advice, “Don’t pay for your own college and your kid’s at the same time.” But no regrets, she goes on to get her CAGS degree, a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study, one step above her Masters.

At this point, Brault had 15 years of teaching experience, but none in counseling, so she knew her goal of being a school counselor in Massachusetts wasn’t in the cards at that time.

That’s when she found Hinsdale, New Hampshire. The school there, she says, is grades 6-12 and has even less enrolled than MTRS. Even then, she absolutely loved it.

And then the COVID-19 Pandemic hit.

Despite the risks of the time: the wildly unpredictable closures and job-loss that went along with the pandemic, Brault switched her place of employment; to Greenfield High School. Although Hinsdale was somewhere she loved, she needed to be “closer to home”, where she grew up in Franklin County. The position at GHS was only temporary, a year long slot.

That leads us to just a few years ago, where Paula Brault began working in the MTRS school community. She has always felt strongly connected to the school as an alumni, Class of ‘84. Now after 40 years, she returned, as the Dean. After fulfilling this title for nearly a full school year, Brault became a partner to the current principal, Chris Buckland and took on the role of assistant principal. “She’s a poacher turned gamekeeper,” Buckland says.

As someone from this area, Brault knows the people well. She’s between the ages of most people’s parents and grandparents, - and just became a grandparent herself 10 months ago, when her grandson Drew was born. - making her well acquainted with many student’s families, as a lot of them stay here to raise their kids.

With Brault being a graduate from MTRS, it was interesting to talk to her about her past experience here. The first big thing she pointed out, and is arguably the most visibly obvious when stepping into the building; the amount of students enrolled has considerably decreased. “1,200 students in only the main hallway.” Now, there are less than 300 students, and an additional middle school wing.

What Mohawk Trail lacks in numbers, is made up in academic offerings. That’s one of the things that appealed most to Paula when she decided to come back to MTRS. It’s incredibly appealing to her as a school counselor figure and current Assistant Principal to see the pathways to higher education, provided through a variety of AP and Honors Classes and personal Student-Teacher help.

As a student, Mohawk Trail was, and now as an educator is, a place Paula Brault finds herself proud to be associated with.