Town Government
School Committee & Superintendent
The Superintendent
Sheryl L. Stanton
Plainfield is too small to run a school district by itself, so it does not. Its students belong to the Mohawk Trail Regional School District, about 758 of them across four schools, and one person answers for the whole operation. Sheryl L. Stanton is the Superintendent, proposing the district budget, setting academic priorities, and running the schools day to day from a central office in Shelburne Falls. The Superintendent is hired by and reports to the elected School Committee, which evaluates her work.
Here is the thing worth knowing about a regional district. The committee that hires the Superintendent does not answer to Plainfield alone. It answers to eight towns at once, and Plainfield holds two of its sixteen seats. That is real power for a town of this size, and it is also why a school question in Plainfield is never only a Plainfield question.
| Role | Superintendent of Schools, Mohawk Trail Regional School District |
|---|---|
| District office | Central office in Shelburne Falls |
| Website | mtrsd.org |
The School Committee
The Mohawk Trail Regional School Committee is made up of 16 elected representatives, two from each member town: Ashfield, Buckland, Charlemont, Colrain, Hawley, Heath, Plainfield and Shelburne. It sets district policy, approves the school budget, and hires and evaluates the Superintendent. Its meetings are public and recorded, which means a Plainfield student who shows up can speak, and one who cannot get there can watch. Plainfield’s two seats are the ones Plainfield voters fill.
Martha Thurber
Suzanne Crawford
David Bjorklund
Nadya Camilini
The district lists its members by town.
| Member town | Representatives |
|---|---|
| Ashfield | Rachel Wang, Patricia Bayer |
| Buckland | Martha Thurber (Chair), Charles Leach |
| Charlemont | Evelyn Locke, Ron Smith |
| Colrain | Dennis DePaolo, John Chivers |
| Hawley | Suzanne Crawford (Vice Chair), Robert Sears |
| Heath | Budge Litchfield |
| Plainfield | David Bjorklund, Nadya Camilini |
| Shelburne | Willow Cohen, Maya Winfrey |
Names as listed by the district on mtrsd.org, read 2026 08 23. The district’s page names one representative for Heath; check the district roster for the current holder of the second seat.
The District at a Glance
- Enrollment: 758 students.
- Schools: four, including Sanderson Academy in Ashfield and Mohawk Trail Regional School in Buckland.
- Plainfield’s elementary school: Sanderson Academy, in Ashfield.
- Per-pupil spending: $26,521.01 across the district.
- Four-year graduation rate: 88.1 percent.
- State data: DESE profile (code 07170000).
Meetings & Participation
- When: the committee’s agendas and minutes are posted by school year on the district website at mtrsd.org.
- Public comment: residents may address the committee. Check the agenda for sign-up details.
- Two chances to be heard: through the two committee members Plainfield elects, and on the floor of Plainfield’s own Town Meeting, which votes the town’s assessed share of the school budget.
- The budget: the regional committee approves the district budget, and then each town’s Town Meeting votes its share.
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