Winchendon School Committee Considers Process for Superintendent Search

by Inanna Arthen
At their meeting on Thurday, May 20, the Winchendon School Committee heard presentations by two firms that handle candidate search and evaluation for school districts, and considered the district's immediate course of action toward finding a new Superintendent of Schools to take over from retiring Superintendent Joan Landers. Newly elected School Committee members Ryan Forsythe and Shauna LaPointe joined members Karen Kast, Larry Murphy and Greg Vine for the first time in a meeting that ran for two and half hours.

Currently, former Murdock High School Principal Thad King is serving as Interim Superintendent for the district. Former Murdock High School Assistant Principal Megan Weeks is serving as Principal. The district will be filling several positions for the forthcoming 2021-2022 school year, on a tight deadline for hiring candidates to start by September 1, three months away.

Dorothy Presser, from the Massachusetts Association of School Committees (MASC), spoke first. She explained that the search process is flexible and can be adapted to a district's needs. MASC creates an online survey and holds forums for stakeholders to gather information on what the community wants from its leaders. From these, MASC develops the position description and decision criteria for the Superintendent. They will create the advertising and promotion for the position, which will be listed "very broadly" nation-wide. Ms. Presser pointed out that most searches are now done entirely online. MASC will handle all the administrative work in collecting application packets from candidates.

The School Committee will organize an independent screening/search committee. MASC will prepare the search committee by orienting them in their roles and responsibilities, as well as laws they need to know about. The search committee will review applications and select a list of finalists to present to the School Committee. MASC can also handle the screening and tiering process if the district prefers that. Otherwise MASC will help the committee prepare for interviews. All communications will be between the candidates and MASC, which acts as a liaison to the candidates. Candidates will not directly communicate with the search committee.

When the finalists are chosen, the search becomes more public, with public interviews and site visits (both by the School Committee to the candidate's district and by the candidate to Winchendon). MASC will coordinate all site visits. They assist with reference checks and are present at all final interviews. Once a candidate is selected, MASC can help with contracts, and can also come in for workshops to assist the new Superintendent in getting oriented and building a team.

Mr. Murphy asked how long the process would take. Ms. Presser replied that the whole process "from soup to nuts" would be three to four months. If some parts of the process were skipped, it could take less time. Ms. Presser noted that most applications come in right before the deadline, so the job posting can be up for less than a month. A complication is that many candidates would need to give notice to their current job, often 60 to 90 days, so it might be difficult to aim for a September 1 start date.

MASC's fee for the complete search process is $10,500. Additional expenses might include printed materials and mileage, which are capped at $2,500. The maximum cost would be $13,000.

In response to questions, Ms. Presser stated that the majority of candidates in the pool "are not sitting Superintendents" but people "who are ready to move up" to the position of Superintendent. She also explained that while MASC will advertise widely, most of the candidates will be from the New England region. Site visits to distant locations could be done via Zoom.

Randall Collins from the New England School Development Council (NESDEC) then gave his presentation. He began by saying that their basic process is "ditto" with MASC's. Mr. Collins stated that he had served as a Superintendent for thirty years. He emphasized that the most important element was "a good fit" between the Superintendent and the district.

Mr. Collins said that NESDEC would begin by creating a detailed timeline, with the School Committee. He recommended not skipping any steps or rushing the process. His presentation went over the same steps as MASC's process, expanding on exactly how NESDEC handled each step and adding real life examples. He discussed some of the issues around getting references, mentioning that it's hard to check references until late in the process, and that he will look at social media such as LinkedIn.

Mr. Collins gave NESDEC's cost for the full search as $13,680. He estimated that the search would take about four to five months.

Following the two presentations, Mr. Murphy proposed four possible courses of action for the School Committee to decide among.

The first would be to hire a search firm to manage the search for a candidate. The second would be for the School Committee to do the search themselves, as they did in 2018 when Superintendent Landers was hired. The third option would be to keep the present Interim Superintendent in place for a year while doing a longer search. The fourth would be to do no search, but simply hire the present Interim Superintendent for the permanent position.

Ms. Kast pointed out that doing a search would require administrative support, time and energy that the district and the School Committee simply does not have. She also emphasized that it would involve potential HR issues that they were not prepared for. Mr. Murphy admitted that when they did the search in 2018, the School Committee did not do all the steps outlined by MASC and NESDEC. Ms. LaPointe put in that the timeline, in which a new Superintendent might not be onboarded until January, concerned her. With Winchendon performing in the bottom tenth percentile, the district cannot afford to be without strong leadership going into the next school year.

Mr. Vine made a strong case for the fourth option, saying that the present Interim knows the strategic plan, has worked hard for the district and it would be respectful and best for the students "to retain the talent we have." He stated that he saw no benefit in spending the money for a search. Mr. Forsythe stated that he feared the pool of candidates who were qualified and wanted to come to Winchendon would be thin, and they might have trouble finding a candidate. Ms. Kast felt that a search was necessary for reasons of transparency. She added that a search would also "open up the pool to diversity" which the district needed.

Mr. Murphy opened the floor to comments from the public. Parent Tina Santos stated that the district should follow the same process for hiring the Superintendent as it was doing for several other administrative positions currently in search. Selectman Danielle LaPointe commented that following the search process would help maintain staff morale, and avoid the appearance that the School Committee had just "shoved in our person." Responding to a point raised about whether a search was legally required, Finance Committee member Dr. Maureen Ward explained that positions must be posted internally for five days, but it is not required to do a full search for outside candidates. Several speakers commented that the district "is going in the right direction" under the leadership of Interim Superintendent King. Teacher Stephanie Rondeau commented that the longest a Superintendent has stayed during her tenure as a teacher has been three years. Retiring Superintendent Landers suggested that people ask why the high turnover is happening.

Mr. Murphy asked for a motion on the four options. Mr. Vine moved that the School Committee forego doing a search or continuing with an Interim, and that they offer the permanent position to Mr. King and work to secure a contract for him to begin by September 1. There was no second made, so the motion died.

Mr. Forsythe moved that the School Committee adopt option 3, retaining Mr. King as Interim while making a full search for a permanent Superintendent with a firm, for which Mr. King was welcome to be an applicant "and might well be the succcessful applicant." Ms. Kast seconded the motion.

"I believe that this is a proposal that will serve the district well in both the short term and the long term," Mr. Forsythe explained. "The objectivity and the transparency that comes with a search can serve the district well, and also can serve the successful candidate well, even if that successful candidate is our Interim candidate. By going through that process, and being validated by a full search, gives not only the confidence that this Board and the community might have in Mr. King, also gives it the validity that comes along with a full search."

Ms. LaPointe stated that option 3 gives the Committee more time and allows all stakeholders to be heard as part of the search process. Ms. Kast added that the search process protects Mr. King as well; no one can say he was "just put into his position" without a fair process.

However, the Committee appeared split on their support for the motion, with Ms. LaPoint and Mr. Vine voting no. Before the vote was complete (Mr. Murphy would have had to break the tie), Ms. LaPointe offered a further explanation of her rationale. She stated that she didn't want to commit to a search firm without getting more information about each firm's success rates, specifically how many of their candidates stayed for the long term after being hired.

Ms. Weeks spoke to point out that the motion involved a hiring decision before the person in question had actually been asked if he wanted to be hired.

After more discussion, and input from Dr. Ward, Mr. Forsythe withdrew his motion and made a motion to offer Mr. King an extension of his contract as Interim Superintendent through June 30, 2022. This motion passed unanimously. The School Committee then voted to table discussion on the search firms until their next meeting on Thursday, June 3, which will allow time to gather more information from districts which have utilized these firms for candidate searches.

The video of the full meeting with presentations may be viewed at School Committee Meeting, May 20, 2021.

DESE Doing Tiered Focused Monitoring Review of Winchendon Public Schools.

During the week of May 23, 2021, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's Office of Public School Monitoring (PSM) will conduct a Tiered Focused Monitoring Review of Winchendon Public Schools. The Office of Public School Monitoring conducts a review in each district and charter school every three years to monitor compliance with federal and state special education and civil rights regulations. Areas of review related to special education include student assessments, determination of eligibility, the Individualized Education Program (IEP) Team process, and IEP development and implementation. Areas of review related to civil rights include bullying, student discipline, physical restraint, and equal access to school programs for all students.

In addition to the onsite visit, parent outreach is an important part of the review process. The review chairperson from the Office of Public School Monitoring will send all parents of students with disabilities an online survey that focuses on key areas of their child's special education program. Survey results will contribute to the development of a report. During the onsite review, the Office of Public School Monitoring will interview the chairperson(s) of the district's Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC). Other onsite activities may include interviews of district staff and administrators, reviews of student records, and onsite observations.

Parents and other individuals may call Michael McDonald, Public School Monitoring Chairperson, at (781) 338-3746 to request a telephone interview. If an individual requires an accommodation, such as translation, to participate in an interview, the Department will make the necessary arrangements.

Within approximately 60 business days after the onsite visit, the review chairperson will provide the district with a report with information about areas in which the district meets or exceeds regulatory requirements and areas in which the district requires assistance to correct or improve practices. The public will be able to access the report at www.doe.mass.edu/psm/.

Winchendon Public Schools
Suzanne Michel, Director of Pupil Services

Preschool Screening in June

Winchendon Public Schools Preschool Screening will take place on June 9 & 10, 2021. Children must be age 3 or 4 by August 31, 2021 to be eligible. Screening looks at a child's development in the areas of language, fine and gross motor skills, cognition and social emotional skills.

If you have any concerns about your child, suspect your child may have a disability, or if you did not receive an information packet by mail please call the Winchendon Pre-K Program 978-297-3436 or email kbrooks@winchendonk12.org.

Sizer Educator Provides Special "Turning 18" Speaker Series for Students

To end the school year, Sizer School Senior English Teacher and Literacy Specialist Peter Nelson decided to do something a little different.

"Engagement among my seniors in English 12 has been a challenge as the year comes to a close. So, for the final four weeks of my English 12 class I am doing something a bit unconventional: We are focusing on what it means to turn 18 in Massachusetts (i.e., reaching the age of legal adulthood)," said Nelson. "I invited speakers with relevant expertise to speak remotely to my English 12 classes."

To prepare for each session, Nelson had students research their speaker or the topic of the session.

"I gave them something to read from which they generate questions in advance," said Nelson.

Each session of the series included a 20-30 minute presentation with a 10-20 minute Q & A. So far, the students have heard from several Sizer staff members including School Nurse Elizabeth Dugas and Manager of Executive Operations Janet O'Hara as well as alumni like Ashlee Laffita and Reina Morales. Students have also been visited by speakers such as:

• State Representative Natalie Higgins (D-Leominster);
• Heidi Bercovici, LMFT, a certified emotionally-focused therapist;
• Heather Carbone REALTOR, BPOR, CBR from Acres Away Realty;
• Dawn Provost, Operations Specialist from the School of Continuing Education & Montachusett Technical Institute;
• Oumou Cherif from the Community Engagement Division of the Office of the Attorney General Maura Healey;
• Dr. Jamie Kerr, who discussed young adult medical care;
• Sizer School Alum Bailey Morse who discussed Organs and Blood Donations;
• Jay Romero Luna of Workers Credit Union who spoke to students about financial wellness.

Coming up, Sizer seniors will hear from Fitchburg Mayor Stephen DiNatale (D-Fitchburg).

"Our seniors are about to embark on their post-high school lives and as I have listened to various experts who have joined us these last few weeks I'm struck by how much there is to learn and be aware of," said Nelson. "From the super practical such as insuring a car, renting an apartment, voting, building credit, paying taxes to topics that are just as important but somewhat less cut and dry like forming and sustaining healthy relationships, transitioning from pediatric to adult healthcare, or taking civic action."

Nelson added, "I also wanted my students to know that there are a lot of people in North Central Massachusetts who are doing good work and who care about them and want them to do well."

On May 20th, State Rep. Higgins spoke with seniors about several topics including local roads and public transit, debt forgiveness, and services for homeless Massachusetts residents. Higgins told seniors that it was being able to hear her own State Rep speak when she was in high school--it was, at the time, Jennifer Flanagan (D-Leominster)--that inspired her to seek political office after she graduated law school.

To find out more about Sizer School, visit www.sizerschool.org. Sizer School is currently accepting applications for the 7th and 9th grade for next year. Apply now, by visiting https://tinyurl.com/SizerSchool or email Lindsay Sauvageau at info@sizerschool.org to learn more!