image description
The School Committee authorized the personnel/negotiations subcommittee to search for an interim superintendent that starts no later than July 1

Pittsfield Will Seek an Interim School Superintendent

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass.— Joseph Curtis will be replaced by an interim superintendent in June.

On Wednesday, the School Committee authorized the personnel/negotiations subcommittee to search for an interim superintendent that starts no later than July 1-- earlier if possible.

"I wish we were not having to do this," Chair William Cameron said.

A couple of weeks ago, Curtis announced that he would be stepping down at the end of June after 30 years with the Pittsfield Public Schools.  He read an emotional message that explained his decision is "The right decision for me, for the district, and the community I care deeply about."

The outgoing superintendent said in the coming months, his priority will be to ensure a seamless transition to his successor.

Cameron told the committee on Wednesday that they have three options: conduct a full-bore search for a new superintendent, secure an interim superintendent for some or all of the upcoming school year, or do nothing.

Members agreed that filling the position temporarily is the best path forward.

William Garrity pointed out that he and Mayor Peter Marchetti (then council president) were on the search committee that selected Curtis about four years ago.  Garrett was a student representative at the time and remembers being told by the Massachusetts Association of School Committees that most superintendent candidates are looking to apply at the beginning of the year.

"I think we would be at a really strong disadvantage if we started a full-time superintendent search tonight," he said.

"I think we should go the interim route, be able to provide at least some continuity while also allowing us to conduct a more full search. We're also coming up on election season. The School Committee composition may change so that's also another fact we have to consider."



Sara Hathaway agreed.

"I think it's not a secret that we will need to adjust the salary for the position in order to attract top candidates," she said.

"We have had a bargain clearance sale price on that position for a long time. We tried to raise the salary last year and Mr. Curtis declined the raise that was calculated for him so I think we need to look at a number of aspects of the position before we conduct a search for a long-term candidate."

Dominick Sacco said he knows that time is of the essence but "this is such an important position and it is something that we really need to look at very carefully, take our time."

"It's not that we have a lot of time but take the time we have and really look deep into the credentialing and also the priorities that we're looking for," he added.

"Because there are obviously priorities that need to be dealt with I think more immediate than later and that should be talked about."

Cameron said Marchetti, who was absent from the meeting, asked him to share that he believes an interim superintendent is a sound approach.


 


Tags: Pittsfield Public Schools,   superintendent,   

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Pittsfield Board to Mull School Committee Pay Increase

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Should the School Committee be paid more? This conversation will pick up soon.

On Tuesday, the City Council unanimously voted to send a request from Ward 1 Councilor Kenneth Warren and Ward 4 Councilor James Conant to the Personnel Review Board.

In February, the Ordinance & Rules subcommittee recommended not to approve the request and referred it to the Charter Review Committee, which determined it should be addressed through an ordinance.

"The School Committee had never been paid until 2015. This is now 10 years later. We're having a charter review as a result of a petition of mine. Their pay needs to be adjusted before July of this year, or it can't be done for another two years. It's the right thing to do," Warren said after motioning to refer to the review board.

"Even if we double it, the School Committee pay, for six of them, it will only be $25,000."

He said the city would get what it pays for and cited the committee's hard work over the past year, which involved a difficult budget and allegations against Pittsfield Public Schools staff.

"There's a lot that's on their plate," he said. "Frankly, they do probably as much, sometimes maybe even more than we do, and they don't even get half of what we do."

School Committee members are paid $4,000 annually, city councilors $8,000, and the council president makes $10,000. The council's last raise occurred in 1994.

Warren said the last election barely saw six School Committee candidates, and he would be surprised to see six people run this year. He explained that a pay change has to be done by ordinance and pointed out that when the Personnel Review Board handled the mayor's increase, it researched other Massachusetts communities to come up with a fair pay.

View Full Story

More Pittsfield Stories