Monday’s meeting of the Board of Education wrapped up quickly, but members might be working nights and weekends in coming weeks as they hustle to find a superintendent to replace Reggie Mayo.
The board Monday night laid out an accelerated timetable for the school district’s national search for a new superintendent of schools. To meet imminent deadlines, members of the board may be putting in Saturday hours this weekend to vet headhunting consultants.
Superintendent Mayo will step down July 1 after two decades of service. (Click here to read a story about his retirement and his parting observations about public education.) The Board of Ed hopes to have a replacement ready to start immediately, so as to avoid having to install an interim superintendent or losing the “momentum” of New Haven school reform, board chair Carlos Torre said.
The city has released a request for proposals, calling for consultants to conduct a national search for a new superintendent. The RFP closes on Friday. The Board of Ed agreed Monday night to begin going through the proposals over the weekend, conduct interviews with consultants on Monday, if possible, and select a consultant by Monday evening.
It’s a tight turnaround, and it may not be possible to hit the Monday evening goal, board members said. But they agreed to try given how little time there is and the importance of a scouring the country for the next superintendent. (One leading candidate, Assistant Superintendent Garth Harries, will be easy to find.)
Torre said the Board of Ed intends to create many opportunities for public input. He mentioned the city’s ongoing Charter Revision Commission as a model. That commission has held numerous public hearings in various locations in town as it works to revise the city’s foundational legal document.
Torre started things off by asking the audience at Monday’s Board of Ed meeting to speak about what qualities or qualifications they would like to see in the next superintendent of schools.
“Somebody like Dr. Mayo!” said Hazel Pappas, a fixture at Board of Ed meetings. She said she wants a superintendent who, like Mayo, is concerned about children’s education, and parents, and continuing all the programs begun in New Haven public schools.
Pappas urged the board not to hurry too much in the quest for a new superintendent: “Don’t be rushing and just grab somebody.”
Florence Caldwell said she’d like a superintendent who will put children and parents first and leave his door open to parents.
Jean Bosson-Heenan took the podium to say that she hopes the next superintendent will support a public Montessori school. She’s one of a group of moms working to make that idea a reality.
Bosson-Heenan said she’d like a superintendent who adopts a “whole-child” approach to learning, taking into account children’s sleep, food and TV intake.
She said she’s married to a fourth-grade teacher who would like to see a superintendent who talks to teachers more.
Someone like Dr. mayo? The biggest bully I've ever met? Someone who talks to teachers, great idea! Support a public Montessori program, good luck with that. And teach to the whole child, way overdue! My personal feeling is the dye has been cast and the new Super is already among us, Garth Harries. He has been being groomed for the job for years now.