Southern Berkshire superintendent finalists interviewed

SHEFFIELD – Three of the four candidates to replace Southern Berkshire Regional School District (SBRSD) Superintendent Michael J. Singleton have come forward for their public interviews.

On Monday night (Feb. 11), the district’s only internal candidate, Curriculum and Professional Development Coordinator David M. Hastings, kicked off the four-night interview process for the school committee.

“I love the district,” he told the school committee as to his reasoning for applying to be the new superintendent. “I believe in the students, I believe in the staff, I believe in the administration.”

Throughout the interview, he highlighted his strong ties to the district and community, in addition to his communication skills.

“My goal as a superintendent is to be out and around,” Mr. Hastings said, acknowledging it would be “challenging.”

He placed curriculum alignment to the Common Core State Standards as his highest priority if hired as superintendent.

“I think we have to reach some non-negotiable goals,” he said, later specifying curriculum alignment as one of them.

The main concern about his superintendent candidacy seemed to lie in his lack of knowledge about elementary education.

“Elementary education is something that I have to learn,” said Mr. Hastings, who was part of the SBRSD Elementary Task Force last year.

He has been in his current role as curriculum coordinator for two years, but he had his first job in the SBRSD in 1977 as a math teacher. His other experience includes time at Hillcrest Educational Centers and in the military as an interrogator.

He built a house in Southfield in 1978 and has lived there ever since; his kids attended school in Southern Berkshire.

“When this position became a possibility, I thought my personal set of skills would make a good match for this district,” Mr. Hastings said. “What we need is someone who’s great. I hope that’s me.”

His interview was followed by a round of applause from audience members, including students, teachers and parents. After all of the interviews, the school committee allowed for two-minute comments from any of members of the public in attendance.

“He is hands-down the best candidate,” said Wendy Casey, a high school English teacher, following Mr. Hastings’ interview. “He’s an invaluable resource.”

“He never gives up on whatever he’s doing,” added Caleb Davis, a SBRSD graduate.

Patricia Lally

On Tuesday night (Feb. 12), it was Tewksbury Public Schools Assistant Superintendent Patricia A. Lally’s turn in the hot seat.

“Being here today has made me realize this is really a place I want to be,” Dr. Lally told the school committee. “I would love to relocate here. I want to be active and involved in the activities here.”

She was particularly impressed by New Marlborough Central School, where she went as part of her site visit earlier in the day.

“To see that kind of engagement is impressive,” she said.

Later, in the public comment period, parents acknowledged Dr. Lally’s engagement at New Marlborough.

“She was very enthusiastic,” said parent and New Marlborough-Monterey School Council President Kristin E. Sanzone. “She asked us a lot of questions.”

During the interview, Dr. Lally also said curriculum alignment would be an important issue to her if hired as the SBRSD superintendent, making sure the three outlying schools are connected to the Sheffield campus. She indicated the way to do that would be by having teachers conduct visits to other classrooms and schools and do peer reviews.

“People get kind of stuck in their own little classrooms,” she said. “They never see the continuum.”

She also said inviting community members to visit the schools could be one way to build better relationships between the towns and the schools.

One strength Dr. Lally shared was her negotiation experience, as she has been on both sides of the process. The most recent contract negotiations in Tewksbury were successful without the presence of attorneys, and she said they were using the same process to build an educator evaluation agreement.

The bulk of her previous experience includes 20 years as a teacher. She became assistant principal in 2003 and principal in 2007 of Tewksbury High School. She has only been assistant superintendent for a year.

Patricia Gardner

On Wednesday night (Feb. 13), Turners Falls High School Principal Patricia E. Gardner was interviewed for the superintendency.

Turners Falls is part of the Gill-Montague Regional School District, and Ms. Gardner indicated she prefers working in regional districts as opposed to city-based districts.

“I’ve enjoyed working in the regional school district; I like that it’s smaller,” she said. “You can see teachers teaching, and you can know what’s going on.”

On the issue of moving to The Berkshires, Ms. Gardner was reluctant to commit to a full-time residence. However, she did indicate she would have at least a part-time residence in the area.

If hired as the SBRSD superintendent, she said she would make curriculum alignment, community outreach, adoption of the new educator evaluation system and continued use of new technology the cornerstones of her job.

She admitted some ignorance on the budget level, saying it was an area she would need to do more research on if hired. The research, which she said should be integral for anyone involved in the budget process, would involve utilizing the skills and advice of the SBRSD administration team.

Ms. Gardner has 19 years of experience as an English teacher, in addition to administration experience at the elementary, middle and high school levels. She is also working toward her doctorate, which she will receive in May, and has experience as a coach of various sports.

In the public comment portion of her interview, one of Ms. Gardner’s colleagues, Gill-Montague Student Services Director Walter J. Solzak (who accompanied her to SBRSD for “moral support”), said a few words.

“Pat is an awesome person,” he said. “I believe [her skills] are transferable [from principal to superintendent].”

The fourth candidate, Monson Public Schools Curriculum and Instruction Director Linda L. Carrier, will be interviewed tonight (Feb. 14) at 6 p.m. in the Mount Everett Regional High School library.

Immediately following that interview, the school committee will deliberate on all four candidates and decide which of them (if any) should be the new leader of the SBRSD. The chosen candidate would start the job as superintendent on July 1.

Posted by Catherine M. Krummey on February 14, 2013. Filed under Education News,News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry