The BOE unanimously approved the appointment of William R. Papallo as interim superintendent at a meeting tonight. There was no discussion about his appointment. Dr. Papallo was not present at the meeting.
"I'm so excited to have Dr. Papallo back in Norwalk," said Rosa Murray, chair of the BOE, after the meeting.
Ms. Murray explained that Dr. Papallo was selected after the BOE received the names of five candidates from the State Dept. of Education. Of the five, three candidates were interviewed by the Personnel Committee, which Ms. Murray explained is comprised of the entire board.
"Dr. Papallo fit our criteria because he is experienced and has prior knowledge of Norwalk," she said.
Although Lynne Moore, Principal of West Rocks Middle School and Bob McCain, Principal of Nathan Hale Middle School were rumored to be possible candidates, Ms Murray said that they were not considered. "We were looking for candidates with superintendent experience," she said.
Ms Murray also defended a provision in Dr. Papallo's contract for the use of a car paid for by the BOE. Ms. Murray said the present Superintendant, Sal Corda, recieves a car allowance and that providing a car would not cost any extra money. Ms. Murray could not say however how much Dr. Corda was receiving for his car allowance. She referred further inquiries to the BOE's Finance Department.
Vice-Chair Jody Bishop-Pullan also said it was not unusual for a superintendent to have a car provided by the school district.
According to Jim Katzin, Chairman of the Litchfield Board of Education, the Litchfield School District did not provide a car for Mr. Papallo, however, they did give him a fixed amount of money each month to cover the costs of using his own vehicle, but he could not recall the exact amount.
In an email to NorwalkNet Mr. Katzin wrote: "Bill is a great thinker who thoroughly understands the role of the superintendent. Your district will be fortunate to have him back as interim superintendent."
Tonight's BOE meeting was Sal Corda's final one. In leaving he told the BOE that they should seriously consider restoring the two elementary school Assistant Principals positions that were eliminated as a result of recent budget cuts.
At the meeting the BOE also discussed topics ranging from traffic control at Columbus Magnet School to the consolidation of mail room services with City Hall -- a move which could save up to $55K. The Board discussed applying for a grant under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) that could provide up to $250K in extra funds. The BOE also approved contracts for the Assistant Superintendent Tony Daddona and Human Resources Officer Fay Ruotolo. In addition the BOE extended the contract of Whitsons Culinary Group to manage Norwalk's school cafeterias.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
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When services and positions are being cut why does Norwalk have to pay for this man's car?
ReplyDeleteI would encourage NorwalkNet to find out how much Mr. Papallo was given in Litchfield for his car and how much his car will cost Norwalk.
This is taxpayers' money we are talking about. Papallo is not a corporate exec he is a public servant.
I am curious about that as well. What does a car have to do with doing his job as SOS? I drive my own car to work and recive a mileage allowance when I have to travel for my job. This is the time to look at expenses reasonably.
ReplyDeleteDon't blame Papallo; blame the BoE members who voted for this contract. Norwalk's BoE has already proven itself to be irresponsible and disrespectful of the taxpayers by approving the obscene contract for Dr. Corda last year or the year before, so why would the current vote surprise anyone?
ReplyDeleteIf you are making over 100k a year and have anything at all to do with making a budget, you should be required, encouraged,pushed and prodded into living in the city. If you are going to foist tax hikes on the electorate, then you should have to live with the effects of you budget.
ReplyDelete