In a written statement Ms. Murray essentially repeated what she had said at the last Board meeting two weeks ago that the BOE is concerned that candidates won't apply to be the Superintendent in Norwalk if there is a danger that their name would become public:
The challenge for the search committee, who is committed to transperancy in this process must keep the search process confidential if we are to encourage the interest and applications from a large pool of high quality candidates.Ms Murray's statement should cause any parent or teacher in Norwalk great concern. It's been almost four months since Dr. Corda announced he was departing and the BOE's actions, or lack thereof, demonstrate a absence of effective leadership.
The candidates must be assured that a thorough process is a goal of the committee, This will encourage candidates that are successful in their current position to apply for our vacancy. Without these assurances, experienced candidates will not apply. A "leak" would expose a candidate's position in their current community, sending a signal that their superintendent is looking. Only one person can be selected and the quality of candidates who will bot be selected become, "damaged goods" in their community.
The search committee will move the process forward without putting at risk the top priority of being thorough. Solicit and encourage input from the community in a variety of ways that will be announced in the near future.
It should have taken the BOE no more than a month to figure out a process by which to conduct its search. The BOE's time should be invested in finding the right candidate not in repeating the same talking points week after week.
In addition Ms. Murray is still unable, or unwilling, to provide a straight answer on what will occur in the likely event that a superintendent has not been found by the end of the year. Dr. Papallo has stated unequivically that State law prevents him from working more than half a year.
"We'll deal with it when the time comes. We'll try and work with Dr. Papallo on his days, " is all Ms. Murray had to say when asked about this topic.
At the BOE meeting, board members decided after much discussion that they woul hold a meeting in early October to discuss the search. BOE members also grappled with the question of whether to search for candidates only within the Tri-State area or to broaden scope to include national candidates.
Earlier in the day the several community organizations including the Norwalk Education Foundation, Norwalk Community College, Norwalk NAACP, and the Norwalk PTO Council held an event at the NCC to announce an event called "Community Conversation About Education" that will be held on October 17. The purpose of the gathering is to provide a forum for Norwalk citizens to discuss that state of education in Norwalk.
"Our school system is at a crossroads," said State Senator Bob Duff who is also a sponsor of the event. "We're searching for a superintendent and working to increase our standardized test scores."
No one from the BOE or central office attended the press conference. Ms. Murray said she has had "conversations" with the organizers but would not specify how the BOE will be participating.
Also at the BOE meeting Assistant Superintendent Tony Daddona announced that the position of ultility aides which had been eliminated due to budget cuts will be reinstated. Most elementary schools will have aides will be available for 12.5 hours per week. School designated as Title I schools will have an aide available for 25.5 hours per week.
The decision to re-hire the aides came after central office administrators met with elementary school principals who said they needed these workers. Funding for the re-hirers is coming from a state priority school grant.
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Questions for the board of education:
ReplyDelete1. Do you have any idea how bad you make yourselves look over and over again?
2. Do you have a clue about the person that this district really needs to be an effective superintendent, or is it your intention to put into the superintendency someone you can control?
3. Do you know that you are an embarrassment to Norwalk?
4. Do you know that your staff has no confidence in your ability to provide direction to the district?
5. It will not be good to have two successive interim superintendents, but is there someone else who can take over for Dr. Papallo?
So in other words, we are no closer to getting a Superintendent since Corda resigned in June. Nice job BOE.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the confidentiality of the candidates, how hard is it to get those who are part of the search/interview committees to sign an affidavit stating they would not discuss the names of the candidates outside of the committees?
That's absolutely right #2. This is what happens when you have unqualified and under educated people serving as the education bosses of Norwalk. You have a group of people who know how to design a failing system because their own lives are marked by personal underachievement.
ReplyDeleteOkay, fellow Norwalkers. As I write this, there are 47 more days to Election Day.
ReplyDeleteAs an earlier poster pointed out, Dr. Corda resigned in June and was gone by the beginning of August. Dr. Papallo only has 200 odd days in his contract. There are 31 days in both July and August. We've already passed the first 15 days of September. At the last BOE meeting, it was decided that the first Search Committee meeting will be in October, so you can add in the remaining days in September.
If you are concerned about education in Norwalk, you do the math. Anyone good with probablistic statistics out there? Anybody want to hazard a guess as to the chances that the current Board, moving at this glacial pace will even decide whether to have a search firm by election day? My money's on either Slim or None, and I've just been informed that Slim's out to lunch.
Hey, maybe they'll suprise me, but even if they do choose a search firm, they still have to figure out what kind of superintendent they are looking for.
This is gonna be interesting, people, particularly if almost half the Board is replaced in November. But maybe that's what all the stalling around is about. Then they don't have to decide which candidate to choose, if there are any candidates at all by then to choose from. It'll be someone else's problem.
I think I finally understand all the frustration with the board of ed. There is something very wrong here.
ReplyDeleteThis is a disgrace. I am appalled at the laissez faire attitutde of the BOE. It this leadership? I am looking forward to Election Day. Thank you for alerting us to the Community Meeting on the 17th. I will be there.
ReplyDeleteWith the elections coming up, this is why the BOE should not have appointed themselves to be the search committee. The Search Committee should have been made up of a few Principals, Teachers, Non Teaching/Admin Staff, Parents and maybe even a couple of High School kids. But instead we have tis his useless Board who have what all politicians want: power and control.
ReplyDeleteTo the poster who said he/she will be at the Community Meeting on the 17th, you should understand that the number of people in the audience will be limited and that the audience will be representative of the demographics of the city. I believe that anyone who wants to attend should be permitted to do so. Use one of the high school auditoriums or the Concert Hall. This is too important to too many people, but the current board will benefit by having fewer people in attendance.
ReplyDeleteAs a district administrator in a nearby community I had a similar reaction to the article about how the BOE was approaching the search. Shouldn't be taking this long and easy to jump start the process by asking other districts for sample RFPs for consultants which provide at least a starting point for defining scope and determining likely cost range. This is not rocket science and there are plenty of easily accessible resources to move things along more quickly.
ReplyDeleteThe choice of a new Superintendent is one of the most important decisions a Board of Education can make. For Norwalk, it's a choice that can take Norwalk from where we are to where we want to go. Superintendents set the tone, the direction and the vision of a district for years to come.
ReplyDeleteIn my mind, a Superintendent search committee should be made up of a select grouping of a variety of community members who could provide the process contacts, ideas and expertise. Also, such a makeup might demonstrate, to interested Superintendent candidates, a commonality of purpose, showing us to be the kind of community that works well together for issues of great importance. It might show that we are the kind of community that works well together as a team. The concern over confidentiality is warranted and should be well planned for. Finding and engaging the best and brightest candidates for the next Superintendent of Norwalk Public Schools is the paramount goal.