Northampton names 11 to superintendent search panel

By Owen Boss

Staff Writer

NORTHAMPTON - School Committee Vice Chairwoman Stephanie Pick said Thursday that the host of qualified applicants made it tough to choose just 11 for a superintendent search committee.

"I had the very difficult task of having to say no to some fabulous candidates," Pick said. "It was very hard to do, and I kept finding myself saying 'Why just 11? Why can't we have 20?"

Pick said she and Mayor Clare Higgins, who chairs the school board, set out to form a search committee that was diverse and representative of all members of the school district - "meaning all grades, kindergarten through 12, parents, faculty members, administrators and community members."

The members of the panel are Susan Biggs, a chemistry teacher and coach at Northampton High School; Sharon Carlson, a physical education teacher at John F. Kennedy Middle School; Julie Hooks-Davis, cochairwoman of the Northampton Education Foundation's Small Grants Committee; Karen Jarvis-Vance, the school system's director of health and safety education; Martha Jenkins, a parent of two Northampton High School students; Greg Kerstetter, a fifth-grade teacher at Ryan Road Elementary School; Jason Mark, a parent of a Leeds Elementary School student; Police Capt. Scott Savino, a parent of a Northampton High student; Gail E. Scordilis, director of educational outreach at Smith College; and School Committee members James Young and Pick.

"The most important responsibility of any school committee is selecting a new superintendent, and thankfully we have some wonderful people here to help make a decision," Pick said.

School Committee members in August unanimously agreed to hire a consultant to assist with the search, Pick said money to pay the consultant will likely come from the city's school choice funding.

Potential consultants have until Sept. 24 to submit bids, Pick said. She expects a final decision on the consultant at the committee's October meeting.

The search committee will name several finalists, and the School Committee will choose one to succeed Superintendent Isabelina Rodriguez, who has held the post since 2004. Rodriguez announced in August that she would not renew her contract with the district because she wants to pursue other educational opportunities.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com.