Melrose Prepares For School Superintendent Search, Picks Consultant

MELROSE, MA — The search for Melrose’s next superintendent of schools is set to begin soon after discussion and a vote by the School Committee on Tuesday.

The process, according to an initial timeline from a consultant working with the School Committee on the search, could kick off within the first two weeks of January. Various steps would then lead to a vote to appoint a superintendent in mid-April.

School Committee Chair Jen McAndrew said this week that community members will have multiple opportunities to provide feedback on priorities for the superintendent role particularly during January.

The School Committee is working on preparations for its upcoming search after current Melrose Public Schools Superintendent Julie Kukenberger told city officials she would not be seeking a new contract after her current deal expires in June.

McAndrew shared the news in late October, promising more information on the resulting search process “as details become available.”

READ: Melrose Schools Superintendent Set To Leave District

The search and its timeline were topics of discussion at the School Committee’s meeting this week, with committee members primarily considering whether to retain an outside consultant to help manage the process.

Officials already requested proposals from a series of consultants, with two responding with full proposals.

School Committee members opted to retain one of the respondents, selecting the Massachusetts Association of School Committees and its $10,500 proposal over the New England School Development Council, which put forth a plan with costs totaling $16,960.

The School Committee could have decided to oversee the search itself with some support from the Association of School Committees, of which it is a member.

Ultimately, though, McAndrew said in a memo to School Committee colleagues that she recommended the committee “strongly consider an outside organization to facilitate the search.”

“These are organizations that School Committees in Massachusetts typically look to for assistance with their superintendent searches, both for reasons of cost and for the expertise offered by each,” McAndrew said of consultant options in her memo.

The Association of School Committees laid out specific steps for a search timeline in its proposal to the Melrose Public Schools, which can be viewed in this week's School Committee packet.

Under the plan, school officials are scheduled to meet with their consultant on Jan. 10 to finish organizational steps such as scheduling focus groups, approving an online survey and planning candidate recruitment measures.

Officials would reconvene on the topic in February after public outreach through the rest of January. Together, they would analyze feedback, set qualifications and selection criteria and finalize materials to advertise the superintendent job.

Applications would come in through February before a deadline in early March, according to the consultant plan.

A superintendent screening committee would conduct interviews through part of March to then select finalists.

A School Committee vote to pick a new superintendent in April would leave roughly two and a half months of transition time before the superintendent would begin their job on July 1.

The Association of School Committees timeline remains subject to School Committee review and adjustment.

In the meantime, officials this week also discussed an alternative to choose an interim superintendent rather than a more long-term selection.

Margaret Driscoll, who was elected as the School Committee’s next chairperson on Tuesday night, was in favor of a full search, rather than an interim hire, saying it would be better for the district to select a candidate who could immediately begin to settle into the superintendent role for a more long-term commitment.

McAndrew said she supported “aggressively pursuing a full search,” though she said the School Committee should preserve the option to pivot to an interim process if needed.

School Committee member Dorie Withey said she was not sure yet whether she preferred an interim or full search. She, as a result, joined fellow School Committee member Ed O’Connell in saying the option of an interim selection should remain on the table.

A vote to select the Association of School Committees’ consultant proposal this week, McAndrew later said, would not commit Melrose to a full search.

Rather, the district can still opt for an interim route if needed at a later date and receive some support from the Association of School Committees at no cost due to the School Committee’s existing membership status.