Two public meetings come before the School Committee votes Oct. 6 to choose a permanent superintendent for Cambridge Public Schools: a Sept. 25 community forum and Sept. 30 candidate interview session. The events were announced in a press release Friday from the committee.
The superintendent finalists are David Murphy, the interim superintendent in Cambridge; Lourenço Garcia, assistant superintendent for Revere Public Schools; and Magaly Sanchez, chief family advancement officer for Boston Public Schools.
The Sept. 25 forum provides each finalist with 45 minutes to answer questions from community members, and rounds out a series of forums hosted by the city throughout the search process.
Previous forums have faced criticism from some community members regarding scheduling and limited follow-up on concerns.
“There was only one or two listening sessions scheduled for the spring for educators to participate in, but one of those sessions was scheduled during school hours and work hours, so there was no way for my people to actually attend,” said Chris Montero, president of the Cambridge Education Association, the labor group that represents 1,500 district workers.
Questions for the forum should be submitted here before 5 p.m. Sept. 22. “Finalists may not be able to respond to all questions submitted,” the announcement warns.
The Sept. 30 finalist interviews can be attended in-person or viewed live here.
In addition to the public meetings, the committee continues evaluating the finalists. Committee members plan to visit the current school districts of Garcia and Sanchez in the coming week and will accompany finalists on their visits to Cambridge schools during the week of Sept. 25.
“Candidates will meet with staff, CRLS students and receive tours of several school facilities,” the press release says.
The schedule for the remainder of search events, according to the press release:
- Committee visits candidate districts: Week of Sept. 15
- Community forum: Sept. 25 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School’s Fitzgerald Auditorium, 459 Broadway, Mid-Cambridge
- Finalists visit Cambridge schools: Week of Sept. 25
- Public finalist interviews: Sept. 30 at a time to be announced in the Dr. Henrietta S. Attles Meeting Room at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, 459 Broadway, Mid-Cambridge
- Final committee vote: Oct. 6 at a time to be announced in the Dr. Henrietta S. Attles Meeting Room at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School, 459 Broadway, Mid-Cambridge
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“Previous forums have faced criticism from some community members regarding scheduling and limited follow-up on concerns.”
This one should too, as it conflicts directly with the CRLS open house, which is being held from 5:00 pm to 7:30 pm, and which leaves only the last hour available for parents to attend the superintendent meeting.
Who is scheduling these events?
It is also unclear whether, following the September 25 superintendent forum, there is any official avenue for community members to indicate a preference between candidates. If not, what is the intended purpose of having the open forum?
CCperson, right? It’s obvious they designed this farce to give Murphy the job. It sucks, because he might actually be good, but no one will ever trust he deserved to get the job. National search? Ha.