Month: December 2023

Q: What’s going on with the superintendent search?
A: The Regional School Committee and the Union 26 Committee (“the joint committees”) have decision making authority, jointly, on the superintendent position. (See my previous blog post for a primer on the various committees.) We are currently in the process of conducting a nation-wide search for a new superintendent. Our goal is to have the new person in place starting on July 1, 2024.

Q: Who is going to decide who the new superintendent is?
A: By state law, the joint committees make hiring decisions for the superintendent position. That said, this search process will include a 20-member Search Committee that will recommend finalists to the joint committees.
The Search Committee will be made up of parents/guardians, community members, ARPS employees, ARHS students, and School Committee members. The Search Committee will review all applicants to the position, select candidates to interview, conduct interviews of those candidates, and decide on a number of finalists to recommend to the joint committees. The joint committees have the ultimate decision-making authority for the superintendent position.
The Search Committee will be composed of a diverse group of people from all backgrounds, walks of life, and identities, including race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, socio-economic background and more!

Q: How do I get on the Search Committee?
A: Those interested in serving on the Search Committee should fill out the interest form. You can access the online forms, and other information about the search process, on the  Superintendent Search page of the ARPS website.

Q: Who will decide the Search Committee membership?
A: Membership on the Search Committee will ultimately be voted on by the joint committees. We have room for 20 people on the Search Committee, and if more than 20 people fill out the interest form, then the Subcommittee for a New Superintendent will review the applications and make a recommendation to the joint committees as to who the members will be. The joint committees will then discuss/deliberate, and vote on the final list. Names of all individuals who submit an interest form will be made public.

Q: Who is on the Subcommittee for a New Superintendent (SNS)?
A: Members of the SNS are:
Anna Heard (Shutesbury representative on the Regional School Committee)
William Sherr (Pelham representative on the Regional School Committee)
Jennifer Shiao (Amherst representative on the Regional School Committee)
Margaret Stancer (Pelham representative on the Union 26 Committee)

Q: What does the SNS do?
A: The SNS is a subcommittee of the joint committees, and as such it makes recommendations to the joint committees. The SNS is not empowered to make decisions that are actually the purview of the joint committees. The SNS has been doing the legwork and research on the superintendent search, and bringing recommendations to the joint committees.
For example, the SNS administered an RFP (request for proposal) for a search consultant last month. We worked with the district to post the RFP on the “Goods and Services Bulletin” (a state portal for RFPs), we received and reviewed the five proposals, and made a recommendation to the joint committees to hire McPherson and Jacobson as the search consultant for the superintendent position. Of the qualifying proposals submitted, McPherson and Jacobson’s was the most high quality and demonstrated that the firm has deep experience in public K-12 superintendent searches. The joint committees voted to accept this recommendation at the November 28 meeting.

Q: How can I keep up to date on the superintendent search?
A: Check out the Superintendent Search webpage (https://arps.org/suptsearch/) for information, updates, and a timeline, on the search process.

I’m fairly certain we can all agree that the Amherst Regional High School (ARHS) track, and the field inside the track, are in poor shape. The surface of the six-lane track is significantly degraded, the field is not regulation size and in poor condition, and the orientation of the facility is such that players have to deal with the sun in their eyes during the time when games are taking place. 

There is currently a project in the works that aims to re-orient the track and field 90 degrees, expand the track to eight lanes, and create a regulation-sized field so that tournament competitions can be held on it. This project will be expensive, AND it is sorely needed. It’s not an exaggeration to say that a generation of student athletes have had to use a deficient track and field facility. And right now it’s been almost two years since the project was first voted on by the Regional School Committee (RSC), in March ‘22.

The money to pay for this project is going to come from a number of different sources. A large chunk of it ($1.5 million) is going to be appropriated from the four towns in our region (Amherst, Leverett, Pelham, Shutesbury). Each town will contribute a proportionate amount that they will acquire through borrowing. When the RSC voted to approve that appropriation on March 15, 2022, we included a requirement that if another $2.2 million can be raised through other sources, then the project will include a synthetic playing field. 

So, what’s happening now?

It’s unclear at this time if that additional $2.2 million will be raised in time, and even if it is, it may not be sufficient. The total cost estimate for a re-oriented track and field with synthetic turf was reported to be $4.7 million in March ‘22. Cost estimates are very likely to be higher now, almost two years after that estimate was calculated. 

At the November 28 RSC meeting, the committee discussed the fact that the $1.5 million from the four member towns is pegged to a synthetic turf project. In other words, because of the added requirement in the 3/15/22 motion about synthetic turf, the $1.5 million approved by the four towns could only be used on a project with synthetic turf. If it is determined that we don’t have enough funding for the synthetic turf project, and if the RSC decides to have natural grass on the field (which costs less), then we would need to vote another borrowing authorization and go back to the four member towns for them to approve it.

Leverett, Pelham, and Shutesbury are governed by a Select Board/Town Meeting form of government. The best time to go to those three towns with a request for appropriation is at their spring Town Meetings. Each of these towns holds a Town Meeting in the spring (Apr-May) of each year, during which a request like this can be approved.

In my opinion, the best way to set ourselves up for the success of this project is to rescind that vote from March 15, 2022, and vote for a new borrowing authorization that does not stipulate that the field will be synthetic turf. If we do this in time to get on the agendas for the spring 2024 Town Meetings for Leverett, Pelham, and Shutesbury, then we will have all options on the table to move forward with the track and field project.

If we don’t do this in time for the spring 2024 Town Meetings, it could significantly delay the project.

At the December 12 RSC meeting, the committee will discuss a motion to rescind the March 15, 2022 debt authorization vote. (This motion was made at the November 28 meeting, and the RSC voted to postpone it to December 12.)

I want to be crystal clear: I am 100% in favor of this project. It is sorely needed. We can’t allow another generation of student athletes to practice and compete on deficient facilities. I want this project to move forward with as few delays and roadblocks as possible. The best way to do that is to remove the requirement that synthetic turf be used.