Montclair BOE Appoints New Superintendent

Montclair Board of Education unanimously approved a resolution appointing Dr. Penny MacCormack as superintendent of schools on Monday's meeting. The contract approved will start Nov. 1 of this year through June 30, 2014.

"I am honored to be the new superintendent of the Montclair school system," MacCormack said. "I'm looking forward to working with this board and this community to make sure we build a system that meets the need of each and every child that we serve so they can achieve the highest potential available to them."

In MacCormack's current role as the assistant commissioner and chief academic officer for the New Jersey Department of Education she's been responsible for carrying out the new Common Core State Standard and helping schools meet these standards.

"I'm excited to be here at the beginning of this growth in the educational process," board member, Norman Rosenblum, said.

Taking on her new role, MacCormack said she intends to listen to the community, teachers, the board and organizations to find out what is really good and where there's opportunity to improve. 

"I really do believe in what she says in her personal philosophy that students come first," board member, Leslie Larson, said welcoming MacCormack to Montclair.

According to The Montclair Times, MacCormack will earn $177,500 a year.

MacCormack comes to the district with over 20 years of experience in public education as a classroom teacher, dean of students, high school and middle school principal, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, assistant superintendent for secondary school and chief academic officer.

"One of the most important decisions that any board will ever make is the hiring of a superintendent," School Board President Robin Kulwin said. 

MacCormack will replace , who announced in February that he'd be retiring after nine years in the position. Later, Alvarez announced he was taking the position of superintendent of the Rye City School District in New York.

The extensive search for a new superintendent, which started in March, consisted of 250 candidates from 42 states and one foreign country. , Ray and Associates, Inc., to help find and hire a new superintendent at a cost of $16,500. Only 11 of these candidates were selected for personal interviews. 

MacCormack earned a doctoral degree in education leadership from the University of Hardford, an MA from Albertus Magnus COllege in New Have and a BS from the University of Connecticut.