Montclair BOE Member Defends Superintendent Hiring Process

Montclair Board of Education member Leslie Larson read a statement at Monday night's BOE meeting on behalf of current and former members of the school board who were part of the search process and responsible for hiring Superintendent Penny MacCormack in 2012.

The statement addresses a number of issues — including involvement of the public in hiring MacCormack, the details of her contract and her pending state certification — which have been raised by members of the community at BOE meetings and in an article recently published in The Montclair Times, "Montclair Parents Group Raises Questions About Superintendent's Contract."

Larson headed the board's search committee for a new superintendent. Portions of her statement are below:

This statement is being written by former and present Members of the Montclair Board of Education in their individual capacities in order to clarify and correct some of the issues raised in the [Montclair Times] article. This letter has not been endorsed by the full membership of the Board, nor should it be construed as representing formal Board action.

Dr. MacCormack's hiring was the result of a national search the Board of Education conducted. The search was overseen by Ray & Associates, which specializes in executive placements in education, has been in business for several decades, and enjoys a national reputation for excellence. It is not affiliated with the Broad Academy, as we have heard charged. Broad is simply one of the scores of sources Ray & Associates uses to identify potential candidates, just like it uses the School Superintendents Association. Ray & Associates was also recommended to the Board by Dr. Frank Alvarez.

The Times article reported that some people "are troubled by the district's lack of transparency on the contract and the exclusion of the public from the search process that led to Dr. MacCormack's hiring." The claim is baseless.

Ray & Associates conducted 10 community forums to gather insights into what stakeholders wanted in a new superintendent. The forums included meetings in each of the four wards, along with meetings with teachers, administrators and special education parents. Other meetings were held with those associated with the PTAs and the School Action Teams. All meetings were well publicized and residents who could not attend could offer input through the Board of Education website. Once all of this information was processed, the search began.

Numerous highly qualified candidates were interviewed, many of who were from out of state. Dr. MacCormack was the Board’s unanimous first choice. No other candidates made anywhere near the impact she did in any of the fields of competency and experiences that our search team assessed. No other candidate received an offer.

... the search firm insisted that the search process be confidential until the end. Many candidates do not want to jeopardize the relationship with their current employer, and therefore insist upon confidentiality.

It was also mentioned in the Times article, that MacCormack's lack of specific New Jersey credentials is a serious deficit, and it is inappropriate that her compensation therefore be at the level it is. Not so on both counts.

...Dr. MacCormack is following the same NJ certification process that every superintendent hired from out of state must follow and it is expected that she will have the NJ certificate in the next few months.

Dr. MacCormack's salary is limited by the cap on superintendent compensation imposed by the state last year. Dr. MacCormack earns approximately 25% less than Dr. Alvarez did and even if she receives the maximum bonus, it will only amount to less than 6 % of her salary. Dr. MacCormack's compensation is in line with market norms, and is certainly in line with the responsibility she bears. 

We cannot help but wonder if these charges about Dr. MacCormack's credentials are in reality an effort to undermine the recently adopted district Strategic Plan that was adopted by the entire board. Contrary to the claims of those who have an incentive to protect the status quo, the plan is not an attack on teachers. It actually offers our teachers cutting-edge instructional input, hands-on mentoring, superior and consistent professional development, and more time for collaboration and contemplation. 

Her plan also seeks to build a culture of consistent improvement, specific means for closing the achievement gap, and accountability measures to ensure that she (and we) do what we say.

A progressive and historically visionary community like Montclair must not allow deep achievement gaps to persist. The community should support the district’s Strategic Plan to upgrade an already impressive school system and extend the best educational opportunities to all our students.