The following "letter to the editor" was submitted by town resident Marc Haber to the LongmeadowBuzz blog
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Like many of you, I have no particular stake in the decision
to renew or not renew the contract of Longmeadow Superintendent Dr. Marty
O’Shea. Other than being a taxpayer and
having 4 children who attend Longmeadow schools, I have no real “skin in the game”.
But back in November, I was asked to attend the School Committee (SC) meeting,
at which the decision would be made on Dr. O’Shea’s contract renewal, and so I
did. The overall passion of the teachers, administrators and various community
members in support of Dr. O’Shea was striking.
The glowing support from the Police Chief Stankiewicz and Fire Chief
Dearborn was just as impressive, Chief Stankiewicz noting that Dr. O’Shea
“expanded school safety more in the last 2.5 years than what was done in the last
10 years.” Even State Representative Brian Ashe recommended that the SC listen
to their constituents, as their voices are “loud and clear.” Meeting after meeting that followed more
citizens, administrators and teachers showed up in support of Dr. O’Shea.
Impressed as I was at the massive support behind Dr. O’Shea,
I was perhaps more shocked and disheartened by the perceived lack of interest
in hearing these speakers and unprofessional behavior by many of our elected
officials on the SC. One recent example,
at the January 8th meeting committee member Stephanie Jasmin stated
that she felt uncomfortable being alone with Dr. O’Shea, implying an
inappropriateness. Later she poorly tried to revise her comment, noting that it
wasn’t a “gender” thing, prompting Bronwyn Monahan to remind the quartet that
she too is a woman and has absolutely never felt uncomfortable around or
meeting with Dr. O’Shea. This is just one of many examples of pandering and
insulting behavior demonstrating that this quartet does not like and will never
support Dr. O’Shea. It is not plausible to believe that this SC was earnest in
offering him a “clean slate” this year as they have repeatedly claimed.
As people not privy to the inside baseball, it is hard for
any of us “outsiders” to know what truly has transpired in private
meetings. That said, an administrator
with unquestionable integrity, Center school Principal Donna Hutton recently
remarked at the January 8th meeting, “you are talking about Dr.
O’Shea as if [he] is a completely different individual than the person we
know.” In acknowledgment of the respect the administration has received for
their accomplishments from the SC, she further notes it was largely due to the
leadership of Dr. O’Shea. If this is
true (and I would never doubt the candor and character of Principal Hutton)
clearly the credibility of the SC evaluation of Dr. O’Shea is in serious doubt.
The bridge between the current composition of the SC and Dr.
O’Shea is not singed but incinerated.
But so too appear the bridges between the SC and much of the Longmeadow
community, the administration and teachers and even between this voting block
quartet and other members on the SC. The supercilious behavior of Chairperson
Beth Baron towards respected members of the public and SC members Armand Wray
and Bronwyn Monahan is appalling. By not
allowing the school administration to publicly meet and speak with them about
this issue for almost a year and then slotting them only 15 minutes is
insulting and disrespectful to these hard working and brave administrators.
Instead of answering their request for concrete examples of where Dr. O’Shea
has been derelict, Baron deflects by comparing the proceedings to a “Jerry
Springer sideshow.” After watching these SC meetings and the animosity that
they foster, I completely understand why an overwhelming majority in the
teachers union voted “no confidence” in this dysfunctional body.
The common thread behind this dysfunction is the School
Committee, as it is currently comprised, and this body alone. As such, honest
introspection is required yet apparently lacking. Better yet is action. Compromise is necessary. While, I personally
think that some of the damage done by members of this quartet is not fixable,
perhaps Longmeadow can still salvage something from this process.
A simple solution that can save tens of thousands of our
taxpayer dollars is to to simply extend Dr. O’Shea’s contract temporarily
beyond the next round of SC elections. Two spots are open, currently filled by
one member on either side of the divide. Because the so-called “Pro-Marty” side
would require winning both seats, the “Anti-Marty” side has easier
sledding. Clearly citizens on both side
of the issue want to have their voices heard and this compromise would afford
them this option.
To those who protest, “there already was an
election”-Absolutely true! With that election, both victors, Bronwyn Monahan
and Ryan Kelly, support Dr. O’Shea and his administration. This is the clearest and most democratic
compromise.
Another compromise would be for, the current Chair, Beth
Baron, to step down from her position and allow another member to lead this
group. Clearly, if Dr. O’Shea is not fit to lead our respected school district,
Beth Baron is equally not fit to lead our School Committee. She has failed to
provide transparency and lacks the temperament to conduct proper School
Committee meetings. Under her leadership, the school administrators felt forced
to sign a whistle blower statement, protecting them from repercussions. Our
administrators and teachers should not be afraid to ask questions, express
their opinions and provide information in support of Dr. O’Shea, yet they are.
Under her leadership, the Attorney General has opened an investigation into
whether she, Morrin and Jasmin violated the state’s Open Meeting Law. As the
Chair during this tempest, Baron should either demonstrate cooperative
leadership that this group is sorely lacking or she should hand the gavel to
another more capable member.
In another compromise, all 7 members of the SC could resign
immediately. This would be inevitably chaotic and challenging. It is unclear if this would require a special
election or if members would be appointed by the Select Board, but it certainly
would drastically and immediately disrupt the negative dynamics associated with
the current SC. Clearly this is not the most reasonable option.
Should Dr. O’Shea just step down now? Since he is already
scheduled for non-renewal at the end of the school year, whether he steps down
now or later doesn’t resolve the fundamental lack of trust associated with this
School Committee. Furthermore, as former
SC member Michael Clark noted, communities throughout the area are aware of
this discord and it will be very difficult to attract qualified
applicants. Would you want to be
responsible to this School Committee? We
are lucky that Dr. O’Shea is willing to stay even through his current contract.
In the spirit of compromise, I am electing to take no action
on proposed article 2. Even though there
is legal support for this proposal, a potential legal battle within the town
would likely cost more money than the SC would potentially waste on an
unnecessary superintendent search. In the spirit of fiscal responsibility, I
will not pursue to take action on this unfortunately needed fiscal oversight.
In voting against Dr. O’Shea, SC member Kerrin Morrin, read
that Dr. O’Shea fostered an “us versus them culture.” This culture, if fostered by anyone, stems
from the failure of this unreasonable quartet to compromise in any
fashion. The failed leadership of this
body appears deaf to the parade of well-respected and knowledgeable
administrators, educators, residents and respected officials. Perhaps someone
can get them to listen. Compromise is necessary to restore public trust in this
important committee. Compromise is necessary to restore trust between the
school committee and our amazing administration and educators.
Take some advice from Representative Ashe and listen to your
constituents who have spoken loud and clear.
Compromise. If you cannot, then please resign immediately.
Marc Haber
Longmeadow, MA
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