Monomoy Committee Postpones Superintendent Vote To Dec. 22

After a four-hour session Dec. 17, the Monomoy Regional School Committee decided to postpone a decision on naming a new superintendent to allow members more time to consider their choice.

 The committee was scheduled to meet Monday, Dec. 22 to take a final vote on which of the three finalists would succeed retiring Superintendent Scott Carpenter. Because of holiday deadlines, the decision came after The Chronicle’s press time. 

 A report on the decision will appear on The Chronicle’s website Tuesday and in next week’s paper.

 Sixteen people applied for the position, and a screening committee interviewed six candidates before winnowing the field to three finalists: Dr. Robin Millen, assistant superintendent of curriculum, instruction and assessment in the Monomoy District; Dr. Vanessa Beauchaine, assistant superintendent in the Wrentham school district; and Dr. David Thompson, interim superintendent in Wilmington.

 During last Wednesday’s session, each of the candidates was given 75 minutes to present their credentials to the school committee and answer 13 questions from committee members, who kept score on a rubric. After the interviews, committee members spent about an hour discussing their impressions of the candidates.

 Because of her time at Monomoy as both an assistant superintendent and elementary school principal, Millen was known to the committee and garnered a generally positive reaction. 

 “I thought she was extremely organized in her responses and followed a very logical” pattern in her comments, said Chatham committee representative Brad Schiff.

 “She always brought it back to the students,” added Chair and Harwich representative Meredith Henderson. Chatham committee member Jackie Zibrat-Long added that Millen understands the challenges the housing crisis poses for the school district.

 “She seems very in tune with what the actual issues are on the Cape,” Zibrat-Long said. Harwich committee member Ryan Edwards said he liked Millen’s analogy of Monomoy moving from its infant to teenage years.

 Edward said that Beauchaine’s empathy came across in her responses. “She just seems like the type of person who would listen,” he said. Schiff said he liked Beauchaine’s approach to budgeting by prioritizing items that are closest to students. Beauchaine’s experience as a leader was a plus, Henderson said.

 Zibrat-Long said she would have liked to see more attention to details about the district from Beauchaine. “To me that shows they’ve done their homework and know what they’re getting into, as opposed to most of the answers that were kind of surface,” she said.

 Committee members said Thompson was well-spoken and showed obvious leadership skills. He seems to be able to meet everyone at their own level, Zibrat-Long noted, from students to faculty. Having been through several school building projects, he understands the process, she added, which would be helpful as Monomoy prepares for some upcoming building projects.

 “Clearly he loves his work,” Henderson said of Thompson.

 The committee had scheduled a vote on a finalist after the interviews. Some members appeared ready to vote, but Zibrat-Long said she needed more time to look over the candidates’ resumes and talk to people in the community.

 Sean Costello, the committee’s liaison from the Massachusetts Association of School Committees, urged the group not to put off its vote for too long. 

“There is a critical shortage in the state of people who are qualified to be superintendents, and you have three very qualified candidates who would be qualified in other districts as well,” he said. To his knowledge, he said, none of the three are finalists for superintendent jobs in other districts.