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PRESS RELEASE
May 12, 2020
To the Concord school community:
As you are aware, the Concord School District has undertaken an extensive search for Concord's next Superintendent of Schools, starting with engaging the services of the New England School Development Council (NESDEC) in January of this year.
It is my unfortunate duty to let you know that the Superintendent search is being suspended for now. The two candidates who reached the final stage of the screening process withdrew their names from consideration, citing a commitment to stay with their current districts and see their students, staff, and school community safely through the COVID-19 pandemic.
I want to take this opportunity to thank the hundreds of people who participated in the Community Needs Assessment, survey, and focus groups conducted earlier this year. Those activities resulted in a Candidate Profile – a detailed description of the qualities and skills the community wants for our next Superintendent.
The Screening Committee worked tirelessly from February through April, starting with an exhaustive review and prioritizing of the 17 qualified applications that came to Concord School District through NESDEC. In March, the group made up of a cross-section of the school community, from students and parents to teachers and administrator narrowed the field to five applicants based on the Candidate Profile, and conducted interviews with all five. The next phase involved the committee conducting deep research on each of the five, and ultimately narrowing the field to the two candidates that were presented to the Concord School board for their consideration. I can’t say enough about the dedication, insight, and collaborative spirit of the Screening Committee, which was ably chaired by School Board Member Tom Croteau, and assisted by School Board Member Danielle Smith and District Business Administrator Jack Dunn. The Board thanks them, and all members of the Screening Committee very much for their hard work and guidance, especially during a time that was far from business as usual. Thank you. The Concord School Board was fortunate to have a chance to interview (virtually) the two candidates that the Screening Committee put forth; we were impressed with both of them, and looking forward to presenting them to the community for the final phase of the search process. Unfortunately, that will not be occurring, nor will we be able to make their names public.
What happens now? As you can imagine, the departure of both of our finalists is a disappointment and a setback, though we respect and appreciate the difficult situation they are in. Dr. Arthur Bettencourt, Executive Director of NESDEC, and his team are committed to ensuring that Concord is able to re-start the search process in the months to come; the School Board will be working with them to develop a plan of action. Additionally, Dr. Bettencourt has offered NESDEC’s assistance in identifying an Interim Superintendent, so that Dr. Franklyn Bass – who has been an absolutely outstanding leader for the district over the last 6 months – may re-enter retirement on a schedule that works for everyone.
Concord is a wonderful place to learn, and we’re extremely proud of the thousands of students, student families, staff, and volunteers that make Concord School District unique and special. Thank you again to this community for supporting the district throughout the Superintendent search process, now and into the future.
Jennifer Patterson
President, Concord School Board
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