Marlborough – On Oct. 23, the Marlborough School Committee voted to retain the services of Hazard, Young, Attea and Associates (HYA) to conduct the search for the district's next superintendent.
The process of recruiting, identifying and interviewing candidates for the position will differ from the past few Marlborough superintendent searches. HYA will conduct a series of focus groups and meetings with various stakeholders to identify characteristics desirable in the next superintendent. HYA then will recruit candidates based on the identified traits and make candidate recommendations to the School Committee, which will conduct all interviews.
A key step in this process is to identify those characteristics desired in a new superintendent. HYA and district officials are urging the public to participate in this process in two important ways:
Attend an open community forum from 7 to 9 p.m. Monday, Nov. 26, in the Marlborough High School Little Theater, located at 431 Bolton Street. HYA Senior Associate John Connolly will facilitate the forum and urges any community member interested in participating to attend.
Complete an online survey, located on the district's Web site at www.mps-edu.org, no later than 4 p.m. Friday, Nov. 30. The survey is available in English, Spanish and Portuguese. Survey participants will be required to identify themselves as district staff, parent or community member, however all results will be reported directly to HYA in aggregate – no participants will be personally identified. Connolly acknowledged that although all characteristics noted in the survey are desirable in a candidate, the survey is designed to identify perceptions about which characteristics are most important for Marlborough Public Schools.
In early December, Connolly plans to present to School Committee a leadership profile for the next superintendent based on the district's needs and the character traits identified in the focus groups, community forum and survey responses.
Initial candidate interviews by the School Committee should begin mid-January, with a final candidate identified within a few weeks.