McGann placed on administrative leave
By Doug Grindle Community Reporter

Marlborough - The end of Barbara McGann's role as superintendent of schools for the Marlborough School District came Feb. 4, as the district placed McGann on administrative leave for the remainder of the time before her resignation takes eff ect. The move came after McGann sent an open letter to a local newspaper criticizing a member of the Marlborough School Committee.

Committee members defended the action, which was taken at the direction of the committee.

"I think it is consistent with the open letter she had sent to the Metro West Daily News," School Committee Member Robert Seymour said. "It makes sense. It wasn't a good fit."

Mayor Nancy Stevens, the School Committee chair, said the administrative leave was consistent with McGann's wishes to move on as she had expressed in the letter.

In the letter, McGann criticized School Committee Vice Chair Kathleen Robey for causing her 2007 performance evaluation to be skewed by not admitting a positive evaluation from one member, Joseph Delano, which was turned in late. Delano is now the city councilor for Ward 1.

McGann said she had been "undermined."

Robey is traveling outside the city and was not available for comment.

Stevens said placing McGann on administrative leave did not indicate any further action would be taken against McGann, and noted her contract calls for 120 days' notice be given before McGann can leave the job. That period of notification runs from January until April.

Marlborough High School Principal Mary Carlson has been appointed as interim superintendent in McGann's place, while a successor is found.

Seymour said Carlson is a good choice to hold the interim post.

"Mary has explicitly said in the past that she has no interest in holding that job long-term," Seymour said. "We certainly didn't want to put someone in that position and give them an undue advantage."

Councilors expressed mixed reactions to the move. Several expressed sympathy for McGann.

"I completely understand her frustration with being undermined … [with] the School Committee never giving her a fair shake from the very beginning," Ward 2 City Councilor Paul Ferro said. "Change is difficult and people who are fixed in their ways never want to change."

"I completely support Barbara and I'm very sorry to hear she's decided to leave," Councilor Atlarge Steven Levy said. "I don't feel the School Committee collectively supported her as they should have."

Ward 7 City Councilor Don Landers, who served for decades as a school district official, said McGann's departure for personal reasons was understandable.

"If someone doesn't want to be here, then they should go," he said.

Landers noted McGann was originally confirmed by a 4-3 vote by the School Committee, which put McGann in a difficult position from the very beginning. He said a superintendent in that position should "beware."

The city will now turn to finding a replacement for McGann, which could be a lengthy process. The School Committee must appoint a search committee, which will collect materials for publication, collect resumes, select suitable candidates, interview them and select the best one.

"It's going to take several months," Delano said.