Committee Hopes to Find Superintendent by Aug. 8

The Salem School Committee's search for a superintendent is on and district representatives hope the process will be wrapped up by Aug. 8.

At its regular meeting Monday, the Committee voted unanimously to take on Devaux & Associates, Inc. of Marblehead to assist the Committee with its search to replace Superintendent Dr. William Cameron, who will be . 

Committee member James Fleming said he was satisfied with the consultant choice.

"The contract was simple and straight forward," he said. Fleming said the costs were the lowest and the contract contains a clause so that the Committee can continue to use Devaux & Associates without "paying double" if it is not successful finding an applicant that fits the district's needs on its first try.

During a Search Committee meeting later that evening, members discussed the timeline of the search and advertising for the position.

Philip F. Devaux, president of the consulting company told members he hopes to select the new superintendent by Aug. 8 and announce the Committee's selection by Aug. 9.

With so much going on in the district — including the addition of a new charter school as a alternative to the high school and major , — some Search Committee members said they were still questioning whether the district should find an interim superintendent now.

Member Dr. Brendan Walsh said he was concerned the Committee could move forward with a search for a full time superintendent, fail to find a suitable replacement for Cameron and end up "scrambling" for an interim.

Though Mayor Kimberley Driscoll agreed the district is "on the jumping off pad right now with so many things [going on], she also said she believe it's imperative the district do its best to find a permanent replacement now. Now that the Committeee has voted to start the search, Driscoll said "we don't' know where we're going to be Aug. 1" until the search begins.

In advertising the position, the Search Committee said it was looking to pay between $140K and $170K in order to attract qualified candidate who are new to the position as well as those who may be more experienced.

According to Dr. Janet Crane, $159,000 has been budgeted in the fiscal year for the position.

After much discussion regarding the pros and cons of Search Committee size in the tight time-frame, the School Committee members agreed on a 13-member search team, including seven members of the School Committee, a representative from the union, an administrator, a parent, a Salem Education Foundation representative,
someone from the Special Education Parent Advisory Council and a someone from the community.

Committee members said dates they set will not be flexible due to the tight time-frame.

Key dates in Salem's superintendent search (does not include all dates):