BROCKTON — Brockton Public Schools has announced the two finalists for the position of interim superintendent .
Jannell D. Pearson-Campbell and Priya Tahiliani were named on Wednesday afternoon as the final candidates for the superintendent job and will be interviewed by the Brockton School Committee on July 9. Whichever candidate the committee appoints will take office ahead of the 2024-25 school year.
Both finalists hold doctorate degrees in education leadership and have recently served in superintendent roles for school districts within Massachusetts.
Tahiliani served as superintendent of Everett Public Schools from March 2020 until March 2024, and prior to that served as the assistant superintendent for the Office of English Learners at Boston Public Schools.
Pearson-Campbell works as a consultant with Watertown Public Schools and previously served as interim superintendent for Northampton Public Schools.
The finalists were selected out of 13 applicants by the superintendent search subcommittee, which includes Mayor Robert Sullivan, who is the chair of the school committee, and school committee Vice Chair Tony Rodrigues and members Jorge Vega and Ana Oliver.
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Priya Tahiliani
Tahiliani held several roles in the Boston Public Schools' English learners office, including director of instruction and an English learner instruction specialist. She started her teaching career in 2001 at Edwards Middle School in Charlestown, where she worked as an English Language Arts teacher.
While working as superintendent for Everett Public Schools, an independent investigation was conducted following allegations that Tahiliani bullied and intimidated her staff, according to reporting from WGBH.
In June, Tahiliani's lawyers announced the investigation found no evidence of bullying or favoritism within her office, but the results of the investigation was never released publicly by the school committee, WGBH reported.
Tahiliani holds a doctorate of education in urban education leadership from the University of Phoenix, and a master’s degree from Harvard University in creative writing and literature.
Read more: Brockton Schools to hire interim superintendent. What does it mean for Mike Thomas?
Jannell Pearson-Campbell
Pearson-Campbell has spent the majority of her career working as a principal or administrator for schools across Massachusetts, including principal of John B. DeValles Elementary School in NewBedford and assistant director of special education for Waltham Public Schools.
She also served as assistant superintendent of teaching and learning for the Old Rochester Regional School District in New York for two years.
Pearson-Campbell started her career in 2003 as a special education teacher at Framingham High School.
She holds a doctorate degree of educational leadership from UMass Lowell and a master’s degree in special education from UMass Boston.
The search for an interim superintendent
The Brockton School Committee announced in May that the search for an interim superintendent would begin soon. The committee formed a subcommittee at the time to find a new temporary leader.
James Cobbs, who previously served as deputy superintendent of operations for the district, has been serving as acting superintendent while Michael Thomas, the superintendent of Brockton Public Schools, is on administrative leave amid an ongoing investigation into the school district’s finances following the revelation in August 2023 of a multimillion-dollar budget shortfall.
Thomas, who remains on paid administrative leave, signed a 5 1/2-year contract with the district in 2021 that ends on June 30, 2027.
The interviews
The full Brockton School Committee will interview the finalists publicly at its next meeting on July 9 at 5:30 p.m. in Brockton High School's Romm Little Theater.
This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: These are the 2 finalists for interim superintendent in Brockton Public Schools
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