CAMBRIDGE — With the search for a new Dorchester County Public Schools superintendent underway, the Dorchester County Board of Education hosted three community visioning meetings for the public to share their thoughts on what the district needs in its next superintendent.
Board of Education member Chris Wheedleton, who facilitated the sessions, said a nice cross-section of the community came out and there was good engagement. He said the board wanted to thank the community for its participation in the visioning sessions and online survey.
“Between the surveys and the community visioning sessions, we got close to 900 voices from the community,” he said. “We’re really excited that the community was interested and engaged.”
At the community visioning session April 17, Wheedleton told participants they have a say in the criteria the board will use to find the next superintendent.
He said Hazard, Young, Attea and Associates, the group that has been selected to support and guide the search, is taking applications through May 10 and making sure those applicants are qualified for the job. On May 16, the group will meet with the board to present the candidates they think best align with what was shared from the community visioning sessions.
The board plans to appoint a superintendent June 14 so the new hire can assume the position July 1.
As of first of May, 24 people have applied for the position, Wheedleton said in an interview.
On Feb. 21, the Board of Education announced that former DCPS Superintendent David Bromwell would be stepping down from his position, effective March 1. The board said the decision was “mutually decided” by Bromwell and the board. Jymil Thompson is currently serving the final months of Bromwell’s term, which ends June 30.
At the visioning session April 17, Wheedleton said the district is receiving Hazard, Young, Attea and Associates’ services at roughly a quarter of the rate it usually costs because the county is using HYA’s services “a la carte.” He said that having the board facilitate these listening sessions, rather than flying a high-level executive out to facilitate it, saves money.
Wheedleton said what’s important about these conversations is that they’re led by the community.
“So that’s why we’ve got this set up as a working session,” he said.
At the community visioning session, three tables of three or four community members sat together in the library of Cambridge-South Dorchester High School and talked through three questions, writing their answers on large sheets of paper. The sheets of paper were then hung up on the wall for attendees to look at before taking part in a group-wide conversation about the answers.
The three questions were:
• What are the strengths and values of the DCPS school system?
• What are the greatest challenges for DCPS in the next three to five years?
• What are thee personal and professional characteristics of the next superintendent?
During the conversation at the end of the visioning session, attendees talked about a range of things, from important leadership qualities, to a superintendent’s relationship with the community, to communication with coworkers.
Ashley Robinson, principal of the Dorchester Career and Technology Center and participant of the listening session, said the district has made some strides in the past few years when it comes to consistency. She said it’s important that the next superintendent doesn’t just come in and scrap what’s being done but looks at the district’s track record and at what’s been working.
“Because the whole system isn’t broken,” she said. “There are things that are broken. There are areas for improvement. But not everything that’s occurring is bad.”
Robinson also said it’s important that the board finds someone who isn’t just using this position as a stepping stone in their career.
“If they’re just using us to check another box or add another item to their resume, that’s not what we need,” she said.
Colleen Carney, a social studies teacher at Cambridge-South Dorchester, talked about the importance of having a superintendent that engages with the community.
“They should be at opening night of the show, but also talking to families at Back to School Night and families that are not coming to Back to School Night,” she said.
Art Renkwitz, a retired DCPS teacher, said it’s important to find a superintendent “that can help the kids.” He said the board should look for a personal leader who wants to be out in the schools regularly.
“We need somebody that we can look up to,” Renkwitz said, “not because of where he sits, (but) because of what he does.”
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