Finalists expected to participate in public interviews, site visits beginning February 6

Following an extensive search process and using feedback from more than 400 SPS community members, the Somerville School Committee and the Somerville Superintendent Screening Subcommittee are set to announce the candidates that will advance to the second and final round of the interview process. The Subcommittee will announce the finalists during a special School Committee meeting on Monday, January 30, at 6:00 p.m. The meeting will be held remotely via Zoom.

During the second phase of the process finalists will each tour several SPS schools and meet with educators and staff. Members of the public will have the opportunity to meet finalists during one-hour Town Hall style public meetings prior to the School Committee’s formal public interviews. All site visits and public meetings are expected to be held during the week of February 6. Final dates and times are to be determined based on site and candidate availability.

From a pool of 27 applicants, in November and December the Subcommittee reviewed applications, conducted interviews with 10 candidates, and have selected a small pool of candidates to advance to the second and final round of interviews. Candidates were selected for interviews based, in part, on feedback provided by the SPS community – including parents and guardians, educators and staff, and students – during listening sessions and a public survey. 430 responses were reviewed and analyzed to help the Subcommittee develop a candidate profile for Somerville’s next Superintendent. Survey data and a summary report are available for review at www.somerville.k12.ma.us/superintendent-search.

“I am incredibly proud of the work that the Screening Subcommittee has put into this process to help the School Committee find the best possible candidates to lead our amazing school district,” said Dr. Emily Ackman, Ward 1 School Committee Member and Chairperson of the Superintendent Screening Subcommittee. “We had so many fantastic candidates, and thanks to the feedback we received from the community at large we were able to build a candidate profile for what our staff and families want in our next Superintendent, and ultimately use that profile to narrow our candidate pool to these finalists. We’re excited to share the culmination of our work with the community next week.”