PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The superintendent last week defended the need for a co-principal at Morningside Community School at a cost of $105,000.

 

Superintendent Joseph Curtis told the School Committee at public hearing on the $78 million budget that the last time there was a co-principal at the elementary school, it was himself. The need to reinstate it came out of a near-dire staffing situation.

 

"This model really developed out of a series of circumstances that happened last summer. So Principal Monica Zanin resigned and moved to another position of leadership in our county and then we immediately posted for the position of principal. We had two viable candidates for the position, one decided not to pursue the position anymore, and we were left with one," he said.

 

"This is after an extensive search for a dean of Morningside Community School that also resigned in pretty close proximity to Monica leaving. So we went through a dean search, could not find any viable candidates, then Principal Zanin resigned and then we went through a principal search and again, was left with one candidate. This was going really through the summer, and the staff was growing quite nervous about their future at Morningside."

 

He said staff members started resigning in July because they were unsure about leadership and that he was unsure if the school would be able to open in the fall.

 

"I was reaching out individually to teachers that were resigning and begging them to reconsider," he explained. "I was preparing our bus operations director to formulate a plan that would divide Morningside children across the city because the staff was leaving because it didn't know who their leader would be."

 

Curtis did not want to set up incoming Principal Jennifer Teichert for failure, as there was still no dean at the school, and he made a plan to have Elizabeth Lamoureaux begin as the co-principal.

 

He told the committee that he does not want to disrupt Morningside again by switching up leadership in the coming year and after two years of stability, other options will be looked into for FY25.

 

"I'm fearful with the with the large amount of new teachers there and the uncertainty of who their leaders would be, we would start to have the same impact as we did a year ago," Curtis said.

 

"So that's why I proposed for this to occur only one more year for FY 24. That will bring two years of stability and then we would certainly go out and make decisions about FY25."

 

Mayor Linda Tyer thought it a good explanation.

 

"One of the things I appreciate so much in the Pittsfield Public Schools is that each school has the ability to work with you to create a structure and a culture that works for that school," she said. "That there isn't this sort of imposition on the schools that they must be this way."

 

But a resident sent an email expressing concern about the position's salary and wondered how many administrators Morningside already has.

 

"$105,000 is a very large price tag," they wrote. 

 

On the school's website, there are nine administrative staff listed: two co-principals, an assistant principal of teaching and learning, a family engagement coordinator, three student support paraprofessionals, and two secretaries.

 

Several comments were also made about the "teacher of deportment" title. The budget proposes additional teachers of deportment in a handful of schools.

 

These positions provide instruction to students who have been identified as needing assistance in appropriate behavior in daily interactions with staff and other students.  Curtis said he was sold on the position by data that shows a dramatic decrease in suspensions with the extra layer of support.

 

The resident who submitted written comments saw an issue with the title because the word "deportment" may be a concerning term for many students and families.

 

Chair William Cameron asked for clarification, saying it seemed like a "perfectly good English word." The word "deportment" refers to a person's behaviors or manners.

 

It was pointed out that it sounds like "deportation," or the expulsion of a person or group of people from a place or country.

 

"It probably has an impact on families of immigrants," Tyer commented.

 

Committee members said they were initially taken aback by the term and had similar comments from the public.

 

Curtis said the students don't know the teachers by their official titles but the district will certainly look at it.

 

The committee will make recommendations on April 12 and there is an expected budget adoption on April 26. No later than June 1, there will be a joint meeting with the City Council to discuss the proposal.

 

The $78,310,016 proposed spending plan for fiscal 2024 is an 8.17 percent — or $5,911,754 — increase from FY23's budget of $72,398,262. Eighty-three percent of the increase, about $4.9 million, is allocated for special education instruction and support, Career Technical Education/career pathways, and contractual obligations.

 

Committee members took a couple of hours to query a variety of budget lines.