Pittsfield Interim Superintendent Offered Year's Contract Extension
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The School Committee has voted to offer interim Superintendent Latifah Phillips a yearlong contract extension.
The decision was made last week, when the agenda included deliberation about whether to advertise for a superintendent of the Pittsfield Public Schools who would begin in July 2026.
"I respect the conversation that you're having because I do believe the system is for the community, and you want the best for your community," Phillips said.
"Even though I'm coming in, I also want the best for your community, because that's my core belief about public education and the role of public education for the community."
She was appointed to a one-year position that began on July 1 and runs through the end of the fiscal year in June 2026. The extended contract runs through June 30, 2027.
Chair William Cameron explained that the implication left by the job advertisement was that the hired candidate should not expect to be considered for the permanent position.
"Dr. Phillips' current contract will expire on July 1, 2026, and the advertisement, which she responded to, and in which she was the successful candidate, indicated that it was a one-year position. So the question becomes, what will happen next?" Cameron explained.
"We have some options. One of them is to do nothing and dump this issue in the lap of the new School Committee. We also could take any number of other actions, so either it's the new School Committee that will deal with this start to finish, or we would start advertising with a stipulation that Dr. Phillips could or couldn't apply for the position, and there are, I suppose, other options."
During public comment, Berkshire NAACP President Dennis Powell urged the committee to appoint Phillips as superintendent before her interim contract ends.
"In her time as interim superintendent, Dr. Phillips has demonstrated equality of leadership that this district has not seen in a decade, if ever. She has been, without exaggeration, 300 percent engaged in our community. I can't even count the number of community events where I have seen Dr. Phillips present, and not just present, but fully engaged," he said.
"Whether it's an event for children or parents or the broader community, she listens, communicates, and connects. She understands that a superintendent's role is to be visible, accessible, and responsive to the people she serves. That's the kind of leadership Pittsfield needs. Someone who not only manages a district, but also belongs to the community it serves. Dr. Phillips has earned the trust and confidence."
Mayor Peter Marchetti explained that he was vocal about the interim superintendent not becoming the district's permanent leader to avoid any possible conspiracy theories.
"And we didn't find ourselves in that place, so I would fully support allowing the interim superintendent to apply for the position," he said, adding that he would consider Powell's recommendation, "However, I would feel somewhat concerned that if you were an internal candidate that wanted to be superintendent, you wouldn't have submitted your name if you knew that it was a one and done, and so to just outright make an appointment may have kind of changed the viewpoints of what some city employees were doing."
He suggested opening a search and allowing Phillips to apply.
"And then the new School Committee can choose to do what it wants to do in January, because our process would not be completed by then, and if it was the will of the next School Committee to just hire [Phillips] and not go through the whole process, that could be their decision," the mayor said.
Daniel Elias, the only returning member, said it was a "tough one," recognizing that the prohibitive job advertisement was a mistake, but also, if they were to appoint a superintendent, it meant that internal applications didn't get the opportunity to apply.
"I keep going back and forth with this on myself. I'm almost kind of of the mindset that I would just like to give you a year extension, and then at that point in time, a decision could be made whether to appoint or to open a search, and that way there, everyone would have a full body of work and the extra time to get acclimated to this position, to know exactly what to judge you on," he said.
This resonated with other members, who thought that it may provide needed time and acclimation for the interim superintendent and the new School Committee. Some thought choosing a new superintendent, in conjunction with the district's other action items, might be a significant undertaking for new representation.
Elias added that this doesn't prevent the next committee from deciding to appoint Phillips as superintendent at any given time, "It just allows them the ability to have the time."
School Committee member Diana Belair pointed out that one of the primary complaints the district saw over the past year is a lack of transparency. She has heard nothing but positive feedback about the interim superintendent, but feared that appointing her would deny the opportunity for people who didn't apply because it was advertised as a one-year position.
"Let's stay transparent, let's stay fair, and let's just keep the course that we already said we were going to do, and that doesn't prevent Dr. Phillips from applying," she said.
"And if it's off-season and we don't get any other applicants and Dr. Phillips applies, then we all win, because Dr. Phillips would then, transparently and fairly, get the position anyway. So I don't see any harm in doing it the extended way; we could get the same result."
School Committee member Dominick Sacco felt like it was almost unfair not to extend Phillips' tenure.
"Because of all the energy and hard work that's gone into this short period of time has been noteworthy, and it's not a surprise to the public or us," he said.
Tags: Pittsfield Public Schools, superintendent,
