Episode 32: A Blue Ribbon Chat with Paul Georges
With a flurry of activity over the last month, the Lowell School Committee has commenced their search for Lowell’s next Superintendent of Schools.
There are many stakeholders interested in finding and retaining a District leader who will be able to navigate the politics of Lowell and the challenges of 21st Century urban school leadership, so there is a lot riding on an effective screening of potential candidates.
With those challenges in mind, we thought it would be instructive to get an historical perspective from Paul Georges who has been a part of several Blue Ribbon Committees. The longevity of superintendents in Lowell over the past 10 years has been less than optimum; if the school committee is intent on finding exemplary candidates, what is the process going to involve?
As Paul mentions in this conversation, events from the 2015 Blue Ribbon Commission selection and screening process took some interesting turns. As the new Blue Ribbon Commission is selected for this 2019 Superintendent Search, we remain hopeful that the process as well as the successful selection of the best possible candidate to lead the Lowell Public Schools will be transparent.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
As referred to in our podcast chat, members from the United Teachers of Lowell attended a School Committee meeting on March 18, 2015 to register their objection a new requirement for Blue Ribbon Commission members. Read the Lowell Sun’s account of this interaction here. Meeting Minutes from March 18, 2015 (Items 4, 9, 10) are included here.
Meeting Minutes from 01 April 2015 during which Blue Ribbon Commission members were appointed (See Item 21). LTC On Demand replay of Subcommittee Meeting is found here.
Personnel Subcommittee Meeting 02/20/2019 Meeting Notes found here. Lowell School Committee Agenda for 02/25/2019 found here. LTC On Demand Replay of meeting can be viewed here.
This document describes the composition of the Blue Ribbon Commission as discussed during the 02/25/2019 School Committee meeting. The Lowell Sun also reported on the 2/25/2019 School Committee Meeting and their report can be found here.
Thanks to UTL President Paul Georges for his insight into the selection process for a new Superintendent of Schools.
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