>>Valley Patriot>>
|
The Tale of Two
Searches in Dracut
DJ Deeb
(08/03/07)
 Former Selectman/WCAP
Radio personality Warren Shaw has launched an all-out
attack against members of the Dracut School Committee
because of its search process for new superintendent and
me personally because of my independent actions on the
Dracut School Committee. Shaw has also criticized
me because I agreed to serve as a member of the Screening
Committee for a new Dracut Housing Authority Executive
Director. These attacks are both unprofessional and
unwarranted. Rest assured that I have always done
what I feel is in the best interests of the taxpayers and
children of Dracut regardless of the political
consequences and I will continue to do so.
Members of the Dracut School Committee voted unanimously
to appoint a Superintendent Search Screening Committee at
the May 23rd school committee meeting. That
Screening Committee consists of two parents (Jackie
Epstein and Denah Toupin), a Dracut teacher (Leon
Grande), a Community Representative (Ken Martin) and a
Dracut administrator (Frank D’Addario) that
were appointed by Chairman Ron Mercier. Residents
of the Town of Dracut were urged to apply to serve on the
Superintendent Selection Committee. Advertisements
were taken out in the local newspaper to solicit
volunteers to serve on this search screening
committee.
Warren Shaw has especially criticized the Chairman’s
appointment of Ken Martin to the Screening Committee
because he is an elected official in Dracut and is also
chairing the search committee for a new Housing Authority
Executive Director in Dracut. The concern raised is
the perception of politics. Well, it should be
noted that the other two applicants for Community
Representative for the Superintendent Selection Committee
included an elected Water Department official, who has
run for office numerous times, and a former Dracut School
Committee member who served on the last Superintendent
Search Screening Committee that recommended the
appointment of the current superintendent in
Dracut. Although both of these other applicants are
fine individuals, no matter who was appointed it would
have looked political given the small number of
applicants who volunteered for the role. I believe
that Chairman Mercier made the right choice in selecting
Mr. Ken Martin to fill the role. Mr. Martin is a
professional with outstanding academic credentials and
possesses both business and community experience.
He currently serves as Executive Director of the Methuen
Housing Authority. When good people get ostracized
this way for volunteering their time, it is no wonder
that we cannot get more people involved in community
projects or running for public office. All the
Dracut residents who volunteered to assist with this very
important endeavor ought to be commended for stepping up
to the plate and offering to serve.
The Superintendent Search Screening Committee will
receive applications from candidates for Superintendent,
interview individuals meeting the qualifications that are
advertised, and recommend 3-5 finalists for the school
committee to interview and select from. On July 16,
the Dracut School Committee held a public community forum
to solicit ideas and input from the community on
qualities that they are looking for in the next
Superintendent. This was done in order to help
members of the newly-appointed Superintendent Search
Screening Committee formulate and compile questions to
ask applicants for this position. The Dracut School
Committee will not be involved in the Superintendent
Search screening process once the position is
advertised. The qualifications and advertisement
were voted on by the Dracut School Committee at our July
23rd meeting. This too was a unanimous vote.
It is now up to the Screening Committee to take the
process from here and review applications as they come
in.
It is important to note that everything has been done in
the open regarding this Superintendent Search
process. This has not always been the case in the
past. If Mr. Shaw had his way, the Massachusetts
Association of School Committees would be managing this
process. This is a fine professional organization
that most Massachusetts school committee members belong
to, but they do not conduct their process out in the
open. Their process is conducted behind closed
doors. The Dracut School Committee has done
everything possible to ensure that the search for a new
Superintendent is a fair process that is conducted
publicly as much as the law will allow.
On another note, most people now in Dracut know, the
Executive Director of the Dracut Housing Authority, Joe
Tully Jr., retired on July 16th after 21 years in the
position. A Housing Authority Executive Director
Screening Committee was formed by Housing Authority
Commissioner Chairman Ken Martin in accordance with state
and federal law, which mandates a screening committee be
formed for this purpose.
The purpose of the Housing Authority Executive Director
Screening Committee is to review applications and
recommend candidates for Housing Authority Executive
Director for the elected Housing Authority Commissioners
to interview and select a final candidate from. It
is important to note that the Housing Authority Screening
Committee itself is not selecting a candidate, but
recommending several candidates for the Housing Authority
Commissioners to consider. The Screening Committee
will consist of a member of the Board of Selectman,
School Committee, and other town and Housing
representatives.
Housing Authority Commission Chairman Ken Martin had sent
a written request to School Committee Chairman Ron
Mercier asking that someone be appointed to represent the
Dracut School Committee in this search. The fact is
that three weeks earlier the Dracut School Committee
Chairman had appointed Ken Martin to serve as one of the
members of the Superintendent Search Screening Committee
(Community Representative). None of us knew at this
time about the Housing Authority Executive Director
search process.
The fact that Mr. Ken Martin is on both search committees
has raised questions. Warren Shaw does not like it
since he cannot control Mr. Martin. Personally, I
do not see a problem. Neither Mr. Martin nor the
other screening committee members will be making the
final selection for the positions in either case.
Although the School Committee Chairman would normally
fill this role on the Housing Authority Executive
Director Screening Committee, as the First Vice
Chairperson of the Dracut School Committee, I was asked
to serve by Chairman Mercier in order that he might avoid
any appearance of conflict since he had appointed Martin
three weeks earlier to the Superintendent Search
Screening Committee. I accepted the appointment and
then was subjected to more attacks by Warren Shaw via
WCAP Radio.
There is currently talk around town that Warren Shaw and
his political cronies (most of whom are from Lowell) are
supporting a certain candidate for the position of
Housing Authority Executive Director. It is my
understanding that Warren Shaw et. al. are upset because
they did not have input on who would be on the Housing
Authority Executive Director Screening Committee.
In other words, Warren Shaw was unable to “stack the
deck” like he normally does. As a member of
the Housing Authority Executive Director Screening
Committee, I can only promise that I will be looking out
for the best interests of the senior citizens and
taxpayers of Dracut. I will be fair and objective
in this process.
Put simply, Warren Shaw wants to control the
decision-making in the Town of Dracut. He would
like to determine who the next Housing Authority
Executive Director is. Warren Shaw would also like
to determine who the next Superintendent of Schools
is. He has never expressed any interest on issues
of student health, safety, or performance levels.
He is motivated only by self-interest. Remember,
Warren Shaw draws both a pension and health/life
insurance from the Town of Dracut for serving as a
part-time Selectman for 22 years. There is nothing
in the bylaws of the Town of Dracut that allow for
this. In the interest of disclosure, I have
absolutely nothing to gain from all of this. I do
not derive my health/life insurance benefits or
retirement salary from the Town of Dracut as does Warren
Shaw. I draw a stipend of $2,000 per year for
service, which Town Meeting voters have voted to give
members of the School Committee and Board of Selectman
annually. I can tell you that it costs me a lot
more of my own personal money to campaign for office than
what I am receiving from the Town of Dracut.
As I stated earlier, I have always done what I feel is in
the best interests of the taxpayers and children of
Dracut regardless of the political consequences for me
personally and I will continue to do so.
D.J. Deeb is an adjunct Professor of History and
Government at Bunker Hill Community College and a
Political Science Instructor at the University of
Massachusetts Lowell. He teaches Social Studies
full-time at Reading Memorial High School. He is an
elected member of the Dracut School Committee and Greater
Lowell Regional Vocational-Technical School
Committee. D.J. is the author of The Collapse of
Middle East Peace: The Rise and Fall of the Oslo Peace
Accords (New York: IUniverse, 2003).
*Send your questions comments to ValleyPatriot@aol.com
The August 2007 Edition
of the Valley Patriot
The Valley Patriot is a Monthly
Publication.
All Contents (C) 2007, Valley Patriot, Inc.
We publish 15,000 newspapers and distribute in Andover,
North Andover,
Methuen, Haverhill, Chelmsford, Georgetown, Groveland,
Boxford, Amesbury, Newburyport
Lawrence, Dracut, Tewksbury, Merrimack, Newburyport,
Westford, Acton, and Lowell.
Hampton & Salisbury Beach, (summers
only)
|
Valley Patriot Archive
Valley Patriot Story
ARCHIVES
Prior Lead
Stories
Prior
Valley Patriot Editorials
Prior Columns by ...
Tom Duggan
Dr. Chuck
Ormsby
Paula
Porten
Ralph
Wilbur
Hanna
Ted Tripp
Valley
Patriot of the Month
Griselsilva.com
Patrick
Blanchette
D.J.
Beauregard
Jim
Cassidy
D.J. Deeb
Marcos
Devers
Bob
Desmarais
Regina
Faticanti
Jim
Fiorentini
Bill Kelly
Wilfredo
Laboy
Peter
Larocque
Vilma Lora
Ed Maguire
Billy
Manzi
Paul
Murano
Mark
Palermo
Hartley
Pleshaw
Debbie
Quinn
Raise Em
Right
Dr. Peary
Kathleen
Corey Rahme
Barney
Reilly
Angel
Rivera
Jim Rurak
Grisel
Silva
Mike
Sullivan
Sandra
Stotsky
Mike
Sweeney
Ken Willette
Scott Wood
Jim
Xenakis
|