Folks out of Lynn Super quest

LYNN – School Committee members will take the first steps in replacing Superintendent Nicholas Kostan at a special meeting this week, but just how much involvement parents will have in the decision-making process still remains to be seen.The special meeting is the first since committee members debated whether to include an open mic section for the public on future agendas, and the search for Kostan’s replacement has since trumped budget woes as the hot topic of conversation among parents and department employees.Still, committee leaders say they do not plan to let parents speak during the next meeting, rather, they will welcome their thoughts and opinions after the seven-member board sits down to discuss the future.”I don’t know if we will have a full piece for parents’ opinions (Thursday night),” said Committee Vice Chair Patricia Capano. “Hopefully, parents feel that we are approachable after the meeting and once they have listened to what we have to say, they can bring us their input at that point.”Thursday’s meeting agenda will first decide whether the committee will appoint an interim superintendent to finish out the school year or if they will post the job and hire a permanent replacement for Kostan right away.If the committee chooses to appoint an interim, the position does not have to be posted. If they are looking to hire someone new, the city must post the job opening for 30 days before choosing which candidates to interview.According to sources, School Committee members are expected to vote for the posting, despite Mayor Edward J. Clancy Jr.’s strong support of appointing an interim candidate to avoid disturbing the current administration.If Clancy does not get the four votes needed to move forward with an interim, the committee must choose which criteria it will require candidates to reach in order to be eligible for the job, including whether or not it will require a doctorate.Capano said that since the committee itself is still not sure what it is going to do, she would encourage parents to attend the meeting and talk to committee members after. She supports reviving a pre-meeting open mic session at future meetings and said she would like to see a parent added to the Superintendent search committee once it is formed.Clancy has been against adding an open mic to the agenda, but says he does support parent involvement on the search committee. Like Capano, his suggestion is that parents speak to the committee before or after the meetings when committee members can then decide if the issue is relevant for a future agenda.Clancy says his goal is not to silence the parents, but to keep the meetings moving and the agenda in tact, leaving time for public thought for after the final gavel pound.”Public education is probably the most complicated thing that anybody deals with, that is the reason for the agenda, a lot of this stuff is complicated,” he said. “I hear from people all day long, in my office, even when I am out for a run. But to have open mic on the agenda is interrupting the normal even flow of the meeting. Constituent service does not take place during a meeting.”Once the School Committee decides how to move forward Thursday, it will form a search committee that could include parents. Clancy suggested that city parent-teacher organizations elect a representative to sit on the panel.Whether parents are given the opportunity to speak or not, all meetings, including candidate interviews, are open to the public.The School Committee will meet Thursday, Oct. 9 at 6:30 p.m. in the Lynn Vocational and Technical Institute’s Tigers Den Cafeteria, located in the Annex at 90 Commercial St.