Lynn School Committee raises salary for new superintendent

LYNN-Citing a desire to be more competitive with other communities in their search for a new superintendent, School Committee members voted Thursday to increase the base salary listed on the official job posting.Originally set between $118,000 and $130,000, the committee voted to increase the base salary range to $130-$150,000 in a last-minute change before the job was posted.Committee member John Ford said he reviewed several salaries from area school districts, and realized Lynn’s original offer was much too low.”I feel like we kind of low-balled the salary,” Ford said. “If we want to get the most competitive resumes, we need to increase the base salary so that people will want to come to Lynn.”Committee members had voted two weeks ago to include the salary range on the job posting for the first time in the district, because they felt they would receive more interest in the job if candidates knew what to expect financially.Superintendent Nicholas Kostan, who will retire after the first of the year, earned $155,085 in 2007, which equals a base pay of approximately $148,000 per year. Revere Superintendent Paul Dakin earns $180,000 per year in a smaller district with fewer low income and English as second language students.The 4-1 vote was contested only by Committee Chair and Mayor Edward J. Clancy Jr., who felt the decision should have been made in front of the committee as a whole, rather than the stripped down board in attendance Thursday night. Both Committee Vice Chair Patricia Capano and committee member Vincent Spirito were absent from the meeting.Finance Subcommittee Chair Jeff Newhall has called for more meetings of the whole for the committee in the coming months, citing the dire budget situation on the horizon.With ballot Question 1 threatening the state income tax and painful cuts from the state’s executive branch adding to an already hemorrhaging budget, Newhall said it is time for the committee to meet and brainstorm ideas for the future.The committee will vote on a revised meeting schedule at their next scheduled meeting Oct. 30.The School Committee and City Council are seeking information from the city’s Inspectional Services Department on the availability of middle school facilities or after school programs.Both Ford and committee member Donna Coppola said there is a strong need in the city for more after school activities for middle school kids. Many of the middle schools are open and available after school hours, and the committee would like to see more programs set up for students.”A lot of our youth, especially middle school students, do not have enough after school programs to keep them occupied,” said Coppola. “Our facilities are the best place to house these programs. As a committee and as a school system we need to look at how we can increase the number of after school programs in particular at the middle school level so we can keep these kids from becoming future problems.”Ford said he and City Councilor Paul Crowley would be working with the city and local businesses to secure facilities and funding for these programs.With two members missing, the committee agreed to table a vote on whether to include an open mic session on the agenda and delayed a presentation from School Department Attorney John Mihos regarding the city’s desegregation plan.School Committee member Maria Carrasco had been hoping to include an open mic session on the weekly agenda to give parents an opportunity to voice their opinions on pressing School Department matters.Other committee members support Carrasco’s idea, but would rather see the public comment session before or after the meeting.