Lynn school board names Latham super

LYNN – With a 5-2 vote, the Lynn School Committee selected Deputy Superintendent Cathe-rine Latham as the city’s next superintendent of schools Monday, narrowly edging out Ford School Principal Claire Crane, who received the other two votes.Latham beat out Crane, fellow Deputy Superintendent Jaye Warry and Classical Principal Warren White for the School Department’s top job, inheriting a system that is improving academically, but facing an estimated $5 million shortfall in the fiscal year 2010 budget.Two out-of-district candidates, Taunton Public Schools Superintendent Art Stellar and former Ayer Public Schools Superintendent Lore Nielsen also interviewed for the position, but it became apparent late last week that the committee members did not plan on venturing out of the city for Nicholas Kostan’s replacement.Latham secured votes from Committee Chair Mayor Edward J. Clancy Jr., Vice Chair Patricia Capano and members John Ford, Vincent Spirito and Jeffery Newhall. Crane’s two votes came from the committee’s newest member Maria Carrasco and longtime Crane supporter Donna Coppola.”It was a tough decision, but I think we made the right one,” Spirito said after the meeting. “We had four great candidates from the city and the two from outside the city were very good, too.”A former math teacher with a passion for numbers, Latham has been with the department since 1992 when she left Peabody High School in favor of Breed Middle School. Quickly moving up the ranks to math department head at Lynn English High School and later School Support Coordinator, Latham has been Kostan’s deputy since 2006.”I’m excited. It is very exciting, humbling and daunting,” said a nearly speechless Latham after the vote. “It is an honor and privilege to have this job.”Latham’s goals are focused primarily on parent involvement, and she vowed to expand professional development and teacher training in an effort to hire more minority teachers and administrators to work with Lynn’s extremely diverse student body and their families.A self-described student and understudy of Kostan during her time in the administrative building, the selection of Latham reflects the School Committee’s desire to continue the improvements that Kostan made while keeping his administration entirely intact as the decade comes to a close.Kostan, who was in attendance at the special meeting, said he was grateful for both Latham and Warry’s work as his deputies, and is proud to see Latham step up to fill his shoes.”I have been extremely fortunate to have two tremendous deputies in Cathie and Jaye,” he said. “Cathie is extremely bright and dedicated to the system and I think she has the ability to do a terrific job. She will be a good fit, she knows the system well and I wish her well.”One initiative close to Latham’s heart is that of data analysis and data-driven decision making, an effort she began this summer in helping secure a grant for the department that allows Lynn educators to join those from Peabody, Salem and Gloucester in data-focused professional development.This effort is key for teachers and principals as the department continues to try and use data to help improve MCAS test scores.During her interview, Latham expressed a need to add more alternative programs, especially at the middle school level, and to improve the shops at Lynn Vocational and Technical Institute to include vocations more appropriate to the modern job force.Among the assignments on Latham’s plate in the immediate future will be to select a successor for English High School Principal Andrew Fila, who will not renew his contract when it expires in August, and work with the committee to hire someone to fill her position as deputy.Ford said after the meeting that he will recommend that the committee save money by leaving Latham’s position open for the remainder of this year and next, something that will save the department upwards of $120,000 as it struggles to balance the budget.Kostan’s official last day wil