LYNN — Superintendent Dr. Patrick Tutwiler received high marks from the Lynn School Committee in his annual evaluation.
The School Committee commended Tutwiler for the “extraordinary leadership skills” he showed during the pandemic-shortened 2019-20 school year, which one member noted had to be one of the “most challenging years on record” for the Lynn Public Schools.
“His thoughtful, tireless leadership has shined through in the darkest of circumstances,” one member wrote in the committee evaluation.
While the school board had overwhelming praise for Tutwiler, both in the written evaluation and during their meeting last week when the document was discussed, members noted that the superintendent’s performance toward certain goals was hindered “substantially” by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Tutwiler’s student-performance, district-improvement and professional-practice goals are part of his evaluation annually. The superintendent’s evaluation, which is a stipulation of his three-year contract with the district, also grades him on four standards: instructional leadership, management and operations, family and community engagement, and professional culture.
On all four standards, Tutwiler was given a “proficient” rating based on the weighted average of scores given by the seven-member panel, which is one step below the highest “exemplary” rating.
Under the instructional leadership standard, one committee member noted that “our lack of understanding about how much learning was done in the spring was the reason I rated him proficient.
“Otherwise, the progress that we made on that indicator prior to March was exemplary,” the same committee member wrote.
“Up to March 2020, Dr. Tutwiler was on track to meet these goals,” another committee member wrote about the instructional-leadership standard. “After March, it is difficult to measure the instruction with so many variables.
“So many students (and) parents struggled last spring with instruction. Some students in secondary schools (were) not even attending remote classes due to lack of equipment and technology,” the member continued. “Communication that grades (were) not counting caused more students not to do anything May through June.”
Collectively, committee members said in the evaluation that they were pleased to see the district’s focus on social and emotional learning, which has included increased staffing support in that area, but that they would like to see more improvement toward meeting the needs of English language learners.
In addition, the committee praised Tutwiler for getting the district ready for remote learning by August, which included putting plans in place for a virtual learning management system, and ensuring there was technology and Internet access for all students by the start of this school year.
During last week’s School Committee meeting, all seven members reiterated the positive feedback that they included in Tutwiler’s written evaluation.
“It’s a really strong evaluation and there’s a lot of enthusiasm and gratitude and appreciation for your leadership,” Jared Nicholson, a member of the committee, said to Tutwiler. “I think there’s some great thoughts in there reflective of conversations that we’ve had throughout these meetings about the district priorities and I think they align well with the (team’s) priorities. So, I hope you feel good about that document.”
“Dr. Tutwiler, it’s been amazing to watch your leadership, the amount of growth since when you started this position to now,” added Committee member Brian Castellanos. “You rise up to the challenges — when the pandemic started, it was really illustrated and amplified to the max. You don’t really stall. You’ve very proactive. You’re mindful. We’re blessed and honored to have a superintendent like you.”
Mayor Thomas M. McGee, who chairs the School Committee, noted that while the COVID-19 pandemic was not part of the job description, working with Tutwiler over the past year has exemplified what he has brought to the table since his first day as superintendent.
“It’s been great to work with you and I think the evaluation reflects the great work you’re doing for the community,” said McGee. “We’re really lucky to have you working with us through these challenging times and onto hopefully better times moving through (20)20-21.”
In response to the board’s praise, Tutwiler thanked the panel for a positive evaluation, noting that he plans to use the feedback included in the document “as a means to do better.”
“(What) I really love about education is that nobody ever arrives in this profession,” said Tutwiler. “You’re constantly learning, you’re constantly assessing, and you’re constantly figuring out ways to do things better and be more impactful for students. And so, that is how I feel to my core and so, when it’s said, you know there’s some things you have to work on, know that I take that seriously.”
Tutwiler was hired as superintendent of the Lynn Public Schools in the spring of 2018, and the appointment became effective that July. He is being paid a $210,000 salary under the final year of his three-year contract with the district.
