Public Weighs in on New SCS Principal at Special Meeting

STAMFORD –  A special meeting of the Stamford Central School Board of Education on Tuesday afternoon resulted in the board's approval of hiring a new principal, but not before the public had its say.

No one disputed her qualifications and the candidate actually received praise from some of the 20 people in attendance for the special meeting. However, they did object to the board's actions, some believing the process lacked transparency, some saying there is a conflict of interest, but mostly they objected to the salary being paid, while teachers and staff are without a contract.

The meeting opened with members of the board reading a pair of statements. The first was the recommendation from Dr. Patrick Darfler-Sweeney, interim principal and coordinator of the principal's search who selected the committee to interview the three  candidates selected after the board had reviewed all of the applications.

"At the conclusion of their review I was asked to assemble a committee consisting of the following representation: parents, students, teachers and support staff."  It also included two board members to serve as the interview committee. A student representative was also chosen. It was a 12-member committee. They were  charged with rating the candidates' answers to their questions based on a Likert scale of 1-5, one being excellent and five was no answer. They voted on whether or not a candidate should be considered a finalist for the position. 

"The committee was informed of the superintendent's relationship with one of the candidates after all the interviews were concluded, but before their rating sheets were handed in. The results were overwhelmingly conclusive. Only one candidate was rated worthy of being a finalist, Ms. Jackie Frederick.”

He reported the result to the board the next day and on June 20 he was contacted by the board and directed to recommend her to the superintendent as the next principal at SCS.

Fredericks is identified as Dr. Glen Huot's partner. Huot is the school superintendent.

The prepared statement read by Chris Albano, a board member, outlining the process from the vacancy being posted this spring. The superintendent reached out to the board to recuse himself from the principal search process when he knew his partner, Jackie Frederick, was interested in applying for the position, as required by law. The applicants were vetted by Sweeney and the committee selected. The district clerk and superintendent then created a board of education agenda to make her appointment as principal, which was the reason for Tuesday's afternoon meeting.

"The Stamford Board of Education is thrilled to have Jackie Frederick join our team. She is a highly accomplished professional with a wealth of knowledge, experience and skill in K-12 education setting. She is a wonderful addition to our school and we look forward to working with her and her therapy dog, Murphy."

Eileen Sanzone asked why no formal, appropriate notice was given to the public and Dr. Huot replied they had consulted with the school's attorney and it does follow the law. She asked why the faculty was not notified. She said the public is entitled to 72 hours notice even for an emergency meeting and up to five days for a special meeting. She also asked who created the screening questions and developed the screening scale.

Board member Cindy Buel said they did follow the open meetings law for an emergency or special meeting.

Cathy Straus Adams, a retired Gilboa-Conesville Central School teacher who lives in Stamford, said, "Jackie is wonderful and I wouldn't want to lose her." She had looked up her previous salary as principal at Gilboa-Conesville. Adams questioned why as a new applicant she is receiving a $20,000 raise from her previous salary  when the teachers at SCS do not have a contract. "Shouldn't the increase start at home. When it comes to money, please start here," she concluded

Huot defended the salary by comparing it to neighboring schools, however, there were those who took exception saying he is the second highest paid superintendent, second only to Windham and the teachers salaries are the second from the lowest out of the 19 ONC-BOCES districts. 

Dawn Tefft, a teacher at SCS, then praised Frederick, saying she thought she was a wonderful woman when she had worked at SCS previously. However, she said she disagreed with Catherine Snyder, president of the board, saying positions at the school are being cut.

Several people questioned the pay scale when teachers are not being offered nearly the same increase.

Carrie Sloane said she had voted for each member of the board and liked each one, but she believes it is about respect for the teachers. She went on to talk about ethics and transparency are key in small towns. She said the teachers deserve respect with discussions about the administration. They need information for the people who are impacted every day. She called it unethical and a conflict of interest. She posed the question: "What if they separate, how will they get along then?" She said she understands there is a level of professionalism but what happens when two administrators are mad at each other. 

She had also heard someone was approached internally for the position and the offer of a salary of $80,000 was declined. Huot answered that no one was qualified. Board member Lucas Flachs said it did not come before the board. 

Sloan concluded that no one is challenging Fredericks qualifications, only that she is living with her boss.

Resident Nora LiSanti said in her opinion the decision had already been made by the board and she alleged they are all in bed together in the sense that they care nothing about the people on the other side of the table.

Board members then proceeded with a motion to approve the hiring of Jackie Fredericks as the next principal at SCS at a salary of $115,000.