PALMER — Fifteen individuals were appointed to an Advisory Search Committee as the process to find a new superintendent of Palmer Public Schools is underway.

During the Jan. 18 School Committee meeting, Chair Bonny Rathbone said she was pleased to see how many people applied to be on the search committee. “It was so nice to see so many people put their names in it and be interested in serving on this committee,” shared Rathbone. Not only did people apply to be on the committee but they also wrote comments on why they would like to join, she added.

The Advisory Search Committee will be tasked to narrow a pool of candidates to a group of three to five finalists to be sent to the School Committee.

Vice-Chair Sandra Noonan noted that 28 parents submitted applications.

Rathbone read the applicants in alphabetical order. With three parent seats to fill, she asked School Committee members to write down three choices on a ballot of who they would like to see appointed. School Committee Secretary Amy Sacco tallied the votes, as she has no affiliation to the search process.

After the votes were tallied, Rathbone shared that Allison Swiatlowski received four votes and Christine Comacho received three votes, so they were automatically appointed. Applicants Erica Baer and Martin Dudek received two votes each, and four people received one vote: Nicole Bradski, Mark Caci, Michelle Lee and Melissa Petrashewicz. To choose the third parent, Noonan suggested that the individuals who received one or two votes be put back in and voted on again. After reviewing the applications, members voted two for Baer, one for Bradski and two for Dudek. The final vote came down to Baer and Dudek, with Baer claiming victory by a majority 3-2 vote.

Next, the teachers were appointed to the superintendent search committee. Rathbone shared that four teachers applied and they would be choosing three. The applicants included teachers Kerry Lynch, Robin Santos, Kelly Simpkiss and Jacqueline Triozzi. The results showed Lynch and Santos received four votes, Simpkiss received five and Triozzi received two. Therefore, Lynch, Santos and Simpkiss were appointed to the committee.

For administration, only two individuals applied to fill the two available seats, meaning both were appointed. The administrators serving on the committee are Palmer High School Assistant Principal Amy Herring and Old Mill Pond Assistant Principal Holly-Beth Riopel. A motion was made and seconded by the School Committee to approve their appointment.

Only one paraprofessional will serve on the search committee which is Laurie Kiaki. Rathbone noted that Kiaki was the only paraprofessional to apply. She received unanimous approval from the School Committee to be appointed.
Another motion was made and approved to add one support staff member to the committee. Fred Dileone, John Petrashewicz, Melissa Petrashewicz and Jennifer Sandoval were the four applicants. Dileone received two votes, John Petrashewicz received one, Melissa Petrashewicz received one and Sandoval received one. Dileone was appointed to the committee.

Student applicants included 12th grader Edward Paren, 11th grader Bill Partelo, 10th grader Madison Rathbone and 10th grader Shae Simpkiss. Three members of the School Committee voted for Paren, one voted for Madison Rathbone and one voted for Shae Simpkiss. Paren was appointed as the student representative.

With the option for a member of the community to be appointed, School Committee member Joseph Nompleggi said they were looking for someone in town who does not have a relationship to the school. Therefore, he said anyone who is a parent or teacher should not be appointed. After filtering through the applicants and removing parents, nine candidates remained.

Rathbone shared that John Oaks received two votes, Karen Silva received one, Jessica Sizer received one and Sarah Talbot received one. Because of the close responses, the committee voted again with Oak receiving three votes, Silva receiving one and Sizer receiving one. By a majority vote, Oaks was appointed.

From the Town Council, Caci and Sizer both applied to serve on the search committee. With only room for one, three School Committee members voted for Sizer and two voted for Caci. Sizer was appointed as the Town Council representative.

Lastly, two members of the School Committee were to be appointed.

Rathbone said she reached out to all members to see if they were interested in serving. Due to time commitments, Rathbone and Nompleggi were the only two willing to serve on the search committee. Both were appointed with unanimous approval.

Following the appointment of the search committee, Rathbone said all members would be notified and a time would be set up for everyone to meet.
She went on to extend her thanks for all that applied along with Nompleggi for collecting and consolidating all the applications.

Tracy Novick from the Massachusetts Association of School Committees (MASC) attended the meeting to finalize the brochure for MASC to post on their website. The School Committee unanimously approved the brochure.

Novick said the brochure would be posted by Jan. 20 and is strictly for candidates interested in applying for the vacant superintendent position.

Additionally, Rathbone shared that a survey has been posted to the district and towns website for people to express their thoughts and opinions on what they would like to see in the next superintendent. This includes characteristics, visions for Palmer Public Schools and more. Responses to the survey must be submitted by Feb. 3.