NORWALK, Conn. – The secrecy of Norwalk’s superintendent search has drawn objections from at least two high-profile Norwalk officials.
Both Norwalk Federation of Teachers President Bruce Mellion and NAACP President Darnell Crosland made public statements this week condemning the BOE’s decision to keep the process to itself until a new superintendent is selected.
Bruce Mellion, speaking at the BOE meeting:
“When you began the process to secure a new superintendent, there was considerable talk about openness and transparency in the process by the board. Certainly, when there are 80 or so applicants, then reduced to 20, then reduced to 11 and then reduced to five or six, confidentiality is understood. But when there are two, three or four finalists, they should — no, they must — be made public. In this way, the Norwalk community has an opportunity to see, hear and engage — I want to say again, see, hear and engage – the finalist in a way different from the board.
“It loses nothing and in fact gains from the community. It still has the final say. Not to be truly open and transparent is a catastrophic mistake and a repeat of what transpired between the spring of 2010 and April 17 of 2012. Does history repeat itself? It sure appears that way when it doesn’t have to.
“When you go into executive session, please reconsider what you are doing and the message you are sending to the 85,000 members of the Norwalk community who elect you, but, most particularly, the 11,000 students for whom you are supposed to be a model of openness, transparency and Democratic process. As it stands, what you are about to do is so very, very wrong, but you still have the opportunity to make it right.”
Crosland expressed his thoughts in an email:
The NAACP is committed to the education of our children, and wants a superintendent of schools that is more than a person seeking employment, but is a person who is equally committed to the students of Norwalk as we are. The path to finding the best candidate isn’t the path covered by bush that no one can see, it is the path that is clear and transparent. Since the search process began late last year, the procedure the board laid out was that the finalist would become public. The community has urged the board to make this process transparent, and what Mr. Lyons is now proposing is not true to form.
What we don’t want to do is end up having spent a boatload of money on a professional search firm that spent time with us, wasted legal pads of notes, and our voices are still not heard. This is not the democracy we voted for.
Listen, I understand that people want to secure their jobs, but what we know is this, when you love a community like we love Norwalk, you take risk, you are proud to profess your desire to make change, we saw that when Mr. Garfunkel gave up a top spot as town clerk to run for Mayor, he didn’t win and didn’t get his job back, but he survives, and we see that with Harry Rilling having announced his candidacy; he also put his current corporate job on the line. It’s the sacrifice we make.
The candidate for superintendent that can make a pledge and a sacrifice to Norwalk is the candidate that the people want to hear from. The others can go back to their jobs. I hope Mr. Lyons appreciates that we are tired of playing games.
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