School chief's future debated
Committee split on renewing pact
Amid calls for Superintendent Nate Levenson's resignation and a scandal that has led to the dismissal of two school employees, the Arlington School Committee has begun the delicate process of evaluating the school chief for possible renewal of his contract.
But some committee members are already unhappy with the way the proceedings have unfolded: Joseph Curran, Denise Burns, and Sean Garballey say they did not like how chairwoman Susan Lovelace opened a recent discussion on the matter by highlighting their disapproval of Levenson.
In evaluating the superintendent, the seven members of the board rate him using a five-point scale, with "1" meaning "unsatisfactory" and "5" meaning "exemplary" performance. When all seven votes were taken into account, Levenson's score was 2.75 - between "needs improvement" and "meets expectations." The six categories on which Levenson was graded were completing annual objectives, committee-superintendent relations, professional development, personnel relationship-management, community relations, and business and finance operations. Levenson achieved a score of 3.7 in business and finance operations, but a mere 1.9 in community relations.
During the discussion on Sept. 11, Lovelace said that if only four committee members' scores were looked at - those of Sue Sheffler, Ronald Spangler, Jeff Thielman, and her - Levenson would "exceed expectations." With the other three members, she said, the superintendent "almost meets expectations."
"We are a divided board," Lovelace said.
But Curran, who was the most critical in his evaluation, said that the evaluation of the superintendent needs to be looked at as a whole and that the final tally is the only one that matters."The bottom line is that all seven votes count equally. Anything else would not be fair."
Garballey agreed, and insisted his evaluation was fair and should be looked at along with all the others. "The only score that matters, the only judgment that matters, is the entire board's," he said.
In an interview this week, Lovelace said she did not mean to discount the members' opinions, but simply wanted to acknowledge the obvious.
"What struck me when I was doing the analysis on the evaluations was, here's one person whom seven people see very differently," she said. "I understand that may have led to further division, so what I have done is provide the raw data" on the district's website.
The evaluations are required by policy and are not the only criteria used when determining whether a new contract will be offered to Levenson. By contract, he must be made aware of his future - either a contract extension or none - by December.
Lovelace, though, said she expects a vote in the next few weeks.
"My hope is to decide in the next couple of meetings, for the sake of stability. The sooner everyone knows, the better. We need to take it out of public discussions and make a decision."
But Burns said it is much too soon to consider extending Levenson's contract. "Could there be more bad news around the corner, and some members wish to make sure Mr. Levenson has job security first?" she said, taking a swipe at the pro-Levenson camp.
Curran said the divide among members has become even deeper in recent weeks, as the district continues to deal with the fallout from an e-mail scandal at the Ottoson Middle School.
Ottoson principal Stavroula Bouris and technology teacher Chuck Coughlin were fired after provocative e-mails between the two surfaced over the summer. The district has said that a member of its technology staff, hearing of a possible romantic relationship between Bouris and Coughlin, tapped into school and personal e-mail accounts and provided printouts of e-mails to Levenson. While an investigation was underway, a report containing the e-mails was leaked to a media outlet in July.
A Middlesex Superior Court judge ruled on Aug. 15 that the district cannot disseminate the e-mails, saying that doing so would "risk irreparable harm" to Bouris and Coughlin. Frank Mondano, their lawyer, said the district can expect a lawsuit from the two.
The latest bombshell occurred at the Sept. 11 meeting, when Thielman admitted to the leak. He said this week: "I thought that misinformation was being spread that could be a detriment to the school district and felt the truth needed to get out to the public somehow. I think I did the right thing."
Curran said the school board has to address Thielman's action before passing judgment on how Levenson handled the scandal. "How does the School Committee have any credibility with people in town, with employees in the district? We must have none," he said.
Lovelace declined to comment on Thielman's action, saying he never consulted her or other members before the leak.
At the meeting, five current and retired teachers also called for Levenson's termination. "The lack of compassionate humanity coming from our superintendent has been, for staff, the biggest morale buster of all," said retired teacher Judy Phelps. "I'm suggesting that the School Committee consider asking Mr. Levenson to leave now. His continued presence in this system is damaging to our system."
Lovelace said the teacher's input, though informative, will not be the only thing she uses when making a determination on the contract. "I have heard a number of teachers who are supportive. I think that it is impractical and Pollyanna-ish to assume that all teachers thought he was doing a good job. There are people who think differently.
"It is no secret, I support extending Nate's contract. There are other people out there who do, too."
Levenson said he was not surprised at the division over his fate.
"It accurately reflects a divided community," he said. "It speaks to the direction of the district, rather than how I am handling the job. If you like the direction the district is going, then you like what I am doing. If you do not like the direction, you don't like what I am doing. I think it is as simple as that."
Levenson said he hopes the board makes a decision in the next few weeks. "Given the events of the spring, and then summer, the district needs a level of certainty."
The committee will discuss the contract during its meeting that will begin at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Arlington High School.
Melissa Beecher can be reached at mbeecher@globe.com. 