School board irons out details of superintendent search

A 19-member search committee made up of school and community representatives should help select Newton’s next superintendent, School Committee members said Monday.

The body didn’t take a formal vote, but members said at a special meeting to discuss the superintendent search that a search committee could consist of two School Committee members, two school principals, two other school administrators, two teachers, two students, a school secretary or custodian, and eight community members.

Committee members said choosing a size for the committee is a balancing act. If the committee is too small, they said, it would not be inclusive enough, while a large committee risks being unwieldy and ineffective.

“I feel like we’re Goldilocks here,” School Committee chairman Marc Laredo said.

Members of the search committee, with the help of a paid consultant, will eventually recommend finalists to replace Superintendent Jeffrey Young, who is leaving to take the helm of the Cambridge Public Schools.

School Committee members stressed that search committee members will have to make a significant time commitment to the search process and will have to respect the confidentiality of applicants who don’t want to be identified because of their current employment situations.

“That’s the one part of this process that cannot be transparent and wide open,” Laredo said. “If you don’t do it that way, you’re not going to get any good applicants.”

School Committee members will meet again Monday to discuss how the members of the search committee will be chosen.

The body will also meet tomorrow to discuss naming an interim superintendent for the 2009-2010 school year.

-- Calvin Hennick, Globe Correspondent