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A Mass. school committee rescinded a superintendent candidate’s job offer after he referred to women as ‘ladies’
The Easthampton School Committee attempted to meet on Tuesday, but the meeting derailed when hundreds attempted to tune in and maxed out the Zoom capacity.
Easthampton is rallying around a superintendent finalist who said his offer to lead the city’s public schools was rescinded after he referred to women as “ladies” in an email — an act some school committee members reportedly viewed as a microaggression.
Dr. Vito Perrone said the school committee rescinded its offer in an executive session last Thursday, about a week after it voted 4-3 to hire the former Easthampton High School principal, according to the Daily Hampshire Gazette, which first reported the story.
The decision hinged on Perrone’s use of “ladies” in an email he sent to committee Chairperson Cynthia Kwiecinski over contract negotiations, he told the newspaper. Kwiecinski did not immediately respond to Boston.com’s request for comment.
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Perrone, currently interim superintendent of schools in West Springfield, told the Daily Hampshire Gazette that Kwiecinski said using “ladies” was a microaggression and “the fact that he didn’t know that as an educator was a problem.”
He explained that the terms “ladies” and “gentlemen” were used as a sign of respect when he was growing up, adding that he wasn’t aiming to insult anyone, according to the newspaper.
“Could I have been more formal? Absolutely,” Perrone told the Daily Hampshire Gazette. “There was an opportunity for a teachable moment and that would have been setting an expectation where we could learn and grow in a positive way. Instead, it was a denial of the ability to have a conversation.”
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Backlash to the decision was swift, spreading beyond Western Massachusetts as national news outlets like the New York Post jumped on Perrone’s story. Tempers flared locally, too.
A Change.org petition demanding the recall of all sitting school committee members garnered more than 700 signatures as of Tuesday morning. In the petition description, organizer Marissa Branscomb wrote that the sudden rescinding felt “suspicious,” questioning whether there was a personal agenda at play.
City Clerk Barbara LaBombard told the Daily Hampshire Gazette on Monday that someone stopped by her office to pick up recall affidavits.
A crowd gathered outside the city’s Municipal Building Monday night in protest over the rescinded offer — and in solidarity with Perrone. Protesters held signs that read “don’t veto Vito” and “ladies for Dr. Perrone.”
“Changing votes behind closed doors is unacceptable,” the Easthampton Education Association — which helped coordinate Monday’s event — wrote in a Facebook post. “Shame on the school committee for participating in cancel culture!”
EEA President Shawn Sheehan told Boston.com in an email interview that he felt angry after hearing how Perrone was treated.
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Sheehan recalled how Perrone helped raise Easthampton High School’s MCAS scores to high-performing territory, describing him as “an exceptional administrator” who “cared … immensely about the students, which created a positive school climate.”
Sheehan served as a member of the city’s superintendent search committee, which put forth three candidates to the school committee. In addition to Perrone, finalists included Berkshire Hills Regional School District Director of Teaching and Learning Jonathan Bruno and Ludlow Public Schools Director of Curriculum and Instruction Erica Faginski-Stark.
“I was proud of the work that we did as a committee and I felt that any one of these candidates that we put forward would do an excellent job leading our schools,” Sheehan said.
While he emphasized that the EEA does not support and is not affiliated with the push to recall school committee members, Sheehan called for more transparency around the committee’s decision to rescind Perrone’s offer in executive session.
“Because the events occurred in executive session, the community is only getting one side of the story and we are unclear why a former principal would be dismissed over a microaggression,” Sheehan said. “We would like for the notes of the executive session to be released so we know more.”
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Easthampton Mayor Nicole LaChapelle’s office told Boston.com the city “cannot comment on personnel matters.”
The school committee attempted to meet remotely on Tuesday night to continue its superintendent search, but the meeting quickly derailed when a swarm of participants attempted to join the Zoom session and maxed out the 300-person capacity, according to the Daily Hampshire Gazette.
Two school committee members were initially unable to join the Zoom, and the meeting also tested the livestream capacity for Easthampton’s public access TV station e.media, the newspaper reported.
Several members of the public yelled insults as the school committee tried to figure out how to accommodate the turnout, MassLive reported.
LaChapelle said the city could set up another meeting with a 1,200-person limit, according to MassLive. However, the news outlet noted, the new meeting could not happen without advance public notice, effectively ending Tuesday’s deliberations.
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