The search processes for new superintendents for the Greenfield School Department and the Gill-Montague Regional School District are moving forward, with Greenfield starting community outreach sessions on Monday, Nov. 3.
Both districts hired interim superintendents over the summer, with Roland Joyal Jr. taking the helm in Greenfield and Tari Thomas leading Gill-Montague, following the resignations of former Greenfield Superintendent Karin Patenaude and former Gill-Montague Superintendent Brian Beck, both in July.
Greenfield
According to the Greenfield Mayor’s Office, the district of 1,329 students wants to hire its new leader effective July 1, 2026. To achieve this goal, the Greenfield Superintendent Screening Committee is seeking community input regarding what qualities and priorities the next superintendent should hold.
On Oct. 16, the Greenfield School Committee voted to establish the 11-member Superintendent Screening Committee, which consists of Stacey Sexton, Ann Childs and Ginny Desorgher from the Greenfield School Committee. The screening committee has been tasked with interviewing eight to 10 candidates and selecting three to five to recommend to the School Committee.
Key qualifications for the position include a master’s degree (advanced degree preferred); a minimum of 10 years spent working in a public school district, including three to five years of central office/administrative experience; expertise in teaching and learning; and exceptional organizational, communication, public relations and interpersonal skills, according to the Mayor’s Office. The successful candidate must be licensed or eligible for licensure in Massachusetts.
The new hire’s salary would be between $180,000 and $200,000. Applications are being accepted through the New England School Development Council at applitrack.com/nesdec/onlineapp.
On Dec. 1, the Superintendent Screening Committee will begin reviewing applications and initial interviews will be held starting Dec. 15, according to a table on the school district’s website outlining the anticipated search timeline. By Dec. 18, recommended candidates will be shared with the School Committee, and finalists will be announced sometime around Dec. 23. Finalist interviews will begin in early January and a new superintendent is expected to be chosen by the start of February.
On Monday, Nov. 3, Greenfield Middle School and High School staff members are invited to participate in a focus group on what they’d like to see in a superintendent from 2:30 to 4 p.m. at the high school library. A session for preschool and elementary school teachers, also in the high school library, is planned from 3:30 to 5 p.m. that afternoon, followed by time for parents and caregivers to share their thoughts from 6 to 7:30 p.m. The session for parents and caregivers, in addition to being held in Greenfield High School’s library, will also have a remote option at https://bit.ly/GPSCaregiverFocusGroup.
On Wednesday, Nov. 5, Greenfield students can share their thoughts from 2:15 to 3:15 p.m., also in the high school library, and the larger community is invited to the same venue, or to participate remotely at https://bit.ly/CommunityFocusGroupZoom, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. to offer their comments.
A survey on the next superintendent has also been made available at surveymonkey.com/r/8ZF7ZFF.
“This is a pivotal moment for Greenfield,” Mayor and School Committee member Ginny Desorgher said in a statement. “Finding the right leader for our schools is a task we take very seriously, and it cannot be done without the voices of our community. We are looking for a superintendent who is not only an experienced administrator but also a visible, empathetic leader and a builder of trust. I strongly encourage parents, caregivers and all interested residents to participate in the upcoming focus groups or the online survey.”
Gill-Montague
The Gill-Montague School Committee approved a superintendent search timeline provided by the Massachusetts Association of School Committees on Tuesday, Oct. 28, after Central Massachusetts Field Director Tracy Novick detailed the plans.
In the approved timeline, Nov. 17 will serve as an in-district gathering of faculty, students and community members to share their thoughts on the ideal qualities of the next superintendent. During the week of Dec. 1, the School Committee will meet to vote on a job description and discuss the makeup of a search committee. Applications will be accepted through Jan. 16.
Novick explained that the questions she’ll be asking will help her create a report to bring to the committee that will feature feedback from people about what they think the district needs in a superintendent.
“So you all know a superintendent has a checklist,” Novick said. “By the same token, you also know that superintendents are different, and what is it that this district needs at this time is really what we’ll be looking to describe.”
Novick explained that the job will go up on the Massachusetts Association of School Committees website, LinkedIn, and microblogging sites like X (formerly Twitter) and Bluesky, with potential for the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents to pick up the posting. It will also go to the National Association of Superintendents Searches, which could pull candidates from the 43 member states.
The posting will remain up through mid-January, Novick noted, which is a longer timeframe than normal, due to winter holidays and vacations.
Once the application period closes in mid-January, the search committee will meet to discuss the applicants and choose semi-finalists for interviews that will be conducted the week of Jan. 26. Finalists will be selected from those interviews and recommended to the School Committee the week of Feb. 2. The week of Feb. 23, finalists will be interviewed by the School Committee and a preferred candidate will be chosen during an open session.
After Novick explained the timeline, the School Committee asked questions, with member Steve Ellis inquiring about the number of similar superintendent searches in the region.
While Ellis said he’s not worried about candidates being snatched up by other districts, Novick clarified the searches she mentioned in Holyoke, East Longmeadow and Greenfield will likely draw a different type of candidate pool from what Gill-Montague would see.