MONTAGUE — Interim Superintendent Tari Thomas will be sticking around, after the Gill-Montague Regional School District School Committee accepted her statement of interest this week to continue in the role.
The committee voted to offer Thomas a longer-term position after conducting a 10-day internal search to find a candidate to lead Gill-Montague. The school district plans to restart its search for a permanent superintendent in the fall. Pending negotiations, Thomas’ contract will run through July 1, 2027.
In her statement of interest, Thomas wrote that she has developed a “deep appreciation” for the students, staff and community. She outlined her commitment to the district, mentioning ongoing initiatives in academic and staff restructuring; the development of a “comprehensive procedural guide” for best practices in the central office; and continuing to support the School Committee through the consolidation of Sheffield and Hillcrest elementary schools. Thomas will also offer guidance through an upcoming Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) audit.
“I’m just in awe of the community, our staff, our kids. Their loyalty and passion for your schools is incredible,” Thomas said during Tuesday’s School Committee meeting. “Your town’s passion and support of your schools is really, really impressive.”
Thomas’s current contract began on July 1, 2025, after she was appointed following the resignation of former Superintendent Brian Beck last May. Her current contract has her serving through the end of June as the district sought to hire a superintendent this past winter; however, the committee voted to suspend the search in February.
The two superintendent finalists from the first search, Brian Ricca and Mark Gosselin Jr., were deemed non-viable. The issue arose when, pending contract negotiations, Ricca accepted the job as superintendent at Southern Berkshire Regional School District, and the School Committee opted not to interview Gosselin as the only finalist, per guidance from Gill-Montague’s legal counsel based on existing case law.
School Committee Chair Jane Oakes explained in February that search committees are advised to present two candidates for School Committee interviews in open session, which the Superintendent Search Committee did. The Superintendent Search Committee had received eight applications and conducted four interviews before selecting the finalists.
Massachusetts Association of School Committees Field Director Liz Lafond advised the School Committee earlier this month that reopening the search this spring would be difficult, as eligible candidates have likely been hired by other schools at this point. Thus, the committee opted to wait until the fall to reopen the search.
To accommodate the search for the next permanent superintendent, the School Committee discussed a plan to structure Thomas’ new contract in such a way as to allow a new superintendent to start sooner than July 1, 2027, “if it’s in the district’s best interest and if the interim is amenable to have a transition occur sooner,” member Steve Ellis said. The district will also need to file a waiver with DESE for Thomas to be a superintendent while being retired, as it did previously.