As many of you may already know, Dr. Sal DeAngelo has announced his retirement as Chatham’s superintendent of schools, effective June 30, 2024. The purpose of this memorandum is to update all staff and the community on plans that the Board of Education has made in order to select a new superintendent.
The Board has asked the consulting firm of Castallo and Silky from Syracuse to assist with the superintendent search process. Alan Pole is the individual from that firm who is working directly with the Board. Alan has assisted numerous boards of education with superintendent searches. The Board met with Alan on February 15 to begin our planning and we look forward to working with him to complete the search process.
A vacancy announcement for the superintendent’s position will be developed and mailed out across the State by the middle of March. This will begin the process of soliciting applications for the superintendent’s position. Some applicants will apply on their own, while others will be nominated for the position. If you have any individuals you believe should be considered for our superintendent’s position, please send their contact information to Alan Pole at polead@yahoo.com. The deadline for the receipt of all application materials is April 19, 2024.
While the applications are being received, the Board is interested in soliciting input from various individuals on a profile for the new superintendent. An online survey will be sent to school staff, students, and parents as well as posted on the District’s website on March 1, 2024. The results of this survey will be compiled with a summary report provided to the Board of Education. This summary will also be posted on the District’s website.
Once all applications have been received, the Board will identify approximately six candidates to be invited for first-round interviews. The Board of Education will conduct first-round interviews on May 28, 29, and 30, 2024. Through these first-round interviews, the Board plans to narrow the field to approximately three finalists.
Once the finalists have been selected, they will each be invited to Chatham for a full day of interviews. The three finalists will be in our schools on June 11, 12, and 13, 2024. The Board will invite five committees to interview the three finalists and provide input to the Board on these candidates. The five committees will include faculty, administrators and supervisors, support staff, students, and community members. Each of the full-day finalist interviews will conclude with an evening interview with the Board of Education.
The Board anticipates offering the position to the successful candidate by the end of June. Following the successful negotiation of a contract with the new superintendent, the Board anticipates making a formal appointment in July 2024. We are expecting that the new superintendent will join us in Chatham on or about August 19, 2024, though this is dependent on our finalist’s availability as some candidates may need to give more than 30 days’ notice to their current employer.
The Board of Education would like to thank the Chatham Central School District staff and community for your assistance during this upcoming search process and for your anticipated support of our new superintendent of schools.
Frederick Hutchinson, President
Chatham Board of Education