On Tuesday, May 8th there was a forum at the Malden High School library intended to help with the search for the new principal. The principal forum was very informational and useful for all in attendance. Community members got to meet each one of the finalists for the position of principal for Malden High School and each candidate got to speak directly to students, parents, teachers, and other community members in attendance. Each candidate for the position got a little less than one hour to speak, spending five minutes introducing themselves and using the rest of the time answering questions from the public. Superintendent John Oteri, whose decision it is to appoint the principal, was provided with input on what some of the residents in Malden thought about each of the finalists. To gather all of the information on each of the finalists, a small, green, slip of paper was distributed to everyone in attendance. On this paper, the people in attendance could answer several questions such as what they believed the strengths of each of the finalists were, what they would you like to know more about each finalist, and what concerns they had about each finalist. Everyone had time to write feedback after each of the finalists were done speaking.
Christopher Mastrangelo
The first finalist to speak was Christopher Mastrangelo, who is currently Malden High School’s interim principal. Some of the big topics he spoke of were his connection with the students in the school and his experience working within the school with administrators. He stated that “[he] likes to get to know the students.” He also took some time to talk about restorative circles. He notes that, during his time leading Malden High School, incorporating this restorative practice has led to a decrease in suspensions. Mastrangelo plans to continue working with the idea of having restorative circles and chats because, so far, the outcomes have been positive. In the near future he hopes to have pre-restorative chats so students can talk before having altercations that would lead them to administrative discipline. Another plan he hopes to accomplish is to have a police presence in the elementary schools so that the students are more comfortable with the police from an earlier age and the police seem more approachable, not an authority that the students should fear. He wants the police to be seen from a different point of view. He wants the students to think of them as someone who is there to help.
Purnima Vadhera
The second finalist to speak to the audience was Purnima Vadhera, a Harvard graduate and teacher for 12 years. She was also assistant principal for 3 years at Newton South High School. She spoke about an exchange program she initiated in which she brought Newton students to India so they would be able to experience Indian culture and brought students from India to Newton. During her tenure in Newton, she also wrote a grant and the music and physics teachers got together to teach in one class so that the students could connect physics, which they thought was boring, with something interesting to them, like music. When describing herself she stated that she is “a very creative and crazy person who likes to take risks.” She also spoke briefly about unity saying “food and music are languages everyone speaks,” even in communities as diverse as Malden. Vadhera also supports the idea of bringing in diverse teachers and she wants teachers that understand English Language Learners (ELL). When asked about STEM, she said that “[she] would like to extend STEM to STEAM,” saying that art is a quintessential element of student life and that the arts are very important to her. When asked why she chose Malden she said “[she] doesn’t feel the diversity [elsewhere] like she should be” and that she wanted to come to Malden to experience some of the diversity that we have.
Timothy McCarron
Timothy McCarron was the third and final finalist of the evening. He is currently principal at Medway Public Schools and explained that his experiences as principal have helped him learn that the job is a “twenty four seven job and it’s the toughest job you’ll ever love.” He says he knows the hard work and dedication, and commitment needed and he is willing to put in the hard work. One of the lines that he emphasized the most throughout his speech was the quote “You’re on the precipice of something great here.” He explained that this meant that Malden has “very good numbers, excellent kids, and tremendous diversity.” He described a Saturday school for struggling students so they can have more time with teachers, an example of his “drive and desire” to create change. McCarron also stated that he “Wants to build on the positives and there is a heck of a lot of positive here in Malden.” He shares that “[his] biggest strength is that he cares and [he] has passion.” He also shares that he is open to the idea of having more diverse staff to match the diverse population in the school.
One of the community members in attendance at this event was Susan Goldstein Fghani. She is the Parent of an 8th grader about to enter Malden High and a 7th grader who also intends to go there. She felt it was important to hear what the principal candidates had to say since they will be in charge of both of her children’s daily lives for the next few years. She stated that “the environment of each school is created and maintained by the principal, so I want to know what the school climate would be like under each candidate.” She stated that the questions she asked “were about students who have difficulty regulating their behavior in school and what methods or practices the principal would use to help these students without suspending them” because she wanted to know the level of skill each candidate had with “managing the social-emotional needs of students, especially those with special needs”.
She also wanted to find out how well-informed each candidate is about current theories and practices, that are “based on what scientists now know about brain function, and how these are being implemented in schools”. For the qualifications of each of the candidates she felt that “one was excellent, one was good, and [the other] is [not] a good fit for Malden.”
Martha Bezzat was another community member who attended the event. She is the parent of Malden High School junior Salma Bezzat and is also a Beebe School staff member. She explained that the main reason why she went was to “give [her] feedback to the Superintendent.” She “asked questions about what they see as the school’s biggest challenges in the coming year, staff morale, what STEM enhancements the school could use and how teachers and coaches can better support student athletes”. She explains that she was very “impressed with the qualifications of the candidates, some had more education, some had more relevant experience, but all came across as passionate about creating a good environment for student success.” She says that she liked the setup of the event because the forum was “informal, and that gave the parents, students, and community a chance to ask questions freely”. She explains that she is “very excited about Malden High School, and clearly many others are as well”. The main thing she wants to maintain is the quality staffing and leadership of the school because staff morale and teachers being supported and listened to is very important to her.
The forum expressed a lot of useful information about the finalists for the position of Principal at Malden High School. All that is left to do is wait for the response on who won the position, announcement believed to be released on Friday, May 11.
