Superintendent replacement search underway
In a letter addressed to the LMSD Community, Dr. Robin Vann Lynch, President of the LMSD Board of School Directors, announced that the Board is considering seven superintendent candidates, including current Acting Superintendent Dr. Wagner Marseille. The Board will conduct the first stage of interviews immediately and continue them through April. They plan to arrive at a decision by May.
In the initial executive session, the appointed search firm, BWP & Associates, met with the Board and presented 38 candidates from 16 states, 21
of whom had previous experience as a superintendent. The Board narrowed the list down to 7.
“All of the [seven] candidates that were brought forward have had prior experience as a superintendent,” said one of the BWP search team members, Dr. Stan Durtan, in an interview with the Merionite.
When asked whether the identities of the seven candidates will be available to the public, Dr. Durtan said, “I don’t think so.” He explained that BWP & Associates “protect[s] the confidentiality throughout the first interview stage.” However, once the Board narrows down the group of candidates to finalists, “it becomes difficult to maintain confidentiality.” Dr. Durtan continues to explain that the reason for the confidentiality is because “all of the candidates are current educators.”
However, we do know that Acting Superintendent Dr. Marseille is being considered. Student Council Treasurer Adrienne Rose explains her relationship with Dr. Marseille, “[he] has made such an effort with the officers this year and he really tries to foster a connection with us and do whatever he can to make our experience at LM better.” She believes, from a student perspective, that Dr. Marseille would do an exemplary job if chosen. Former Student Body President Arman Hassan ’14, believes “a big part of the superintendent’s job is to be in touch with the community,” and thinks that “it’s cool that everyone knows Dr. Marseille.” Teachers at LM also admire his vision so far. “He has a very exciting vision for the district and I think he’s passionate and really believes in what he’s trying to do.” LM teacher Nora Christman said. “His focus is education above all else, and so I think that’s a good shift for the focus of the district.”
The district facilitated over 70 focus groups and forums including over 1,000 District stakeholders. After spending 5 days in Lower Merion and observed in such focus groups and forums, search team member Dr. Stan Durtan concluded that “while experience was a frequent characteristic that was valued by [the Lower Merion] community,” it wasn’t the biggest concern.