Regional School Committee members 'pleased' with Superintendent Maria Geryk
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Superintendent Maria Geryk has received a positive evaluation from the Regional School Committee, with none of the dissension that marked her selection a year ago.
"We are pleased with your work over the past year," the committee concluded in a written statement that was released at Tuesday's meeting. "We appreciate the numerous new initiatives you have implemented and look forward to seeing positive results unfold."
Last Feb. 6, the committee was deadlocked on whether Geryk or another finalist, John Bayless, should be superintendent. After four hours of debate, members compromised on extending the contract for Geryk, who had been interim superintendent for 11 months. Nine days later, she signed a contract to hold the job through June 30, 2013, with one-year extensions possible. Geryk makes $140,000 a year.
Catherine Sanderson and Steve Rivkin, who were Geryk's strongest critics and voted for Bayless a year ago, are no longer members of the committee.
The eight committee members participating in the evaluation rated Geryk as near-exemplary in curriculum instruction and assessment. "We are pleased with your investment in programs and processes that promote the improvement of teaching and evaluation," their statement said.
Geryk was rated as exemplary in her professional culture standard. "Your commitment to a respectful environment, high expectations and continuous learning are evident in your actions," the statement said.
In management and operations, Geryk's rating was proficient. The committee praised her focus on school environment, "including the safety, health, emotional and social needs of students," the statement said.
She was also called proficient in family and community engagement. "Your ability to form effective and collaborative working relationships is clearly a great strength of yours," the statement said.
A few committee members suggested areas where Geryk could improve. Four said she could do a better job communicating with families and the community, and three said they'd like to see better personnel management. The names of the committee members who made those recommendations were not made public.
Amherst School Committee members Irv Rhodes, Katherine Appy and Rick Hood participated in the official evaluation, but member Rob Spence was late in filing his comments. The other committee members participating in the evaluation were Debbie Gould, Anne Marie Foley and Darius Modestow of Pelham, Kip Fonsh of Leverett and Kristen Luschen of Shutesbury.
Committee members also considered comments from parents, community and staff, and Geryk's own self-evaluation. But the summary document, written by Gould, was the only part of the evaluation that was made public.
"We look forward to your continued energy, enthusiasm and openness to new ideas in approaching this work, and thank you for your leadership," the statement concluded.
Fonsh said Tuesday that the committee has no more important function than choosing and evaluating the superintendent. "This comments on the past but also looks to the future," he said.
Geryk said she considers the feedback objective and fair. She said of the suggestions for improvement, "If you don't have that, it's not real."
"I had a great year and look forward to the next year," she added.
