Editor’s note: The Easthampton School Committee this week is interviewing three finalists for superintendent. Erica Faginski-Stark was the second to be interviewed.

EASTHAMPTON — As a self-described adaptive leader and “systems thinker,” Erica Faginski-Stark has aims to lead the city’s schools through the next decade.

During the second night of superintendent finalist interviews on Wednesday at Easthampton High School’s library, Faginski-Stark told members of the School Committee that she would bring a depth of knowledge around business, finance, and procurement. That experience, combined with her progressive leadership when it comes to curriculum and instruction and supporting marginalized populations, make her a good fit for the superintendent position.

“For me, Easthampton is not a stepping stone. It’s not a place where I want to get experience and then move on,” she said. “It’s a place where I would love to spend the next 10-plus years serving the community and students if given the opportunity.”

Earlier in the day, she met members of the community, starting at the Municipal Building, and ending at the high school with a public meet and greet.

Faginski-Stark is one of three candidates vying to replace Superintendent Allison LeClair, who will retire this June.

Faginski-Stark is currently director of curriculum and instruction at Ludlow Public Schools. While she loves that job, she said that she has the skills and desire to be a superintendent. Prior to Ludlow, she worked as the director of curriculum and instruction at South Hadley Public Schools.

During the two-hour interview, School Committee Chairperson Cynthia Kwiecinski inquired as to why she would be a good fit for the city schools and what skills she might bring to the table.

Faginski-Stark said that she was choosy when it came to considering different school districts and communities and was not looking “border to border” in applying for superintendent jobs.

“I’m looking for a community that is invested in education, a community that cares about its students, that cares about what happens in the schools and is supportive of that, and one where diversity, equity and inclusion is part of who the community is comprised of,” she said. “That’s why I’ve identified Easthampton.”

Faginski-Stark, who holds a doctorate in education from Boston College, told the committee she has experience as an IT director, grants manager, and dealing with transportation contracts.

Her experience as the coordinator for Ludlow’s English as a second language program has helped reshape her thinking as an educator and how she communicates with families. She described an instance where she performed a home visit of a student whose family is from Afghanistan, who expressed fears of sending their child to school.

She said those experiences propel her to “meet people where they’re at” and have made her a fierce advocate of her students.

“The mother was in tears, saying, ‘In my country, when my child doesn’t come home from school, they are dead.’ So this strikes a chord with me and understanding the students who have needs and are economically disadvantaged students, and makes me take the time to meet them. Sometimes it’s meeting them at their home, stopping by and seeing what I can do,” she said. “You know, while we all feel like sometimes, there’s a lot of woes in our own life, when you sit down to speak to some of these families, it really puts what you see as well as into perspective.”

School Committee member Shannon Dunham asked Faginski-Stark if she had ever had to address a crisis in her career and if so, how she dealt with it.

Faginski-Stark reflected on a car crash where two young students died a few years back and described how administrators needed to come together despite their grief in mapping out how to be sensitive to the family’s needs, their classmates, parents and the entire school community.

If selected for the role, she intends to spend the first few months hearing from the community on what is done well and what needs to be improved. She also suggested embarking on a “school residency,” spending a week at each of the schools to really gather the lay of the land.

“How would I spend the first three months? Listening. Listening. And listening some more,” she said.

The last finalist, Vito Perrone, a former Easthampton High School principal who is now the interim superintendent of the West Springfield Public Schools, was interviewed Thursday night. Jonathan Bruno, the director of learning and teaching at Berkshire Hills Regional School District in Stockbridge, was interviewed by the committee on Tuesday.

Emily Thurlow can be reached at ethurlow@gazettenet.com.]]>