← School Committee · 2025-12-09 · School Committee Meeting
PUBLIC COMMENT
Agenda original PDF
Minutes original PDF
ymond Driscoll Member Present Cari Berman Interim Superintendent Present Also in attendance: Interim Deputy Superintendent, Ken Kelley and Recording Secretary, Kristen O'Connor. With a roll call vote with six (6) present, the meeting convened at 7:00 PM. 2. PUBLIC COMMENT Without objection the Chair opened Public Comment. Representative Kate Lipper-Garabedian stopped by on behalf of the House of Representatives to acknowledge Chair Dorie Withey and Vice Chair Jen McAndrew as they finish up their time and tenure on the Melrose School Committee. Ms. Lipper-Garabedian thanked them for all they have done for the Community and served them with citations from the statehouse thanking them for their leadership and dedication. (School Committee Member Seamus Kelley made a motion for a brief recess for a photo opportunity before continuing) MEU Representatives Leslie Means and Joellen Beaudet spoke to the plans for a permanent Superintendent. Ms. Means and Ms. Beaudet both expressed that it was in the best interest of the district to forgo a search and place Interim Superintendent Berman as a permanent Superintendent. They have polled the members of the Melrose Education Union and that is the will of the majority of it's members. They believe a search committee is not the right move for the Melrose Public Schools and supported Interim Superintendent Berman's historical knowledge of the district and her loyalty. With important decisions coming up with contracts and student resources, Ms. Berman has the background needed to make those important decisions. Jason Merrill, identifying himself as a Secondary Principal, resident, and parent of three, strongly encouraged the School Committee to appoint Interim Superintendent Berman as the 1 permanent Superintendent. Mr. Merrill praised Ms. Berman's leadership throughout what he described as a challenging year, noting her steady hand in moving the district forward while earning the respect of teachers and administrators. He highlighted her qualifications, which include 25 years of experience across roles such as teacher, special education coordinator, assistant principal, and director. Mr. Merrill emphasized her high expectations for all learners , her strong communication skills, and open-door policy. With no one else wishing to speak, Chair Withey closed Public Comment.
Transcript
▶ 0:45 Speaker 1: Thank you. So just a note before we begin business this, this evening. Uh, this meeting is being broadcasted by our friends at MMTV and again, it is being live-streamed, so this meeting is being recorded. First up on our items of business tonight is public comment. So if anyone would like to speak this evening, please take a moment to sign up at the TED table over there. And with that and without any objection, I'll now open public comment.
▶ 1:08 Speaker 3: We have a
▶ 1:17 Speaker 3: Oh, some excellent
▶ 1:19 Speaker 1: comments. Well, thanks, Ms. Rossey Thomas. (laughs) Great commentary. Phenomenal. Uh, so first up we have Representative Kate Lipper Garabedian.
▶ 1:32 Kate Lipper-Garabedian: Good morning, everyone. Or good afternoon/evening, everyone, and happy holidays. (laughs) It's, um, been a long day. Thank you for having me. And I wanted to stop by and bring greetings from the House of Representatives to acknowledge two of the members who are wrapping up their time and their tenure serving the students and families and educators in Melrose, that would be Chair Dorey Withey and member and Vice Chair, Jen McAndrew. And I wanted to come personally to thank you all for everything that you've done over these last four, eight years. Uh, and your leadership has meant such a, made such a difference in our community. You've also served during an incredibly challenging time for students and families through the pandemic. And did so with grace, integrity, and, uh, uh, and earnest leadership that I'm so grateful for. So, to both of you, I am bringing from the State House, again, citations recognizing your leadership and dedication to the City of Melrose through your work on the Melrose School Committee. And I want to thank Mr., um, Seamus Kelley for suggesting this and making this possible. So thank you all very much.
▶ 2:38 Speaker 4: To make a mo-
▶ 2:41 Speaker 4: make a motion for brief recess. Second. Second.
▶ 2:44 Speaker 1: Great. Thank you. That was incredibly kind. Um, next up we have Leslie Means, JoEllen Bode, and Jason Merrill. I believe... Just kidding. Just Leslie and J-, uh, JoEllen at this moment, and then, Jason, you're on deck. (laughs) Sort of a package deal tonight. (laughs) We're here tonight because we know that we are coming upon the season where you're gonna start thinking about plans for how you will hire a permanent superintendent for the Melrose Public Schools. Um, we believe that it is in the best interest of the city and the school district to forego the Superintendent Search Committee and instead put Interim Superintendent Berman in place as the permanent superintendent of the Melrose Public Schools. We have polled our membership and it is clear by an overwhelming supermajority that that is also the will of the members of the Melrose Educators Union. Spending money on a hiring consultant and executing a search is not the right move for Melrose Public Schools. Spending the time of school committee members on conducting interviews, reviewing resumes, um, as well as educators who would sit on that committee is not the right move for Melrose Public Schools at this time. Superintendent Berman has the historical knowledge of this district to know where we've been, what we've gone through, and also where we're able to go. She has demonstrated her loyalty to this district, which any outside hire would never be able to do.
▶ 4:16 Speaker 5: We are entering, as Leslie said, an exciting and important time for our district, allocating an historic amount of im- importance and much needed financial gains into our schools. Uh, we will be working to establish some impactful contracts and making sure that our students have everything that they need here in the city. This then is probably not the time to be c- casting a net for an outsider to come in, somebody who will undoubtedly need a lot of time to get to know Melrose and what our values and priorities are, who will embark on a listening tour. We don't think this is the moment for that. We want to be able to move forward and have somebody who is making those decisions, um, have the background of kno- of knowledge that, um, we, we feel that Interim Superintendent, uh, Berman has. We hope that you will agree with the members of the MEU and, um, quell the, the idea for a, a search at this time. Thank you. Thank you.
▶ 5:26 Speaker 1: Thank you for being here tonight. Next up we have Jason Merrill.
▶ 5:30 Speaker 3: Welcome.
▶ 5:33 Speaker 6: Thank you so much. Good evening, everyone. I'm Jason Merrill. I'm the principal at Melrose High School, Melrose Veterans Memorial Middle School, and I'm a resident and parent of three Melrose Public School students. Um, first, I want to say thank you to Ms. Means and Ms. Bode, and I couldn't agree more and that's why I'm here, and I'll try to be brief. Um, but I feel a responsibility to encourage this committee to hire Carrie Berman as the superintendent of schools in Melrose. Ms. Berman has high expectations for all of our learners.... and loves all of our kids. She, she has navigated us this year in the district through what was anticipated to probably be the most challenging months in recent history in this community. Um, and I think we lose sight of that 'cause for one, uh, this has been one of the most (laughs) rewarding falls for me, um, and I think things have gone well. But I think we lose sight of how challenging we thought it was. Um, she's been the steady leader that we've needed. She's been able to continue to s- still move our district forward while earning the respect of all of the teachers and administrators in the district. I think what's truly sets her apart is, first, loyalty. I don't even think people know what that means anymore, certainly in this line of work. Um, she served this community. The MEU just talked about the values of our district. Ms. Berman's been creating those values and part of, part of that system of creating values for the last 25 years in the city and in the Melrose Public Schools. Second, her experience in special education as a teacher, co-teaching in classrooms at the high school, as a building special ed coordinator at the high school and overseeing that work at both the middle school and high school for a few years before becoming an assistant principal and then later a director of special needs, probably the toughest job in any district. And third, her communication. She has an open door. She listens much more than she speaks, which is a compliment. She's able to have the difficult conversations, mediate differences between people, and most importantly, she knows how and when to say thank you. I strongly encourage this committee to make Carrie Berman the superintendent of the future for Melrose. She has my loyalty, trust, and respect. Thank you.
▶ 8:14 Speaker 1: Thank you for being here. And I think we'll see you a little later today,
▶ 8:20 Speaker 1: too. Ms. O'Connor, is there anyone online that would like to speak this evening? No, there's not. Okay. So I just wanna say thank you to everyone that came before us during public comment tonight. We really do appreciate and value the time you share when you come and you tell us what's top of mind. Seeing that there are no other speakers this evening, I'll close public comment. Again, please know that while public comment is closed, you can always reach out to us via email with any questions, concerns, opinions, or