Mayor Richard Alcombright reads the charge to the Superintendent Search Committee at its first meeting on Monday night.

Jake Eberwein, right, was elected chairman of the search committee.

The search committee members are Eberwein, Toni Diamond, Mary Lou Accetta, the Rev. David Anderson, Noella Carlow, Stephanie Kopala, James Holmes, Matt Neville, Joshua Moran, Laurie Lamarre and John Franzoni (who was absent).

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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The community is looking for a new superintendent who will prioritize instruction and finances and maintain an open dialogue with parents and the public at large.

And residents very much want someone from outside the district.

That was the upshot of a online survey posted by the North Adams Public Schools to garner input from the community. The survey's results will be used during the interview process as school officials determine the city's next educational leader.

Patricia Correira, a field director for the Massachusetts Association of School Committees and the city's point person for MASC assistance on the search, told the School Committee on Monday that the 195 responses were good in both sentiment and number.

"Do you have issues, yes, but not enough to throw up a red flag" to deter candidates, she said. "If there were secrets, they would show up ... If people were really angry about something, it would show up.

"You're in the same boat as a lot of other districts are in ... not enough money, not enough staff, not enough central office staff, not enough SPED money."

The city is seeking a replacement for James Montepare, who is retiring but staying on in the interim until a permanent person can be found. 

The position was posted on the MASC and the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents websites and on the websites of their national versions. MASC also did a mailing with the listing and a brochure of the district to superintendents and assistant superintendents who are members of the association.

MASC received 10 applications, three of which Correira was very pleased with.

"There are a couple of really, really outstanding candidates and a couple not so outstanding," she said.

There had been some hope of getting a dozen or more but Correira put down the smaller number to the school district's geographic location. The salary was good for district's size but there lack of a cosmopolitan area. Those who applied were primarily from Massachusetts, which she said was good because the "learning curve is huge" for someone who didn't know the state's laws and regulations.

"I was pleased with the people from Massachusetts," Correira said.

Because only 10 applied, she brought all of their applications forward to the Superintendent Search Committee, which convened for the first time on Monday night immediately after the School Committee. The search committee was to determine if it would invite all of them for interviews later this month; of those interviewed, the committee is charged with sending three to five candidates to the School Committee.

Correira cautioned the search committee that it was a duly appointed arm of the School Committee and is required to abide by all open meeting laws. The committee must keep the applicants confidential, including doing their interviews and discussions in executive session, but has to still post its meetings and make other deliberations, such as what questions to ask, in open meeting.

At the end of its deliberations, the names of the finalists will be made public. At that point, more in-depth vetting and interviews will be taken up by the School Committee. That may include one or more interviews, visits to the applicants' school districts and visits here by the applicants. All interviews by the School Committee will be done in open meeting.

In response to concerns about the speed of the process, Correira said the timeline was standard in that it usually takes about six months. Montepare announced his resignation in January; the city hopes to have someone accepted by July 1.

That will give candidates time to give the 90-day or 120-day notice set in most superintendent contracts, she said, to begin the next school year.

Correira said the School Committee could have done all the winnowing since there were only 10 candidates, but committee members felt the search committee provided a good check on the process.

"I think it makes it more open to have the search committee," said Vice Chairwoman Heather Boulger. "It brings a different perspective."

Member Tara Jacobs thought it also gave a "buffer of confidentiality" that encouraged applicants.

"It brings together a whole bunch of people with different backgrounds," said Mayor Richard Alcombright, chairman of the committee, stressing the importance of making the right decision. "And it gives our employees and people in the community a voice."

Some 195 also gave voice through the online survey. Committee members questioned what they thought was a low number, but Correira said it was higher than others she had done.

Pat Correira, of MASC, led the search committee through its obligations and legal requirements on Monday.

Prior to online surveys, she would go to a district so residents could talk to her about their expectations.

"I'm thrilled that we have the wherewithall to do surveys," she said. "I would not have gotten a 145, 175 people to come out."

About 28 percent of respondents were employed in the school system; 21 percent had a child in the system and more than 30 were city residents who did not have children enrolled. Three percent, or six, were students in the system. Another 16 percent were "other": they were volunteers, were not residents but had grandchildren in the schools, were going to have children in the schools, were retired from the city or system, were homeschooling, or were active in organizations dealing with children.

Of the 195 respondents, some 66 percent (129) felt that curriculum development and instruction were the most important issues facing an incoming superintendent. That was followed by financial management (54 percent) and communications with parent and community (51 percent).

Held in least importance were the two building categories dealing with construction and management and enrollment and space needs, which tied at just more 12 percent each, and diversity of staff and student body, which was on the bottom at 11.79 percent.

The additional comments had many of the some sentiments, with respondents listing various instructional and budgetary needs; other challenges they believed the next superintendent will face included obesity and child health, crowded classrooms, regionalization at some level, staff professional development, putting learning over testing (while also bringing up test scores), diversity, and addressing poverty and other social issues.

The top skills and abilities they identified as recognizing and promote good teaching at 60 percent, improving and maintaining high academic performance at 54 percent and having successful administrative skills at 46 percent.

Budgeting, communication and curriculum also scored high; collective bargaining, professional development and organizational skills scored lowest.

The comment section provided a wide range of input but even there, it was obvious that the respondents were most concerned with academic and budget issues.

And finding best candidate, preferably from outside the city and the Berkshires as a whole.

As one succinctly put it: "We need a new face in the district."

• Two members of the search committee were unable to make the necessary time commitment: Jennifer Bernard and Greylock Principal Sandy Cote. They have been replaced by Laurie Lamarre, a director in the accounting office at Berkshire Health Systems, and Brayton Principal John Franzoni.

• Howard "Jake" Eberwein, dean of graduate and continuing education Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and former superintendent of the Pittsfield Public Schools, was voted chairman of the search committee.

• In response to a question from iBerkshires about possible collaboration with Adams-Cheshire, which will also be looking for a superintendent, Mayor Richard Alcombright said he was aware of that situation but did not want to halt the city's process at this point. He did, however, indicate the city could be open to future discussions.

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