On Monday night, following a contentious public comment period, the Baldwinsville Board of Education formally passed a separation agreement with Superintendent Jason Thomson and passed a resolution to hire Dr. Kathleen Davis as the acting superintendent, effective Feb. 1.
About a dozen members of the Baldwinsville community made comments about the board’s decisions regarding the hiring of Thomson, Davis and the two previous superintendents who left the district before their contracts were up. Speakers included parents, teachers, former board members and Baldwinsville Police Chief Michael Lefancheck.
Most of the speakers spoke in favor of hiring Dr. Joseph DeBarbieri as the permanent superintendent. Since Thomson was suspended last fall, DeBarbieri, who is the district’s assistant superintendent, has been the acting superintendent.
“When we have problems, you turn to him, he’s right there, he does the job,” said Burrill Wells. “He does a great job and it’s like you’re slapping him in the face and I don’t think that’s very well appreciated by most of the people that have a connection with this district.”
“The search for new leadership is the direct effect of poor choices made by the board,” echoed Ashley Weaver, a 2017 graduate. “There’s no one better to lead this district than the person you’ve been relying on time after time to clean up your mess.”
Chief Lefanchek said that during the events surrounding the death of student Ava Wood last week, he immediately reached out to the “current leadership” of the school and the two coordinated how information related to the incident would be disseminated to students and the community.
“That level of trust and cooperation is paramount to me,” Lefancheck said. “I wouldn’t have made that call to that individual unless I knew that I could trust him.”
Many speakers spoke to the hundreds of thousands of dollars the district has spent on superintendent salaries, searches and legal fees during the past eight years as the district has shuffled through three superintendents. Others questioned why the school board seems so focused on bringing in unknown leadership from the outside, when a suitable replacement with decades of experience in Baldwinsville is available.
“I went through stricter background checks to coach my son’s little league team then you performed on our current vacationing superintendent,” said Brett Maring, who has two children in the district. “There’s no person more qualified to do this job than [DeBarbieri]. If this position goes to any person other than Dr. DeBarbieri, then each and every one of you should step down because Baldwinsville doesn’t want you.”
Davis comes to the district following a lengthy career in education. She retired after more than 15 years as the superintendent of Holland Patent Schools in 2016. Since then, she has served in a number of interim roles as both a superintendent and principal, including a brief stint as the interim principal of Ray Middle School.
Davis and her husband, Earl, reside in Barneveld, however during her interim role at BCSD she will be living in Baldwinsville.
Davis will be paid $800 per school day through the end of the school year and also will receive a housing stipend to live in the district during the school week.
School Board President Jennifer Patruno and other board members said that the district has two positions – a superintendent and a deputy superintendent – both with their individual job responsibilities. Dr. DeBarbieri has been filling both of those roles since last fall when Thomson was suspended.
She said the hiring of Davis would allow DeBarbieri to “focus on curriculum instruction.”
“We have an opportunity to bring someone in to provide additional support and resources to the administrative team so everyone can get focused on the duties of their positions and this, I believe is beneficial to the students,” Patruno said. “Students should not lose out due to the events of October, and I believe this is the correct student-focused decision.”
Patruno added that the board has five months to make a decision on a new permanent superintendent.
The board voted to hire Davis as interim superintendent, by a 6-3 margin.
The settlement with Thomson, who was arrested last October for driving under the influence following a Baldwinsville football game in which he was seen crowd surfing with students in the stands, passed 9-0. It includes accepting his resignation effective June 30. In the interim, he will continue to be on leave from the district and will continue to receive his full salary.
In addition, the district will pay Thomson a lump sum payment equal to four months salary as well as any accumulated vacation time.
The district will withdraw the disciplinary proceedings it had initiated against Thomson who will, in turn, waive his right to due process.
“Mr. Thomson further agrees that he will not, in the future, apply for or accept employment or reemployment, or volunteer with the District in any capacity,” the agreement states.
