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06/18/2019 12:00 AMWith a round of applause, the Chester, Deep River, Essex, and Region 4 Boards of Education enthusiastically appointed Brian White as their next superintendent of schools at a June 10 meeting. White will officially take the reins from Superintendent of Schools Dr. Ruth Levy on July 1, and kick off the summer with a new job and a mission to meet the community.
“It is an honor and a privilege to have been chosen as the person to lead the district into the future,” said White who is currently an associate superintendent of teaching and learning for Stamford Public Schools.
His responsibilities in Stamford include a portfolio of six schools covering grades pre-k through 12, including Rogers International, an International Baccalaureate magnet school. His work has included a major central office reorganization, several district-wide teaching and learning initiatives, and building and mentoring new teams to tackle complex issues in the 16,000-student district.
Prior to his work in Stamford, he served as principal of the Henry James Memorial School in Simsbury. White began his career as a middle school social studies teacher.
“We concluded that Mr. White’s character, ability to resolve complex issues, people skills, operational experience, and his unyielding commitment to teaching and learning are the perfect fit for the schools of Chester, Deep River, and Essex,” said Essex Board of Education Chairman Lon Seidman, who also chaired the hiring committee.
The appointment of White brings to close a three-month search process that included multiple community forums, many Saturday morning meetings, parent and staff meetings, and a stakeholder survey. According to Seidman, input from the community guided the actions of the hiring committee, which was formed after Levy gave her notice of resignation earlier this year.
The 14-member committee, which included representatives from the Essex, Chester, and the Deep River Board of Educations as well as the Region 4 Board of Education; teachers; administrators; and three individuals who were chosen by the selectman in each town, began working together in March.
Joe Erardi of J.E. Consulting was hired to aid in the process, which ultimately convened with the committee interviewing the final eight candidates from a pool of 30 applicants from across the country.
Region 4 Board of Education Chair and search committee member Jennifer Clark said, “We had a committee that worked very hard on the process of finding and choosing the right candidate for this position and we are very grateful to the members, the town representatives, and the faculty representative for their contributions to the process.”
She added that there was a good response to an online survey, which did help the committee in deciding what characteristics were most important to the members of the community when choosing a new superintendent.
“There are big shoes to fill here for this position and we believe that Brian White has just the right footwear,” said hiring committee member D.G. Fitton.
“The appointment of Mr. White to be our next school leader is a terrific day for children, staff, and our three towns,” said Seidman. “I’m excited for our community to get to know him as he begins leading our schools on July 1.”