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Vol. LXV, No. 24
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Wednesday, June 15, 2011
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Vol. LXV, No. 24
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Wednesday, June 15, 2011
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Lew Goldstein, the Princeton Regional Schools’ (PRS) Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources, Public Information and Community Relations came very close last week to being named superintendent of the Hamilton public schools. In a closed-door session, however, Hamilton Board members opted not to take any action at a meeting last Thursday.
“At the recent Board of Education meeting at which the Board was apparently planning to name a new superintendent, the search process created a great deal of internal Board and community controversy,” said Mr. Goldstein in a statement released midday on Monday.
Hamilton, a district with 13,000 students, has been looking for a replacement for retiring superintendent Neil Bencivengo. “The superintendent needs to have credible and enthusiastic support from the board and key stake holders as this journey begins, especially following the retirement of a long-tenured leader,” said Mr. Goldstein. “Without such consensus, the next superintendent will not be able to make necessary improvements. With the best interests of the school district in mind, I have decided to withdraw my name from consideration for this position at this time.
“I was honored to be selected to be interviewed for the job,” Mr. Goldstein added, but “the Board’s decision not to act on the appointment of a superintendent on Thursday seems to reflect division and anger that exists within the Board and with certain members of the community. I believe that the board and the community must now heal any wounds of distrust raised by the search process before filling this position permanently.”
The “controversy” to which Mr. Goldstein referred appeared to be related to allegations of procedural and ethics violations in the Board’s selection process. School Board President Patricia Del Giudice reportedly claimed that the superintendent search had been conducted with “total transparency,” despite the fact that she had been bullied and threatened as it proceeded. Others clearly disagreed, and following last week’s public meeting board Vice President William Harvey told reporters that “any and all options will be considered.” The Hamilton Board’s next public meeting will be on Wednesday, June 15.
Mr. Goldstein, who holds a degree from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, has been assistant superintendent at the Princeton Regional Schools for 11 years. He is also the owner of sgstrategies.com, a human resources consulting firm. Mr Goldstein’s earlier posts included assistant director of Community Relations for the City University of New York; special assistant to the Chancellor of Higher Education and director of Personnel Policies and Human Resources for the New Jersey Department of Higher Education; director of Human Resources for the County of Mercer; and executive assistant for Employee Relations for Montclair State University.
“The Hamilton school district needs visionary and effective leadership in order to improve student achievement while operating efficiently and meeting mandates,” noted Mr. Goldstein. “ I was excited by the challenge to provide this to the district.” Noting the absence of “an environment of cooperation, collaboration, and commitment among the board members and community,” he observed that “in the end, it is the students who will suffer.”
Mr. Goldstein reported that “Key officials in my current school district were aware of my interest in the Hamilton superintendent position, and were supportive of my candidacy. They are aware that I have withdrawn my name from consideration in the Hamilton search, and I am grateful that I have a challenging and rewarding job, which I look forward to doing every day.”
“Needless to say I am happy that Lew will continue to serve PRS,” said Superintendent Judy Wilson.