Montville schools hire Norwich superintendent

Pamela W. Aubin is the new superintendent of schools for Montville.

Less than 2-1/2 hours after the Norwich Board of Education released Aubin from her contract as the superintendent of schools, the Montville school board unanimously approved Aubin as the new head of the town's school system.

After the Montville board announced its decision, the board and administrators attending the meeting applauded Aubin, who sat in the audience and thanked the group for their effort.

Aubin, who was chosen from a pool of 19 candidates, 12 of whom were sitting superintendents, will begin working in Montville on Jan. 4; her contract in Norwich does not expire until Jan. 3.

Aubin's new contract is good through the end of June 2012, but renewable annually, and includes a $158,000 base salary in addition to standard administrative benefits, said Montville school board Chairwoman Sandra Berardy. Further details of the contract were not available Monday because it had not been signed.

Officials said having Aubin start after the winter break will help provide a smooth transition.

Berardy said the board, which also acted as the search committee, was impressed by Aubin's knowledge as a superintendent, her commitment to education and understanding of the community. Berardy said Montville has had the good fortune of finding superintendents that "fit" the district and expects that Aubin will continue that tradition.

Berardy added that Aubin was hired to improve the district but not make immediate drastic changes.

"She's lucky because we really don't have any big issues in Montville. This is good for her because she can spend her time looking at things and evaluating the district," Berardy said.

Aubin concurred, saying that she expects to quickly make herself accessible to district employees and eventually the community to learn about Montville before making any decisions.

Aubin said the Montville position is the only one for which she applied. The chance to oversee a district that includes preschool through 12th grade was the big draw, she said, as was the ability to move on in her career to a place that has similar goals for data-driven assessment and holding adults, as well as students, accountable for achievement.

Officials from Montville and Norwich, along with Aubin, also see this as a possible opportunity for the municipalities to work together in the future on regionalizing some of their efforts, from professional development and translation services to a possible early childhood magnet school, when the moratorium on such educational facilities is lifted.

Aubin said leaving her staff in Norwich will be difficult.

"I cannot say enough good things about the staff for Norwich Public Schools. They are dedicated and this makes it very hard to leave," she said.

The Norwich Board of Education will meet again Nov. 10, with the search for a new superintendent prominent on the agenda for the newly-elected school board. Aubin said she made a recommendation for an interim superintendent Monday, but would not reveal the person's name.

Norwich board Chairman Charles Jaskiewicz said board members also have ideas on a possible interim superintendent, but declined to say whether prospective candidates already work for the Norwich school district or are outsiders.

The board also will discuss naming a search committee and whether to hire a search consultant, Jaskiewicz said. The board will have a workshop meeting Nov. 30 with officials from the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education to discuss superintendent duties and the superintendent search using a CABE consultant.

Board members Monday praised Aubin for her 10 years of work in the Norwich school system as principal, curriculum director and five years as superintendent. Aubin was hired in 2005 with no superintendent experience, a move that was considered a gamble at the time.

"It's been a great 10 years," said John LeVangie, the board's senior member.