By DAN TOMASELLO
LYNNFIELD — The school system’s three operational leaders will be staying in their respective roles for the foreseeable future.
Citing “merit” and “current market conditions,” the School Committee approved an extension and a raise for Superintendent Kristen Vogel during a Sept. 26 meeting. The school board also approved raises for Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning Kevin Cyr and Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations Tom Geary.
Chair Rich Sjoberg said the School Committee recently reviewed the contracts for Vogel, Cyr and Geary. The contract reviews took place during executive session.
“As the School Committee reviewed the contracts of our superintendent, assistant superintendent of finance, and assistant superintendent of curriculum, we came to realize salaries in the market have changed everywhere, as communities look for stability and continuity in leadership,” said Sjoberg. “This year, there were between openings and interims in place, 52 superintendent positions available. Last year, there were 30 openings in which only 22 superintendents applied. Therefore, we see many more assistant superintendents applying for open superintendent positions.”
The School Committee unanimously approved extending Vogel’s contract through the 2025-2026 academic year, and added an “option year” that has to be exercised by the committee by June 30, 2024 for the 2026-2027 school year. The school board also added a second “option year” that has to be exercised by the committee by June 30, 2025.
Additionally, the School Committee approved a “market reset” of Vogel’s salary that will increase it from $193,418 to $212,418 for fiscal year 2024, representing a 9.8 percent raise.
Sjoberg said Vogel’s salary increase will be less than the salaries superintendents in Andover ($228,000), Arlington ($220,000), Burlington ($244,629), Chelmsford ($213,577), Manchester-Essex ($214,820), Wilmington ($218,661) and Winchester ($230,062) are receiving for the 2023-2024 academic year.
While Cyr and Geary already have three-year contracts in place, the School Committee approved giving both assistant superintendents raises as part of a “reset of the administrative salary base based on current market data” for FY24.
The School Committee voted to increase Geary’s salary from to $149,448 to $167,448, representing a 12 percent raise. The board also voted to increase Cyr’s salary from $137,136 to $155,136, representing a 13 percent raise.
Prior to approving the raises, Sjoberg said Lynnfield had the “lowest paid superintendent and assistant superintendents in analyzing salaries within the North Shore, SEEM Collaborative, adjacent Middlesex and Merrimack Valley districts.”
“If we were to replace these positions, the replacement search fees are substantial,” said Sjoberg. “The loss of institutional knowledge and time it would take to get back to current operating performance levels is the weight of our decisions of balance here. We want to do what is right for our staff, our students, our teachers, our community and be fiscally responsible.”
Sjoberg praised Vogel, Cyr and Geary’s leadership and expertise.
“The Lynnfield School District has built a foundational reputation which supports an educational environment that is committed to rigorous instruction and academic excellence, while maintaining the social and emotional well-being that supports all students equally,” said Sjoberg. “We are fortunate to have district operational leaders in Kristen Vogel, Tom Geary and Kevin Cyr, who are passionate, student-focused, forward-thinking, proactive and excel in their roles in recruiting, financial management, budget foresight and process, grant writing, curriculum and district strategy forethought. The committee, based on merit and a reevaluation based on current market conditions, has reviewed each of these factors.”
School Committee member Jamie Hayman expressed his support for the contract amendments for Vogel, Cyr and Geary.
“I appreciate the thoughtful nature the committee has taken on this,” said Hayman. “It’s not just schools. It’s business as well. When you want to keep the best, you have to look at what it would cost to replace them. This will ensure that we keep the best in all of those positions.”
School Committee Vice Chair Stacy Dahlstedt agreed.
“We are very fortunate to have Kristen Vogel as our district leader as well as Kevin and Tom in their roles,” said Dahlstedt.
Superintendent evaluation
In addition to approving the three contract amendments and raises, the School Committee also evaluated Vogel’s job performance for the 2022-2023 academic year.
As part of the state-mandated superintendent evaluation system, Sjoberg distributed evaluation forms for committee members to use to evaluate Vogel. After collecting each member’s individual evaluation, Sjoberg created an evaluation instrument that gave an overview of Vogel’s job performance.
School committees have the option under the evaluation system to rate a superintendent’s job performance as “exemplary,” “proficient,” “needs improvement” or “unsatisfactory.”
Sjoberg said the School Committee rated Vogel as “proficient” on the majority of the evaluation instrument’s four performance standards and their subcategories. He said the committee rated Vogel’s performance under the “continuous learning of an administrator” subcategory under Standard 4 as “exemplary.”
“Superintendent Vogel is fully committed to student learning with a focus on building leadership,” the evaluation instrument states. “Superintendent Vogel supports an educational environment that is committed to rigorous instruction and academic excellence, while maintaining the social-and-emotional well-being of students. This includes targeted interventions and supports for all students.”
While the overwhelming majority of Vogel’s evaluation was positive, the School Committee recommended that she improve communication during the budget process.
“The superintendent works well and communicates often with the town administrator, Select Board and School Committee,” the evaluation instrument states. “An area where the superintendent can improve is with communication of the budget process. Though she took a thoughtful approach with respect to where and how to allocate and reallocate resources, the process should be more transparent to all stakeholders.”
Hayman said the “proficient” ratings Vogel received on the evaluation instrument were well deserved.
“Proficient is good,” said Hayman. “Proficient is what we are striving for. If everything is exemplary, we are probably not evaluating the right things. Holding that standard high allows Kristen to hold administrators to the same level, which then trickles down to teachers and students.”
Dahlstedt echoed Hayman’s sentiment.
“Lynnfield Public Schools was incredibly fortunate to hire Superintendent Vogel when we did at the forefront of the pandemic,” said Dahlstedt. “I find Kristen to be highly-professional, dedicated, respectful and compassionate about and towards our students, our families, our staff and members of the community. She is continuously looking for ways to improve the district. I think she is a great instructional leader who communicates well and often. At the end of the day, she supports an educational environment that is committed to academic excellence while maintaining the social-and-emotional well-being of all of our students.”
School Committee member Kate DePrizio called Vogel an “exemplary” leader. She said Vogel is committed to “continual growth.”
“That trickles down to everything we do in this district,” said DePrizio.
School Committee member Phil McQueen thanked Vogel for “all of the hard work” she does for the school system.
“There is a lot of moving parts to this, but those moving parts all move together very well,” said McQueen. “That is a testament to what Kristen has been doing in the district. Last year was the first full year she was able to push her vision forward.”
Dahlstedt, DePrizio, Hayman and McQueen thanked Sjoberg for compiling the evaluation instrument.
Vogel also thanked the School Committee for the positive job review.
“I appreciate all of the time and thoughtfulness you put into my evaluation,” said Vogel. “It allows me to continue to be reflective. It means a lot to me that you recognize that because I take a lot of pride in being reflective. Our administrators and teachers are reflective about our practice. We are always striving to be better, and your feedback is very helpful in that process.”