[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6253329,"mediaKeyId","3181714-f235eace4fa01708858408c0f9d5de2d","parentId",3181714,"title","School committee approves two assistant superintendent appointments","audioSeconds",644,"startMs",1978000,"endMs",2622000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3181714-f235eace4fa01708858408c0f9d5de2d&start=1978&end=2622","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3181714-f235eace4fa01708858408c0f9d5de2d/thumbnail_1978000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6253329/Massachusetts/School-committee-approves-two-assistant-superintendent-appointments","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6253329-c07fab86ec36a1cae8c09698240508c7/orig.mp4?Expires=1770438022&Signature=QBVpLDGefwxUhSS84y7YNt9EQ-H6ui5ypT-L7tyaDasyR~m2V4Xl4cv2SQ54djSZHHxvpv-86zPe5hDpJ8f~hGlPxLsgTndFqNXbtc~VWcKYclbxJhmWpIScwi1nyV-Nh9HApp2tTikRmOrz16yKBKEFRx~I-o06EJwDJ2zajfiglCDz1x9mne5f~vnZdfeeAMDq-Zq3v6~wunHt2KaoxparhwKOkj9HnCcnL1wISl4YMvhVOk2Dm2~ExU91~oxEIXj-3i0ezEDIEIFHpzIk~EO4SbWA6yxk4FB9MWc70slSTDN~MC~B2oSrIOv6zkSGUJhkFClbp2sNRZLwF0H8jg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Springfield Public Schools, MA","date","2025-05-02T00:00:00Z","article","The Springfield School Committee voted unanimously on two appointments recommended by Superintendent (Dr. Denal): Jose Escribano as assistant superintendent for community engagement, family empowerment and partnerships, and Terry Poe as assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction and professional development.

Superintendent Denal introduced both candidates following a multi-stage vetting process. On the community engagement appointment she said the candidate was “well known and well respected in this community” and had built “strong bridges from the classroom to the home.” The committee moved and seconded the appointment; a roll call recorded unanimous yes votes from Mister Gonzales, Attorney Murphy, Mister Collins, Miss Gresham, Miss Hurst, Mister Miller and Mayor Sarno.

After the vote, Jose Escribano thanked the committee and community and described his priorities: “I’m very excited to really make sure that we strengthen, that community engagement and that we have, you know, strong partnerships, not only in Springfield, but nationally,” he said, adding a focus on bringing philanthropy and grants to the district.

The committee then approved the appointment of Terry Poe, praised by members for her record at Brookings Elementary. Poe said she was grateful for the opportunity and pledged to ‘‘put 110 effort into whatever is needed to get our students to greater levels of proficiency and to love on new teachers.’’

Why it matters: the new hires assign district-level responsibility for family engagement and instructional leadership at a time when the committee is negotiating teacher compensation and responding to shortages in specialists and classroom staff.

Next steps: human resources will proceed with onboarding and the district will post announcements and biographies on the website, per committee remarks.

Ending: both appointments were described by members as long-awaited promotions for local leaders with community experience.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","SPS: School Committee Special Meeting @ Putnam 4/30/2025","oneSentenceSummary","The committee approved the superintendent’s recommended appointments of Jose Escribano as assistant superintendent for community engagement and Terry Poe as assistant superintendent for curriculum, both confirmed by unanimous roll call votes.","taxTitle","Springfield Public Schools, School Boards, Massachusetts","taxId",38504,"location","Massachusetts","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6253334,"School committee hears FY26 budget update and teacher contract proposal as staff and teachers urge more sick days and hires",3773,1340000,5113000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3181714-f235eace4fa01708858408c0f9d5de2d&start=1340&end=5113","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3181714-f235eace4fa01708858408c0f9d5de2d/thumbnail_1340000.jpg","/articles/6253334/Massachusetts/School-committee-hears-FY26-budget-update-and-teacher-contract-proposal-as-staff-and-teachers-urge-more-sick-days-and-hires","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6253334-0cd33d5310768f7658418477f8a69e2f/orig.mp4?Expires=1770438022&Signature=W4V05slNECQEDuRi7k8Lb5i71llaMxbGbHzaeUAG08yhOMKG296QywbFzlP4Ta6Ep5eJ05YJElrlIQJt2fK3-KhYzU5MDNbrC-3LN87vIjvvYXbAEkdX4RemokHL1sGHgs6GOfnTyeWuvTN37vBv1z5zNMIw9vYDen4ZLuKZtHScchjoZh4kjDbVlD3va9hb1d0VvR~4jYV6okewxvCUNA3o4UZ--FVCmutJ9hxCoKOY0CHWoHTcNCukad2~B4Gtw-g~2MA1tDP9B-dRScwIrkk5i7vUgcM18qOuvIAW7RxxeV9cn67BA60daWvYT8SMGhn4jEFB74y3RtIslWXIYw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Springfield School Committee received an update on the Fiscal Year 2026 budget and a teacher contract proposal that would add a new salary scale and 3% cost-of-living adjustments in years two through four, while public speakers urged the committee to restore 15 annual sick days and to address widespread staffing shortages.

CFO Patrick (last name not specified) told the committee the district’s proposal includes a new scale in year one with new placement for vocational teachers and that “90% of the members would be above 3% COLA with that.” He said the plan would include 3% COLAs in years 2, 3 and 4, and described step increases that would, for example, raise a teacher on a master’s step 2 by about $18,000 over four years, a roughly 32.3% increase.

The CFO also said the district wants to prioritize salary increases over restoring full sick-time benefits, describing sick-time as a key sticking point in negotiations: “we would really like to put the money into salaries. We can’t do both.” He warned further federal funding cuts could reduce available resources and affect sustainability.

Why it matters: committee members and dozens of public speakers said compensation and time-off policies affect recruitment and retention. Multiple classroom and specialist staff told the panel that current sick-pay language and low staffing levels are harming students, adding that Springfield is losing or failing to attract qualified educators compared with neighboring districts.

Public comment amplified those concerns. Tracy Little Sassenick, identified as president of the Springfield Education Association, outlined the contract history: she said Springfield moved from a 15-day annual sick leave system to the current 10-day base after 2013 and that the union is seeking to regain the prior benefit. “We are now fighting to gain back what we lost 2013,” she said.

Several specialists described operational impacts. Speech-language pathologist Emily Vigna said caseloads often exceed 100 students and that “we are merely checking a box that a meeting was held, an assistant was supervised, an evaluation was completed, all for students we have never even laid eyes on.” Autism specialist Christy Turcotte told the committee she currently supports 12 LYNX classrooms across three buildings and said the district is adding more such classrooms next year.

Speakers also provided staffing and vacancy figures. Cynthia Farmer said the contract covers 2,357 positions; she reported there were 339 open positions on July 15, 2024, and 218 open positions as of April 1, 2025. Farmer listed shortages including 17 pre-K classrooms for autistic children, five kindergarten classrooms without regular teachers, 52 grade 1–5 classrooms without regular teachers and a shortage of roughly 60 special-education teachers.

Committee members praised budget staff for a multi-hundred-million-dollar operating proposal and for directing Student Opportunity Act funds into school budgets. The CFO reported a general fund budget of $670,974,557, a $43,365,599 (7%) increase, and said the all-funds total would be about $763,740,419, a decrease the CFO tied largely to one-time ESSER funds used in prior years.

Discussion vs. decisions: the session recorded discussion of the proposed teacher contract and the FY26 budget; no final contract was voted tonight. The committee moved to voting items later in the agenda, but the budget presentation and the public comments were discussion only. The committee did not adopt policy changes on sick leave during this meeting.

Committee and public next steps: committee members said they will continue bargaining and review budget details; several asked staff to post the CFO’s charts online so the public could review the full numbers.

Ending: speakers and committee members repeatedly framed the issues as tied to recruitment, retention and student services: several asked the committee to use available Student Opportunity Act funds and the FY26 budget to make the district more competitive for educators and to fund additional specialists and classroom teachers.","CFO presented a proposed teacher pay scale with 3% COLAs over four years and large step increases; public commenters — including union leaders, special-education staff and speech pathologists — urged restoring 15 sick days and warned of staff shortages that they say are harming services.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

School committee approves two assistant superintendent appointments

School committee hears FY26 budget update and teacher contract proposal as staff and teachers urge more sick days and hires