September 08, 2004
Update: Staples Principal John Brady Considering New Job
Staples High School Principal John J. Brady said today he is the finalist candidate for a superintendent's job in a Connecticut school system.
John Brady: considering offer. WN photo
Brady said an earlier report by WestportNow quoting a source as saying he told a staff meeting Thursday he was resigning was incorrect.
"I am the finalist candidate," he said. "I have not resigned and no decision has been made."
Brady, 52, said school officials from the Amity Regional School District will travel to Westport Thursday to visit Staples and meet with community leaders.
He said he will then visit the Amity district and expects Amity officials to make a decision on his possible hiring soon thereafter, perhaps as early as next week.
The Amity Regional School District includes junior high and high schools in Woodbridge, Orange, and Bethany. Students in the area attend elementary schools in another district.
The Amity district has been in the news because of repeated rejections of the school budget by local voters. Brady said it took 17 tries before voters finally approved a 2002-03 budget, a situation he called "challenging."
Today's New Haven Register quoted district officials as saying the Amity Board of Education wants to hire Brady as its next superintendent of schools.
Brady was selected from about a dozen candidates culled from a nationwide search, said Ken Downey, school board chair.
Brady took over as principal from Gloria Rakovic in 2002. He had been deputy superintendent in the Westport system before taking the Staples position, first as an interim appointment, then permanently.
Asked about a possible successor should he leave Staples, Brady said the question is best directed to Schools Superintendent Elliott Landon.
Landon did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
Posted September 8, 2004 11:15 AM | TrackBackWhy is it that their contracts only run in one direction? They can leave whenever they want-even in the middle of the year-but they can't be required to fulfill the term of the contract?
Posted by: Befuddled at September 8, 2004 11:30 AMI agree with the above comment. Hopefully the same recruitment company is looking for his replacement if he gets the position...but if not then I guess he will have to settle for Staples..at least until his contract runs out. At that point, perhaps another candidate should step in who wants to head up what is appears to be a a great new campus. But then again, a principal, like any corporate executive should have the opportunity to seek something better or different. Hmm.
Posted by: parker at September 9, 2004 03:00 AMBrady will be crazy to leave our school system and head for the Amity district. Their past financial problems don't hold a candle to their environmental problems I've been reading in the news. Hopefully he rethinks his decision carefully.
Carol
