By Josh Resnek
A request for an assistant to the superintendent from the new superintendent Priya Tahiliani was approved unanimously by the School Committee during Monday night’s meeting.
The job does not need to be advertised.
Tahiliani will be choosing her assistant without interference from the School Committee.
A salary for the new employee was not publicly discussed but will likely come up for discussion.
Whether or not the new assistant will receive a contract is another matter, although it is likely the School Committee must interview Tahiliani’s choice and then vote to hire her and to create a contract.
This new hire slightly complicates Tahiliani’s official March 1 starting date.
First of all, acting superintendent Janice Gauthier has announced she is not leaving until school ends in June.
Gauthier believes she will be working as the acting superintendent shoulder to shoulder with Tahiliani.
Tahiliani has apparently balked at such a situation coming to pass, according to sources who claim to know.
Gauthier is most likely looking at a transfer to the high school when Tahiliani and her assistant arrive on duty March 1.
The hiring of a special assistant to the new superintendent will inevitably cause assistant superintendents Charlie Obremski and Kevin Shaw to wonder exactly how their roles might be changing in the new power configuration now being given shape and form by the new superintendent.
Both Obremski and Shaw are under contract for the next few years.
Tahiliani apparently wants to hit the ground running when she takes over.