More food for thought

I have been having some interesting back-and-forth with School Committee member Steve Cole. He brought up some points that are food for thought.

The SC recently voted to implement Kevin Lyons' vision plan for the district.

Now that Lyons is almost certainly leaving, will a new superintendent embrace that vision? Or does the district start over from scratch?

What I mean is that a vision is obviously very diffuse and not tangible, you work towards it with the hope that you can have the rubber meet the road.

However, if there is a change of leadership, you cannot expect the new leader to have the same vision as the previous leader. That's why you shouldn't vote on a vision, you should vote on vital and tangible goals.

Of course Cole is operating now with 20/20 hindsight because no one expected Lyons to leave so soon afterwards.

I think there is a lesson here to be learned and maybe that's what Gordon Bechtel meant (in part, at least) in that quote in the Daily News about learning from Lyons and retaining superintendents.

"I can say that one of the issues all School Committee members are emphatic about is that we understand things from Kevin, and we'll evaluate them, and do everything we can to improve the institution so that we can retain superintendents in the future," Bechtel said. "We'll learn from the situation as much as we can and make some changes accordingly."

Or perhaps everyone was just too used to superintendents such as Mary Murray, who was in the position for years.

I'm sure it won't be impossible to find a replacement for Lyons who embraces his vision. Maybe we should recruit from within the district ...

At this point, I would be chanting "Barry! Barry! Barry!" but I was told by someone else who knows what's what that it's unlikely Hopping would want the job.

Drats!