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Former teacher urges board to reconsider decision on long‑time theater advisor
Summary
At the June 10 Somerville Board of Education meeting, former teacher Megan Andrews asked the board to delay and reconsider a decision to let go of long-time theater club advisor Devin Massa, citing her qualifications and role in auditorium renovation work.
Megan Andrews, a former teacher and local arts educator, addressed the Somerville Board of Education on June 10 to ask the board to reconsider a personnel decision affecting the high school’s theater program.
"Decision was made in letting go the long time theater club advisor and musical director, Devin Massa," Andrews told the board during public comment. She said the decision came "in lieu of an internal staff member interested in the position" and warned the district could lose Massa’s long-standing expertise and community connections.
Andrews outlined Massa’s credentials as she described them, saying the advisor had never been written up and that parents and students had not raised complaints about her work. She said Massa holds multiple certifications and advanced degrees, and asked the board to consider delaying the personnel decision and "take time in the executive session to reconsider this and delay the decision in choosing in in letting her go and not hiring her back until you can give attention from people who know the arts and what it takes to look at what are the resumes, what are the qualifications."
Andrews also recommended the district consider a stipend increase or hiring Massa as a consultant on the auditorium renovation so the district would retain her expertise for facility upgrades. She said the change would affect students who are juniors and seniors now considering theater education in college and who benefit from long-term mentorship.
The district proceeded to close public comment and later entered executive session for personnel and other matters. Andrews explicitly requested that the board review the decision in the executive session; the transcript does not record a public vote on this personnel matter during the open session.
Why it matters: The comment documents a community request that the board reconsider a personnel decision affecting the high school performing-arts program and the district’s capacity to advise on an auditorium renovation project. The remarks also cite specific certifications and suggested alternatives the speaker asked the board to consider.
