Bridgeport board presses to start superintendent search as state asks for bylaw changes

The Bridgeport Board of Education on Dec. 8 debated whether to begin a superintendent search after the State Board of Education requested updates to the district's bylaws.

At the meeting held at Aquaculture School, Board member Joseph Sikalovic said the State Board's approach has effectively delayed the district's ability to look for a permanent superintendent and urged the board to form a search committee immediately. "We could maybe put it on the agenda next time to discuss moving forward with superintendent," Sikalovic said during public board business.

The board's Chair said model bylaws had been distributed for review and emphasized the need to adopt certain changes before the district could obtain formal permission to proceed. The Chair asked members to study the draft bylaws and said the board would revisit the matter at the next meeting so it could decide which changes to adopt.

Several board members, including Rob Traver, said they supported preparing an RFP and getting ahead of the statewide hiring cycle even while the bylaws are being finalized. "I think that we should move expeditiously to get ahead of the curve, with the rest of the state who may be looking for new superintendents," Traver said.

Board members noted the State Board's request came with a letter and some said the timing and manner of its delivery raised concerns about good-faith collaboration. Sikalovic urged that, if the state prevents the search, the district should be prepared to challenge the decision.

The Chair framed the immediate step as internal: review and consider adopting model bylaw provisions at the next meeting so the district could meet the State Board's expectations and, if possible, move forward with a search. No final search committee was formed during the Dec. 8 meeting; the board left the bylaws for further consideration and signaled it would return to the question at its next meeting.