One on One with Supt. Joe Connelly
Published on April 11th, 2007
STONEHAM, MA - WIth the hiring of Les Olsen as the new Stoneham Superintendent of Schools now in the rearview mirror, here's the second half of my conversation with outgoing Superintendent Dr. Joseph Connelly, during which he talks about advice for the new superintendent, what he's most proud of during his ten years on the job and what he's not going to miss when he leaves the halls of Stoneham High School.
SI: Talk a little about the Superintendent search process and the learning curve in Stoneham once they begin?
Connelly: We've done an assistant superintendent search, a business manager search and now we've done a superintendent search in the last six months, and we ran those searches without glitches and found highly qualified people within budget. With the help of our principals and the staff we've been able to train the business manager and assistant superintendent and now with Tony DeCologero having started on Dec. 1 he has experience in the budget development process that's going to be critically important for the new superintendent. Because we have such a positive working relationship with Joe Casey and Greg Zammuto, and when a lot of administrators leave they can just kind of leave and never be heard from again and that's just the opposite with Greg and Joe...not a week has gone by when they weren't in contact and a major help to us. Tony has been amazed at how accessible Greg has been for him. These things just don't happen...it's an environment that you really foster to help people along and help the process and that's exactly what I hope to do over these next few months.
SI: What advice do you give to the next Superintendent?
Connelly: I think my style of openness and straightforwardness with "all the facts on the table" is an approach that works well in Stoneham. I think we've enjoyed, in these very difficult times, a high level of accountability. Yes we've had our share of criticism but I think we've been able to explain every decision that we make. Take the sale of school property for instance. There are two definitely two camps in that one, but I think we've been able to demonstrate the importance of getting the rental income from the school property. That's been a godsend to the town.
We're bringing in about $450,000 in school rental money as a direct offset not to the school budget but to the overall town budget and the town would have to pay for the operation of the six schools. We're using every penny of it to offset our budget and then thereby reducing what we need from the town budget. We've tried to explain that to people over and over again, but I think people understand there is accountability because we can explain it and we have a very detailed budget. We joke that we can track things in the budget down to the last dozen pencils, but it really is true. There are people on the finance board that have been characterized as very favorable toward the schools, but that doesn't happen overnight. The Finance Board has asked some very demanding questions of us and they have to be convinced that our budget is accountable and defendable and that's when they support it. My advice be it to the new town administrator or superintendent would be to be honest and straightforward and put all the facts out on the table...because I've said many times if you can't defend it, then it shouldn't be in the budget.
SI: How would you like to be remembered as you leave the corner office at the Stoneham Schools?
Connelly: I've really been in Stoneham over a 10 year period that was two different phases. From 1998-2003 it was a totally different phase that was a building phase in Stoneham. Chapter 70 was funneling money into the town and we had funds to build schools, add programs, add staff, reduce class size, we brought in reading specialists, librarians, full-time nurses and we did a lot of things to improve all our schools whether they were new or not. Renovation projects, the campus here at the high school...those first six years were very exciting on a positive note, but since 2003 its been the opposite. The money immediately and dramatically dried up and all of the sudden we didn't have enough money to operate the budget. I'd like to be remembered as a superintendent that maximized the funds that we had for the betterment of the kids. During good times we made wise decisions for the benefit of the kids and during these difficult times we made very difficult decisions that we still always with the best interest of the kids in mind. What do I mean when I say that? All of the cuts we've made in the last five years have been the least harmful to the kids. I'm disappointed we've lost our reading specialist and class sizes have gone up and we've lost very important programs at the Middle School, but still we didn't lose sight of our first responsibility to the kids that we have in Stoneham. People have said for years that you're not going to get an override in Stoneham unless you hit them where it hurts and you put athletics [on the chopping block] and you'll see how quickly the money shows up. People have said You threaten to close schools and boy you'll get their attention really fast. People have said that Stoneham people need to hurt and bleed before they'll realize they need something, and I don't buy into that. Every year is an important year in the lives of the kids, and if we even jeopardize for one year something that's important in the lives of the kids just to make a point...then it's simply not worth it.
We've taken some reductions that maybe aren't as dramatic or don't drum up the emotional support for an override and are the least harmful for the kids. We've cut half of the fine arts but the fact that the kids still have art or music one day a week - even if it's for half the year - then people say 'hey my kid still has art and music.' But if you take away art and music completely then the parents might be outraged and want to do something, but I want to give the kids some semblance of everything they deserve. Myself along with the School Committee have always tried to go after the least harmful necessary reductions which doesn't always generate support for an override. We always put the kids first...always.
SI: Is there some place around town or anything within Stoneham that, even after retirement, you'll look at with particular pride knowing you had a part in it?
Connelly: You know my background...I grew up in Stoneham and my family had been in Stoneham for over 100 years. I moved away for school [to Quincy] in the first grade but Stoneham has always been a big part of my life. We always felt like Stoneham was the very essence of our family and to be able to come back here and finish my career in Stoneham was an exceptional honor. To be the Superintendent of Schools in the town where my mother lived was an honor. She attended all of the dedications of the new schools and she was so proud to watch TV and be a part of what was happening in Stoneham with her son...what a gift that was to me to be that close to my mother for the last five or seven years of her life. Being a superintendent your schedule is so crazy. Before coming to Stoneham, I was a Superintendent for 13 years and was so busy that I don't think I saw her more than once every two weeks or so even I lived less than five miles away from here. But working in Stoneham across from where she lived, I had a chance to have lunch with her every day and take care of her when her health started to fail and that was a gift. When I drive around Stoneham it won't be one particular thing, but Stoneham has always been a big part of my life and being able to come here and help the community was a huge honor for me and I mean that sincerely.
SI: What are you going to miss most?
Connelly: I just got back from Robin Hood School where I was reading 'Casey at the Bat'...something I read to the kids every year. I interacted with the kids for an hour and had a great time and clearly you're going to miss that. You aren't going to miss the office and the paperwork, but I'm going to miss the kids and the staff. Stoneham is a very unique place that's so strong in tradition and people are so proud of their community. I'm going to miss that interaction. It's been a pleasure to be involved in the Rotary Club at Town Day, Memorial Day assemblies and I'm involved with all of the things that the Chamber of Commerce and I've had a chance to meet a lot of great people within the community. I know I'm really going to miss that...no question about that it's going to be difficult to walk away doing a job that I've loved for 40 years.
SI: Anything that you're not going to miss?
Connelly: I'm not going to miss being unsuccessful in helping the town understand the importance of providing for this generation of kids what we provided for past generations of kids. I know finances and people's ability to pay their taxes are a big and complex part of that equation, but not being able to make the community understand what steps backward we've taken [is frustrating]. There's no question that, in a generation that should be getting more than we ever dreamed about getting in our generation, is actually not getting a fraction of the educational benefits that past generations were offered strictly due to fiscal reasons...and that's been discouraging. We've tried desperately to get the word across and we haven't so far been able to make the impact we wanted to do. I own a house in Stoneham that I pay taxes on and the water bill, but we need to make people realize that we do need to sacrifice for this generation of kids.
SI: What are your plans after you're fully retired?
Connelly: Zero plans. My wife and I plan to spend more time with the grandkids. We live in Reading and spend lots of time with our kids. My wife and my entire life has been about our home, our jobs and our kids. Now it's going to be the home and family, and the jobs won't be there. I'm not the kind of guy that can sit around the house and do nothing. What I'll probably do is submit my resume to do acting, temporary work for local school systems that are between business managers, superintendents and principals and looking for someone to fill the spot for several months, and that's something I'm sure I'll actively look into before September.
SI: What's something that the people of Stoneham wouldn't know about you? Hobbies...things you like to do in your spare time.
Connelly: Unfortunately I'm kind of a dull open book. Think of the building committee...we spend 250 nights out of the year together. My important is very family to me and I was very active with my kids. I was very active in Reading all those years, so people know the family aspect of it and they know I'm a pretty straightforward person. I'm also a golfer though I'm not a very good golfer. In my younger years I was an avid runner and I used to do many, many road races and played basketball lot, but in my older years I've switched over to golf. I'm just basically a hard-working guy who was all about my job and my family...that's me as dull as it is.
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