Education Board Continues Search for Permanent Business Manager

The Board of Education is moving forward on a plan to fill the position of a permanent business manager for the school district, despite the fact that most of the board will not be in office before the next budget is put in place.

The issue hit a nerve among some board members during a meeting Thursday night at Prospect Street School who argued it could be a rush to fill a position that is currently held by Naugatuck’s controller, Wayne McAllister. McAllister fills in as the school district’s business manager — a position once work nearly $90,000 — at miniscule cost to the borough.

Superintendent John Tindall-Gibson said the permanent job is already being advertised in the Hartford Courant, New Haven Register and Greenwich Time.

“We’ve had several applications, both internal and external,” Tindall-Gibson said. “I think the field is robust and we’ll get a lot of applicants.”

The superintendent set a time line where he expects to have three candidates before the board during the week of April 4, with a final candidate ready to be voted on by April 14.

But it remains unclear whether the board’s budget will even be able to accommodate a full-time business manager. Some members took issue with this, particularly Mayor Robert A. Mezzo, who indicated it could be premature to hire for that job before the funds have been put in place.

“You’re going to be going before the joint boards (of Finance and Mayor and Burgesses) and asking for the dollars when you know quite well that they haven’t been allocated yet,” the mayor said.

Chairman Kathleen Donovan argued a schedule was put in place to find a permanent business manager and the board would stick to that. Donovan said it wasn’t the joint board’s business to direct the Board of Education on how it can operate.

“We don’t have to get approval from the joint boards for everybody that we can hire,” Donovan said.

One board member, James Jordan, sided Mezzo on the argument that the board should wait until after the election.

Most of the board, including Donovan, is not seeking reelection. Jordan numbers among a few that are back on the ballot.

“You have a four-week window before the election,” Jordan said. “I have no issues starting the business manager search, but to rush this thing through and put this thing in place right now seems to be ridiculous.”

David Heller also argued it seemed rushed. The board is slated to hold a budget workshop on March 16, where Donovan said the issue will be discussed.