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The Cambridge School Committee publicly interviewed the three superintendent finalists for nearly five hours on Tuesday — the final step in a search rocked by controversy and criticism.
Finalists include David G. Murphy, current interim superintendent for the district, as well as Lourenço Garcia, the assistant superintendent of equity and inclusion for Revere Public Schools, and Magaly Sanchez, chief family advancement officer in Boston.
Each finalist had 90 minutes to answer 20 questions pre-written by School Committee members, addressing a comprehensive array of district issues. Finalists detailed how they would address achievement gaps, evaluate teacher effectiveness, improve district communication, negotiate labor agreements, and ensure student equity in the district.
Cambridge, one of the most diverse districts in the state, has long struggled with achievement gaps across racial and economic lines. Members asked each finalist multiple questions related to addressing and eliminating these inequalities.
Murphy and Garcia both said CPS must address the gaps as early as possible, focusing on children in early grades to make sure the differences do not get worse over time.
“We know students are coming in from different starting points, so if they come in from different starting points, and they are met with a culture that is not responsive to their needs and is not sufficiently nimble enough to meet their needs, then we should not be surprised that when they get when they get to the finish line, those discrepancies still exist,” Murphy said.
Garcia echoed similar concerns, saying that “studies have shown time and time again that if a child cannot read by third grade level, then the chances for the child to become illiterate is strong.”
“We want to make sure that we invest in our pre-K education where those foundations are set, and that goes through grade level three,” he added.
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Sanchez stressed the importance of securing access to advanced learning curriculum to help narrow achievement gaps.
“I would address these inequities and these issues by thinking about ensuring that students have equity and access to rigorous learning opportunities regardless of where they live, where they come from, whether they’re black or brown or whatever their backgrounds are,” she said.
Sanchez pointed to work she did in New Bedford, where she implemented an International Baccalaureate program and opened the door for students to more easily enroll in advanced learning classes. She added that tutoring and peer group systems ensured that students made the most of these opportunities.
“I think that the tale here is that all of our students have the opportunity, and should have the opportunity to access rigorous learning opportunities,” she said. “It’’s up to us to make sure that that happens.”
Other responses addressed teacher evaluations, fostering greater transparency, and managing the district budget were largely driven by candidates’ ideals for the district — but few candidates offered concrete plans for how to achieve such ideals.
Garcia proposed frequent walk-throughs of classrooms to improve teacher evaluations, holding “listening tours” to hear from students and parents, and focusing on cultivating relationships to build trust.
Murphy suggested increasing professional development for teachers, being “relentless” about maintaining high standards, and making sure to eliminate programs that are inefficiently using funds.
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Sanchez pinpointed the importance of gathering data before addressing issues in the district while capitalizing on students’ baseline learning and opportunities for enrichment.
But after nearly five hours of interviews, one critical topic was left undiscussed.
The School Committee did not ask Garcia about the cryptocurrency scam where he lost $750,000 — something the School Committee has been aware of since the summer, though Cambridge residents only learned of the financial mismanagement yesterday. Due to interview rules, questions were required to be uniform across all three candidates.
The search has received heavy criticism from parents and teachers for lacking transparency, becoming a central issue in the upcoming elections. The Cambridge Education Association released a fiery statement in August calling for the entire search to be restarted, a demand that some people in the district are still pushing for.
Members asked each candidate how they would increase transparency in CPS leadership — a central issue the district has worked to improve. For Murphy, listening was the most important factor.
“If we are not listening first, then it doesn’t really matter what it is that we are sharing or what we are saying, because there’s going to be a large constituency from that school community that we’ve already lost,” Murphy said.
Sanchez proposed building “consistent feedback loops” to allow families and educators to see how their feedback is being operationalized by district leadership .
“If we’re asking for feedback from families, we want to make sure that it’s purposeful, that it’s very clear, and that we’re utilizing that feedback right,” she said, adding that CPS should pilot “data dashboards” to keep parents abreast of the latest developments in schools.
The School Committee is scheduled to vote for the next superintendent on Monday.
— Staff writer Ayaan Ahmad can be reached at ayaan.ahmad@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @AyaanAhmad2024.
— Staff writer Claire A. Michal can be reached at claire.michal@thecrimson.com.
