Fitchburg has 2 of 3 finalists withdraw

Schools chief search unsettled

FITCHBURG—Two of the three finalists for school superintendent have taken themselves out of the running, leaving Assistant Superintendent Thomas J. Lamey as the front-runner in the search for a successor to Philip M. Fallon.

Wayne D. Eckerling, an assistant superintendent for Denver Public Schools, and Lincoln J. Tamayo, a former high school principal and a critic of bilingual education in Massachusetts, informed Mayor Dan H. Mylott is recent days they were no longer interested in the post.

Both candidates told the mayor they had better job prospects elsewhere. ”I have discussed the potential of my leaving with the Denver Public Schools superintendent, and he has made me an offer that makes it very attractive for me to remain in Denver,” Mr. Eckerling wrote Mr. Mylott, the chairman of the School Committee.

Mr. Tamayo told the mayor in a telephone call Saturday he had accepted another job he had been seeking, Mr. Mylott said. Mr. Tamayo is chairman of English for the Children of Massachusetts, which is lobbying for the end of transitional bilingual education in Massachusetts. The group supports intensive English immersion programs.

Mr. Lamey, second-in-command at the Fitchburg School Department for 12 years, is to be interviewed by the School Committee tomorrow. Mr. Eckerling’s interview took place April 25. Mr. Tamayo had been scheduled to be interviewed at 4 p.m. tomorrow, but Mr. Lamey’s interview was moved to that time slot when Mr. Tamayo backed out.

”I’ll still go into the interview as though I was competing” for the job, Mr. Lamey said yesterday, acknowledging that the School Committee could decide to reopen the search.

Mr. Mylott said the latest developments will be discussed by the School Committee at a meeting after the interview with Mr. Lamey. For now, the mayor said, the committee will focus on the interview.

”The committee will have to make a decision on whether or not it wants to hire Mr. Lamey or whether it wants to reopen the search,” the mayor said.

Mr. Lamey, Mr. Eckerling and Mr. Tamayo were selected as finalists by a search committee that reviewed the credentials of about 12 applicants. Although the School Committee agreed to the finalists recommended by the search committee, the School Committee has the option of reconsidering the other applications. Another possibility, the mayor said, is soliciting more applicants and hiring an interim superintendent.

Mr. Fallon, who plans to retire in June after 16 years as superintendent, recommended Mr. Lamey for the top school job. Mr. Lamey has been in education for 36 years as a teacher and administrator.



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