BC News

Dr. Michael Tebbano to lead BC Into the future

District looks forward after six-month search done in partnership with the community

Release Date: April 2, 2008

At its meeting on Wednesday, April 2, the Board of Education announced the selection of Dr. Michael Tebbano as the new Superintendent of Bethlehem Central School District. Dr. Tebbano brings to the job a strong commitment to the district’s record of excellence and a proven record of innovative and collaborative academic leadership that will ensure the continued success of the district and the students it serves.

The appointment brings to a conclusion a months-long superintendent search that involved a broad cross-section of the Bethlehem Central community. The search involved the review of 29 applicants for the position, first round interviews of six semi-finalists and a final round of interviews of three finalists by the Board and six panels of community and school district representatives. Dr. Tebbano will officially become superintendent on July 1, following the retirement of Dr. Les Loomis after 21 years as superintendent.

“We undertook a national search without any preconceived ideas of who the best candidate might prove to be. We carefully considered candidates from all across New York State and outside of the State, and narrowed our search to the very best applicants for the position,” said Jim Lytle, President of the Bethlehem School Board. “At the end of the process, the Board unanimously concluded that the best qualified and most dynamic person to lead Bethlehem into the future was Dr. Tebbano.”

Dr. Tebbano has been the district’s assistant superintendent for educational programs since 2005. In that position, he has been responsible for the leadership and direction of the district’s academic programs and helped chart new directions for the district in full-day kindergarten, technology education, expanded advanced placement offerings, and the introduction of Chinese into the second language program, among other initiatives. He joined the district as the K-12 music supervisor in 1997, and became the principal of Bethlehem Central High School in 2002.

Prior to coming to BC, Dr. Tebbano was a music educator for 22 years, first as a teacher and later as an instructional supervisor, in the Rotterdam-Draper, Niskayuna, and Voorheesville school districts. He received Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Music Education from the State University of New York at Potsdam; and a Doctorate of Education in Educational Administration and Supervision from Seton Hall University.

“I am thrilled by the opportunity to become the next superintendent of BC,” Dr. Tebbano said. “I believe BC is an outstanding district and is poised to become even stronger and more focused in offering a global educational experience for every student. The students, parents, faculty, staff, administrators and the community-at-large bring many wonderful strengths and talents to this special learning community.”

When Dr. Loomis announced in September 2007 that he would retire at the end of the school year, the Board of Education initiated the search for his successor by contracting with search consultants Castallo & Silky to guide a process that would include as much community input and involvement as possible.

In November, the district launched an online survey seeking community input into the traits and characteristics that the community desired in the next superintendent. And, the district assembled stakeholder groups – one group each of teachers, support staff, parents, administrators, community members and students – to also consider the qualities the next superintendent should possess. A superintendent profile, used to both recruit and evaluate candidates, resulted from these small group meetings and the nearly 700 online surveys that were completed.

The candidate profile called for a superintendent with strong character; a commitment to preserving BC’s record of excellence and to implementing innovative, research-based approaches to learning; strong communications skills; experience with school finance issues; and the ability to motivate and attract a high-quality staff.

“I am very confident Mike will be an effective leader; he knows the district’s strengths and has ideas for new initiatives — even if it means shaking things up a bit,” said Karen Kissinger, who served on the parents stakeholder group and is co-president of the Elsmere PTA. “In its search process, the Board took a big step to share a part of the decision-making with the community. Clearly they took the feedback from all the stakeholder groups very seriously.”

“All the candidates had a lot to offer and the Board made a great choice," BCHS student Evan Finkle, who served on the student committee that took part in the process, told the Board at its April 2 meeting. "The students really enjoyed that you let us be part of the process.”

Board President Jim Lytle noted that Dr. Tebbano fits the candidate profile, noting that he has already proven a few of these qualities in numerous ways at BC.

“Dr. Tebbano has played an important role in the district’s efforts to utilize educational data and research to improve instruction and to lead Bethlehem to an even higher standard of excellence,” Mr. Lytle said. “For those, like us, who believe that the district must continue to change and remain committed to innovation and continuous improvement, we believe that Mike Tebbano is the best person to lead Bethlehem in that direction.”

Dr. Tebbano said he will begin his tenure as superintendent by working with the Board on the following areas of focus: developing aspirational goals for students; strengthening the district’s continuous improvement initiative; using growth model data to inform K-12 instruction; continuing the district’s close monitoring of its finances, particularly related to special education costs; developing a supportive learning environment; and building community support for the educational programs of the District.

Dr. Tebbano is married to Dr. Sheila Tebbano, Director of Adult and Continuing Education at the Washington Irving Adult Learning Center in the Schenectady City School District. Their three children are Eric, a Staff Sergeant in the United States Air Force; Marcella, a Physical Education teacher, also in Schenectady; and Allison, a Junior Theater major at Marymount Manhattan College.

Dr. Tebbano’s salary, as indicated in the advertisement for the position, will be $170,000.

The search for his replacement as assistant superintendent for educational programs will begin in the coming weeks.

 

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