Fowler-Finn Suddenly Resigns

In a surprise statement, Cambridge Public Schools Superintendent Thomas D. Fowler-Finn announced Tuesday night that he will step down in February 2009, six months before his contract expires.

Fowler-Finn’s decision comes four months after the School Committee voted to extend his contract through July 2009.

Since he took the helm in 2003, Fowler-Finn has garnered praise for improvements on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System. In 2007, 91 percent of students passed the English Language Arts (ELA) exam, compared with 79 percent in 2003, and 90 percent passed the Mathematics exam, compared with 69 percent in 2003. Despite these improvements, he has been criticized for his “top-down” management style.

Fowler-Finn did not return calls for comment about his departure.

School Committee members said Fowler-Finn’s decision not to finish out his term caught them off guard.

“I don’t think his secretary even knew he was going to announce his resignation early,” said School Committee member Luc D. Schuster.

Cambridge Mayor E. Denise Simmons, who chairs the School Committee, said she found it understandable that Fowler-Finn would look for new opportunities.

Over the summer, a search committee headed by Simmons and Schuster had already set a timetable to name Fowler-Finn’s successor by January 2009.

“He has not upset or derailed our plans in any way,” Simmons said. “We’ve worked very hard to have a seamless transition. If the superintendent wanted to leave today, we could continue to move forward.”

Simmons cited increased enrollment, greater diversity among employees, the new Montessori school at the Tobin, and increases on standardized tests as major accomplishments during Fowler-Finn’s tenure.

His critics, however, say that test scores are not the only measure of a school’s success. Leslie T. DiTrani, who has children who attend Cambridge public schools, said she felt that Fowler-Finn’s emphasis on scores overlooked ongoing problems, such as the under-usage of neighboring universities’ resources and the ongoing achievement gap among low-income and minority students. In 2007, there was a 30 percent difference in scores between black and white students in English, and a 37 percent difference in Math.

“His simple answer is that if you’re doing well on the test you must be doing well as a school,” DiTrani said. “I don’t think that’s the whole picture.”

Among the school community, Fowler-Finn’s leadership style was a divisive issue; both times that his contract has been renewed, it was by a four-to-three vote, with parents testifying for and against him, according to Schuster.

“He has educational expertise, strong management skills, but we need someone who is better versed in managing respectfully their staff and inspiring passion,” Schuster said.

Many council and community members said they viewed the transition as an opportunity for Cambridge schools to innovate and improve. Marc McGovern, another School Committee member, said Cambridge had the resources, both financial and in the form of community support, to attract someone both experienced and creative.

“Hopefully we’ll get someone who can really come in here and inspire,” he said.

In the letter Fowler-Finn read to the School Committee, he did not specify his future plans . In a statement to The Cambridge Chronicle, he said only that he had “exciting plans” in store.

—Staff writer Cora K. Currier can be reached at ccurrier@fas.harvard.edu.