By DAN VALENTI

PLANET VALENTI News and Commentary

(FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY, FEB. 29, 2012) — We will only write that dateline once every four years, the same way we elect a president. Welcome to hump day, ladies and gentlemen.

We are following several local stories. We can update you on one of them.

Miracle! Man Fights Monstrous City Hall Permit Process and Lives to Tell About It

THE PLANET can report that at 9:30 a.m. yesterday (Tuesday), Ken Ramsdell, the organizer of Toby II, also known as The Official Toby Moore Dog Walk, went to city hall in Pittsfield, Mass. By 9:38 a.m., he had his permit for Toby II dated and stamped.

“I then had to run throughout the city getting signatures,” Ramsdell tells THE PLANET.

TOBY MOORE: The True Hero of the Nilan-Moore Case. Toby will get his day of honor on April 15 ... or else. (Photo Courtest of Tom and Susan Moore)

“I still need more.” We’re thinking here, “My, it’s just a little dog walk. Can you imagine trying to come to this city and do business? Who would want to run that flailing gauntlet?”

Ramsdell is thinking along the same lines: “I plan on outlining the entire process to show the citizens how unfriendly the process is,” he says. “The processors are all very pleasant and professional, but the process is [needlessly] painful. One needs to travel to all three floors of City Hall as well as three outside locations on Hawthorne Street, Columbus Avenue, and the Police Department. As you can imagine, they have other duties to fulfill besides waiting on me to show up, so i “need to return this afternoon,” etc.

Ramsdell continues: “Of course, after signing, each department wants a copy. The challenging part is that no one is certain how the process works. First I was told I needed to get all the signatures in the order they appear on the application. Then I was told that I should get the signatures that I could, short of the last two, which I would get after the Parks Commission permits the item, should it do that.”

The dauntless Ramsdell, who’s definitely taking one for the team through this ordeal, says he thinks all he needs of the building inspector to sign off, “and I should be good.” Building inspector?! What, is he intending to build a Taj Mahal Canine Coop? A Mutt McMansion? There are some questions we shouldn’t ask.

Ramsdell is hoping that “if all goes well,” the signed permit will be in hand by the end of the week. Sure enough, later on, Ramsdell sent us a text that he received the final signature for his permit at 2 p.m. Tuesday and that he is on the agenda of the Parks Commission’s March 20 meeting in city hall.

Circle the Date, Folks: Game On, Tuesday, March 20, at City Hall, Parks Commission et al Representing the GOBs vs. Ken Ramsdell on Behalf of the Citizens of Pittsfield.

Folks, you will be hearing a lot about this meeting as we get closer to the date. Ramsdell just ran the gauntlet for every decent citizen who is outraged —

— over the behavior of the swells in the wake of the events of Dec. 8, 2011. beginning shortly after 8 p.m. and continuing to just about half past yesterday.

— at the mysterious last-minute worries of, ahem, a “concerned citizen” (unnamed, of course) who must have clout and was able to get practically everyone in city hall on Red Alert because good people wanted to — EGAD! — walk their dogs in Kirvin Park.

— that “They” should require this level of officious outrageousness via the permitting process to “ensure” that potential lawbreakers among an unruly mob of dog lovers are kept under their thumb (meanwhile, apparently, if you know the right people, it’s OK to ax murder three people on the steps of City Hall … somehow, you will be a “good guy or gal” and it won’t be your fault. Try for a dog walk, though, and you’re in for the Third Degree).

Circle the date: Tuesday, March 20, 7 p.m., upstairs at City Hall. Good citizens must pack the place in support of Ken Ramsdell and to make a statement to the Parks Commission, including Commissioner Nilan. 

For once, We The People have the momentum back. It’s time to keep up the pressure.

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FIRE CHIEF HAS NO STATEMENT ON CATALANO CASE; 

THE PLANET received the following to the point “no comment” from acting Fire Department chief Robert Czerwinski regarding our reportage of the case involving suspended fire fighter Alan Catalano.

Mr. Valenti,

I’m sorry, but since this is a personnel issue there will no statement made by this department.

Acting Chief Robert Czerwinski

We understand and respect the chief’s position on what he can say officially and for the record. THE PLANET can share that we had our information vetted by a high-ranking fire department official, who said he found it 100% accurate. That source added that in his opinion, Catalano was hired as a fireman not because he was qualified but due to

THE PLANET did hear from sources with this other piece of information related to Catalano:

— Sources say that at 4 a.m. Wednesday morning, a car containing Catalano and his girlfriend was pulled over by police in front of the Family Dollar for allegedly running a stop sign at Wahconah and North streets. We don’t know if they were ticketed. The time would seem problematic for someone who is reported to have an addiction problem and in heat with the law.

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‘HONEY I SHRUNK THE CAREER’ or BABS IN TOYLAND

THE PLANET presents the latest but not the greatest in the Paul Babeu production of, “Look, honey, I Shrunk The Career.”

Sheriff Paul Babeau (Courtesy of Pinal County Sheriff's Department)

We reprint this story that was first published on the huffingtonpost.com. This piece ran yesterday. As you can see, it directly involves our neck of the woods:

Disgraced Arizona congressional candidate and GOP sheriff Paul Babeu is facing yet another round of unseemly charges.

The Pinal County sheriff, who stepped down as Arizona’s co-chair for Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign amidst allegations he threatened a gay ex-lover with deportation, reportedly served as headmaster for the now-defunct DeSisto School in Stockbridge, Mass. from 1999 to 2001. When Babeu — a retired major in the Army National Guard and an ex-police officer — was in charge, the Massachusetts Office of Child Care Services launched an investigation into repeated claims of physical and sexual abuse from students at the private boarding school, ABC15 is reporting.

More questionable still: Babeu’s older sister Lucy told the news station that she confronted her brother after finding a 17-year-old student from the school, which services troubled teens, living with him. She noted: “I said what is this student from Desisto doing here? He says, ‘Lucy, he’s my boyfriend. I love him.'”

Lucy claims her brother, once considered one of his state’s rising Republican stars, was clearly having a relationship with the student, who has not been identified: “I said, ‘Paul, get a hold of yourself here,'” said Lucy. “You were his teacher! You were his Executive Director! You can’t do this.”

At age 17, the student would have been the legal age of consent in Massachusetts.

Babeu, 43, has denied claims that he threatened former lover Jose Orozco with deportation back to Mexico, but has acknowledged that he is gay. “I’m here to say that all these allegations … are absolutely completely false except for the issues that refer to me as being gay,” he is quoted by the Associated Press is saying. “Because that’s the truth.”

Gaining and Blowing the Public Trust

From the moment he attained public office by his stint on the North Adams city council at age 18, Babeu has held a series of job involving — nay, requiring — the highest levels of public trust. As a councilor and Berkshire County commissioner, he represented many trusting constituents. As a soldier and cop, he was looked upon, again based on nothing but trust in his badge or bars, to protect the vulnerable from the bad guys. As a headmaster at the Desisto School, he had (literally, according to his sister) young boys in the palm of his hand, young people who were troubled and at a vulnerable set of ages that taxes even the most well-adjusted youth.

Babeu has over and over portrayed himself as righteous, but he has been shown to be self-righteous. He has pretended to be for law and order, but it appears that he has been for immorality and chaos. He has masqueraded as a genuine article but looks to be a phony baloney. This is a story that affects everyone in Berkshire County, because not only was he once one of our own, but he held positions of trust that he ran into the ground, just as he seems to be doing now.

The wheels have fallen off the Babeu Express.

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KINNAS: ‘WHY IS THE COMMUNITY BEING BLOCKED OUT?’

We have heard from school committeeman Terry Kinnas on the matter of what THE PLANET thinks is a unnecessarily rushed and therefore premature search process for the next school superintendent. “No public input or even school committee input went into the formulation of the needs and wants for the application,” Kinnas told THE PLANET. “How can one advertise without knowing what the community is looking for? Dan, if you find out from the school committee chairman, let us all know. Why is the community being blocked out? Where is the transparency? I am very disappointed that this type of decision was made.”

We concur.

The mysterious hurry-hurry-hurry to find the new Super doesn’t add up. The job is too critical for this poor formula: (a) Keep people out of loop +  Short response time for candidates = Inside Job. Even the teachers’ contract specifies that a job be posted for 30 days. Here, for the top position of an $89 million department, the city is allowing 21 days, from Feb. 23 to March 14 at 5 p.m.

Kinnas nails the essential point via his spot-on question: “How can one advertise without knowing what the community is looking for?”

Chairman Alf Barbalunga responded to our queries about the issue with this statement:

Dan — I did not hear terry on the radio, but here is what I am able to tell you:

I did make the decision to post the superintendent position, and at the end of the day i take full responsibility.  I made this decision based on:

1} the vote taken by the school committee on 2/15; language below [EDITORIAL NOTE: THIS REFERS TO THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE VOTE  TO EXTEND THE SEARCH FOR A SUPERINTENDENT BEYONF THE PITTSFIELD SCHOOLS AND TO USE MASC TO ‘MANAGE A SUPERINTENDENT SEARCH NOT RESTRICTED TO PITTSFIELD PUBLIC SCHOOLS’ EMPLOYEES]

2}My consultations with the superintendent

3} My consultations with MASC executive director

4} My consultations with the school committee attorney

All parties supported this decision to post the position.

I have spoken with Terry and I understand his concerns.  I suspect we will agree to disagree occasionally, and this is one example.  I always encourage him to speak with me personally with concerns, to speak publicly at the meetings, and of course to vote his conscience when not in agreement.  I also encourage him to challenge me, when he feels i am not making a prudent decision

specific answers.

 

After all consultations, it is my understanding the chair does have this authority.

In contrast to some, I do feel there is a sense of urgency, thus this timeline for optimally a superintendent hire by end of April.  There are a multitude of reasons for this, but here are a couple:

* prospective superintendent has ability to work with Dr. Eberwein for approximately two months to familiarize himself/herself on current operations.

* currently 30 plus superintended searches ongoing, just in massachusetts; 10-15 have already resolved.

My opinion is that in this climate, ‘demand’ vastly outweighs ‘supply’  for this type of professional hire.  This district started the search process late, in contrast to the majority of ‘competing’ districts.

I believe Dr. Eberwein will be employed as a Pittsfield School Department  employee until June 29, possibly longer if needed and mutually agreed upon.

I’m excited about this process and look forward to speaking about it more at the 3/14 public meeting

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TERRY KINNAS: 'How come we want to keep the public out?" (Courtesy of iBerkshires.com)

We would repeat this query: “How can the community know what it’s looking for until it has conducted the relevant discussion?” With all due respect to Chairmano Barbalunga, given that he does not possess have some kind of supernatural or metaphysical prescience to be able to unilaterally know what the city of Pittsfield wants and needs for this critical job, one that manages nearly 3/4s of the entire city budget of $130 million, wouldn’t it be wiser to first define the job — the PITTSFIELD job, which will differs from the other 30 seraches he mention — prior to moving ahead?

Here is the job as posted on the city’s website:

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February 23, 2012

SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS

Application Deadline:  March 14, 2012 by 5:00 PM, EST

Start Date:  July 1, 2012 or as soon as possible

Salary:  Regionally competitive salary and benefits package

Requirements:  The successful candidate will demonstrate the following:  Licensed or eligible for licensure as a Superintendent in Massachusetts; Master’s degree required; commitment to academic excellence; commitment to equity; dynamic, visionary educator; strong fiscal management skills; communications and public relations skills; team builder

Description: Click here to download a full description of the district and the job requirements for this position.

Application: Click here to download the application for this position.

Application materials are available at www.masc.org

Applications may be completed in Acrobat but must be signed and faxed or mailed to the MASC office at:  MASC Pittsfield Public School District Search, c/o Glenn Koocher, MASC, One McKinley Square, Boston, MA 02109

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We repeat a point we made yesterday: Supt. Jake Eberwein pledged to remain on the job until the school year ends. Even if the scuttlebutt is true, that he will bail out early because of a personal situation, there’s no need to rush — why else do Mary Jane and Joe Kapanski pay for an Assistant Supt. @ $109,370; a Math/Science Coordinator @ $102,518; a Special Education Director @ $100,527; a Deputy Superintendent @ $100,425; an Assistant Superintendent @ $96,048 … we’ll stop there. You mean to say that no one on this list could step in for a few months and cover for Jake should he fly to coop earlier than then end of the school year?

Nope — We’re Not Buying It

We’re not buying it, just as we’re not buying the detailed job description’s listing of Pittsfield’s population as 44,700 residents and just as we’re not buying the listing of the school department budget as $54 million. This figure perpetuates the lie by not including cost of maintenance, bus costs, and health and other benefits, which the school department “hides” on the city side of the ledger. Actual total cost of the schools for taxpayers is $89 million.

You would at least think the school committee and others who may be surreptitiously involved in this job hunt would know the correct population of the city and advertise the correct budget figure … or do they care? Would they prefer to play politics with this job search instead of genuinely wanting to find the best person for the job?

Also, check out this piece of fiction that describes the “mission” of the school system: “to serve our community [we accept that] and its children [we accept that] by creating an environment [we accept that] where learning is valued [we somewhat accept that], excellence is expected [We don’t buy that based on results] and improvement is continuous [we don’t buy that, based on performance].

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Applicants must fill out the following form:

PITTSFIELD PUBLIC SCHOOLS PITTSFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS

AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

APPLICATION FOR SUPERINTENDENT

Name _________________________________________________________ Home Phone ______________________________

Address _________________________________________________________ Office Phone ______________________________

_______________________________________________________________ Cell Phone ________________________________ City State Zip

Email Address _______________________________________________________________________________________________ How did you learn about this position (e.g. Education Week, Internet, Boston Globe)? _________________________________

How may we contact you? s at work s at home s by e-mail s by cell phone Certifications Held

Certification State ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Are you licensed as a superintendent in Massachusetts? s YES s NO Are you eligible for licensure as a superintendent in Massachusetts? s YES s NO

If not, have you submitted an application for licensure as a superintendent in Massachusetts? s YES s NO Date of application:_______________________________________________________________________________________

Current School District Information:

Are you presently under contract to a school district? _____________________________________________________________ If yes, when does your contract expire? _________________________________________________________________________ Name of District ____________________________________________________________________________________________ Position __________________________________________________________________________________________Academic and Professional Training:

High School(s), Colleges, Universities Attended Location Degree Year ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Professional Experience:

No. Years Dates From/To Position School District ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Other Relevant Work Experience and Achievements:

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Memberships in Professional Organizations:

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

References:

Please list below the names and addresses of three persons who have knowledge of your professional competence and character, whom we may contact should you become a finalist.

Name _____________________________________ Address _______________________________________________________ Relationship ________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name _____________________________________ Address _______________________________________________________ Relationship ________________________________________________________________________________________________

Name _____________________________________ Address _______________________________________________________ Relationship ________________________________________________________________________________________________

Release of information:

Please check one box: Upon request from the media, I s do s do not give permission to the school committee to release my resumé.

A complete _____ 1. _____ 2. _____ 3.

_____ 4. _____ 5.

_____ 6.

application form includes the following: A completed and signed application form. An up-to-date resume.

A copy of the candidate’s Massachusetts superintendent license, or evidence that the candidate is eligible for licensure as a superintendent in Massachusetts and has submitted his/her application to the Department of Education.

Evidence of highest degree earned (copy of diploma, license and/or certificate). Three recent letters of reference (within the past three years preferred) from persons other than those listed

on the previous page.

The Committee requests a personal statement describing your major educational accomplishments and the specific leadership and management skills you can bring to the superintendency of the Pittsfield Public School District.

All application documents listed above must be received in the MASC office on or before March 16, 2012. Please note: MASC does not maintain an applicant file for use in future searches.

A new application and application materials listed are required for each search.

I understand that, under the requirements of the Massachusetts Open Meeting Law, should I become a finalist, certain facts of my application will become public information and that the school committee may request a copy of my transcripts.

Signature _________________________________________________________ Date __________________________________

Send all information to:

MASC Pittsfield Public School District Search c/o Glenn Koocher MASC One McKinley Square

Boston, Massachusetts 02109

Telephone: (617) 523–8454; (800) 392-6023 FAX: (617) 742 – 4125 E-mail: gkoocher@masc.org

For further information please contact Glenn Koocher (see above). Please do not contact school committee members or members of the school administration.

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One Size Fits All, or Does It?

The form has a “one size fits all” quality about it and doesn’t reflect whatever special requirements the Pittsfield position will entail. Are there special requirements? THE PLANET doesn’t know. Does Alf Barbalunga know? Does Terry Kinnas or Kathy Amuso? Does Dan Elias? Does any committee member? Does any single person? Should there be dialogue with the school department administration, with fellow board members, and with the public?

We would deem that logical and reasonable.

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WE ARE BORN, WE LIVE, AND WE DIE, MY DEAR FRIENDS, BUT LET NOT DEATH BOAST OF ITS CONQUERING POWER, FOR WE SHALL ALL RISE A STAR WHERE WE FELL A FLOWER.

“OPEN THE WINDOW, AUNT MILLIE”

LOVE TO ALL.