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GREENBURGH, N.Y. – Woodlands High School Principal and Interim Superintendent Ronald Ross has been selected as the next superintendent of the Greenburgh Central 7 school district, the Board of Education announced Monday.
The board made the decision Friday after a series of public question-and-answer sessions with the final three candidates.
District Board of Education President Terry Williams said Ross impressed the board with his experience as superintendent in the Mount Vernon and Roosevelt school districts. Ross’ three years as principal at Woodlands High School were also a factor in the decision, Williams said.
“We thought that his experience, and success at it, just made him the right person for the job,” Williams said.
Ross, who has served as interim superintendent since January, has signed a letter of intent with the district to assume the permanent position and will soon begin negotiating a contract with the board, Williams said.
Ross will be the district’s first permanent superintendent since the end of 2011, when Ronald Smalls retired.
His selection ends a nearly five-month search that began in December when the board hired Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates as consultants through the process.
The board whittled a field of over 30 candidates down to Ross, Anthony Cavanna, the superintendent in West Orange, N.J., and Robert Copeland, superintendent in Piscataway, N.J.
Last week, the board hosted a series of meet-and-greet sessions with the trio before it began deliberations.
Comments (18)
Ronald Ross set the Mount Vernon School District on the road to ruin, and he'll do the same with Greenburgh. While in Mount Vernon, the failing rate of students climbed higher than it was before Ross took the helm.
GC7 Mom: you're still here? "checking back" as you would say? LOL.
Honest review of the man is healthy, any review at all. I didn't know one man was so powerful that he alone could raise taxes far over budget. I guess there's no respect for our school Board, or in the voters to vote no against a high budget (the same voters who shot down last years school budget). It's sad to se how information is continuously skewed and critiqued for self-interest and not I the interest of the children, remembering that they are your children too.
Why not talk about how (as interim super) Ross has tremendous support of his staff and students? Why not look equally at the positives hes done since he took the interim position?
You expose yourself when all you present is negativity. Again, honest review is healthy, honestly good and bad.
I support the kids, not a man, and having a superintendent (after being abandoned mid-year) is good for all the kids in our district. That is what this article was about, the appointment of a superintendent for our kids.
What touched my nerves is the board failing to choose one of the two superintendent candidates who really could have helped our district improve educational standards and maintain a budget, instead opting for a superintendent who has put two prior school districts far over budget and who used school postage from one of the schools to send out personal mailings. Don't those things touch your nerves? If not, then I encourage you, as you said, to run for the board of schools and work with him to make sure of HIS "Commitment to Excellence".
Ronald Ross set the Mount Vernon School District on the road to ruin, and he'll do the same with Greenburgh. While in Mount Vernon, the failing rate of students climbed higher than before Ross took the helm.
GC7 mom, Huh? LOL You're providing comedy for us, thank you.
It looks like your nerves are touched by this district. It shouldn't be, there's some great learning going on here. I hope it gets better for you and your family.
Touched a nerve! Enough said.
GC7 mom, its too bad your experirence in the higher grades has been less than stellar. I know parents with both positive and negative experiences in the higher grades, maybe you should talk to more/different people and hear more positive stories and experiences.
As for checking back...Please don't concern yourself with why I read or reread articles and ask your own self why YOU'RE checking back (the facts wont change, he'll still be the superintendent, lol)
Huh? I shouldnt check back if im "glad" to have a superintendent? Say what? See, LOL, this is where people who are too 'concerned' about things (that have nothing to do with them) tend to expose their foolishness. I am very glad we have a superintendent, independent of whether or not i reread articles. Your question is quite silly, if you ask me.
Maybe you should spend some of your concerned energy toward finding solutions to these problems in the district and propose them directly to the board. Its quite presumptuous for any of us to condemn others before allowing them to do their work. In fact, the Board of Education has seats up for election, feel free to join in the race and explain how you can do GOOD for the district an dour children. The deadline to submit your name is open until tomorrow, May 5th at 5pm.
If you choose not to enter the race (and just choose to be a complainer) please join us truly concerned parents at the Global Gala, tomorrow night at the high school.
Until you're on the board, we'll both be plain old concerned mothers within the district (unless you select to go private) and i'll continue to look for solutions for issues and i guess you'll continue to gripe and complain and hopefully all of our children will receive the education they deserve.
Now, let's see if you "check back" LOL, that's hilarious!
Greenburghmomof2, why do you keep checking back if you are "glad" to " have a superintendent"??? Perhaps you are not convincing yourself with your false optimism. Perhaps you are just as alarmed as other parents with the BOE choice. Are you really "happy with my children's education"? I guess your children are still young and you are happy, that's great and I am happy for you. When you children are in the upper grades I would like to hear you say the same.
I'm SURE all of this negativity and brooding over Ross will help the children in our district...or maybe we should focus and figure out how to educate our kids from this point forward. Or, we can continue to gripe and complain about the hiring of Ross, or has this article post somehow become about Feiner too? LOL
This is about our children IF all us comment posters in fact live in GC7 district we should all be focused on the solution to good public education. Not on a hired superintendent.
I'm happy with my children's education and will continue to advocate for whatever they need while they are in school. I will teach them to advocate for themselves and to regroup/refocus when they do not get their way.
This IS about the children. Not our political and personal agendas against Feiner or Fairview or a portion of the Greenburgh community.
What was that saying? You are entitled to your own opinion, but you aren't entitled to your own facts. The fact is, he's the current superimtendent. So we can all sit and pout or focus on a being positive and helping to educate our children!
The Board of Education appeared to focus on only a portion of the Greenburgh community, which is particularly troubling because, given the bleak reputation of the higher grades of Greenburgh7, it is so important for all of Greenburgh to achieve academically. And because of the current economic woes, it is disappointing that the Board failed to hire one of the two superintendent finalists with a proven track record of academic achievement and fiscal responsibility. Instead, the Board chose a Superintendent who, yes, has substantial superintendent experience, but who left two prior New York superintendent jobs early, both times going far over budget and one time even getting caught using school postage for personal mailings. None of this will help educate the Greenburgh7 students whose need for academic achievement should trump politics.
the dead cannot wake up. when hartsdale voted not to merge with edgemont's school district in the early 50s it started its decline. the death blow was the merger with the greenburgh school district (forced upon it by the state eduction commissioner).
when a community loses its school district (especially in the westchester suburbs) its toast. see mount vernon, yonkers etc.
This is the best the Board of Ed could do? Someone fired by the Mt. Vernon BoE for misuse of funds, appointed to "save" Roosevelt & then fired 2 years later for misuse of district funds. Can we really afford this guy? Something to consider at the next board election.....time to wake up Hartsdale!!!
You're 100% correct about Ross' misuse of funds while he was in Mount Vernon. And he was on vacations just about every month, claiming he was going to educational conferences. Yeah right.
Greenburgh central 7 board of ed spent $50,000 on "finding the best candidate". Well, I think they should have spent some of the money getting new glasses and hearing aides or whatever they needed to open their eyes and ears. Perhaps it's glaucoma or wax that's the problem.
Poor parents got a glimpse of what a really good superintendent candidate can do for the school district and the BOE choose otherwise. So now the BOE will spend all their time saying "yes" to the new expenditures that no doubt will be cropping up. History repeats itself.
Philosopher George Santayana said "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." For the GC7 BOE I think it'll be "Those who ignore the past are condemned to repeat it". My condolences to the poor children and taxpayer of Greenburgh.
SURPRISE! lol
hiring a 67 year old man ?
there is some merit to hiring from the inside - on the other hand not going outside the district fails to bring the new ideas and fresh approaches needed in these challenging times. Perhaps more of the state mandates crippled the board from hiring someone with a different background.
i wish the new superintendent good luck but hiring someone who was born in 1945 does not impress me as a sound business or educational decision.
I was a teacher in the Mount Vernon School System when Mr. Ross was superintendent. I know nothing about the other candidates for Greenburgh 7 superintendent. At Mt. Vernon, Dr. Ross was great at making presentations and at hiring high-priced colleagues at the board of ed. Nevertheless the high school and the middle schools were deemed by New York state to be schools in need of improvement. Let's watch what happens.
I'm glad we have a superintendent, now let's get onto the business of education! Thank you to the reporter, Mr. Bultman as he's provided detailed coverage of our superintendent search. I hope you continue to follow our successes as we journey on our "Commitment to Excellence"!