NORTHAMPTON — The Smith Vocational and Agricultural High School Board of Trustees will interview two finalists Wednesday evening as part of a search to fill an interim superintendent position.
The trustees will interview finalists Kevin Farr and James Laverty, according to chairman Michael T. Cahillane. A third finalist, Frank Llamas, is unable to attend the meeting, Cahillane said.
The meeting is open to the public and will start at 5 p.m. in the Smith Voke library.
The search for an interim superintendent began when former Superintendent Jeffrey R. Peterson announced his resignation at a June 21 trustees meeting. Peterson earned a salary of $114,660 and is credited with starting varsity athletic programs at Smith Voke.
Peterson resigned to take a job as the principal director at William J. Dean Technical High School in Holyoke starting July 1. Peterson told the Gazette in June the position to turn around a struggling school was an opportunity he could not turn down.
Peterson will earn a salary of $122,500 at Dean Tech, he said in June.
According to Cahillane, the board hopes to appoint an interim superintendent at a July 19 board meeting. A salary for the position has not been determined, Cahillane said.
According to Cahillane, the interim superintendent will serve for one year. Later this year, the board will launch a full search to interview and hire a permanent superintendent. The interim superintendent will be eligible to apply, Cahillane said.
The interim superintendent position was advertised on job-search website SchoolSpring.com. In the advertisement, the school said it was seeking candidates with experience in administration and, ideally, in career and technical education.