NORTHAMPTON — The Northampton School Committee voted Tuesday to transfer money to create a speech therapy position and approved its annual evaluation of the superintendent.
The committee approved more than $56,000 for the speech therapy position. Mayor David Narkewicz, chairman of the committee, said the School Department previously hired outside speech pathology services and Laurie Farkas, director of student services, determined it would be more fiscally prudent to create an in-house position.
Narkewicz said the district had been spending about $70,000 annually on speech pathology services.
“It’s something that was already being provided and paid for,” Narkewicz said. “We’ve just made a change in the service delivery method.”
Narkewicz said the committee also approved the annual evaluation of Superintendent John Provost, which deemed him “proficient” in meeting goals set by him and the school board in November.
“I know that in accepting it, several School Committee members made comments about how much they’ve enjoyed working with him and how much he’s done for the district,” Narkewicz said.
He said the members singled out Provost’s work with the curriculum and his leadership skills.
“Proficient” is the second-highest rating on the evaluation form, which Narkewicz said is part of a larger state evaluation system.
According to his 2015-2016 End-of-Cycle Summative Evaluation Report, Provost met or made “significant progress” toward all the goals set in November, which included developing data systems, improving third-grade reading and sixth-grade mathematics scores on the MCAS and cultivating a “unified mindset.”
Provost was unavailable for comment Wednesday because he was attending a Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents conference.
Jack Evans can be reached at jackevan@indiana.edu.