Norwalk BOE Hires New Interim Superintendent
Michael R Nast is the new guy that everyone but Migdalia Rivas voted to hire. He’ll start February 10th. So what do we know about him?
From his New Haven Public School Profile:
Michael R. Nast, a graduate of New Haven Public Schools and Fordham University, was Superintendent of Stamford Public Schools from 1994 to 1999, having risen through the ranks of Stamford’s school system from high school principal to the top post. He started his career as a science teacher at James Hillhouse High School. Administrative positions held in New Haven include chairman of the Science Department at Hillhouse, assistant principal at Wilbur Cross High School and principal at Cross.
Upon retiring from the Superintendent’s position in Stamford, Mr. Nast served as an educational consultant to many school districts in New England and New York, worked for the Education Alliance at Brown University, and served as interim Superintendent for both the Amity Region 5 and New Hartford School Districts. He currently is an adjunct professor in the University of Connecticut Administrative Preparation Program and is a consultant to the Center for Secondary School Redesign in Rhode Island.
In the old news google, we find that Nast remembers his old students:
Committee member Michael Nast took special pleasure in voting to approve Martyn Philpot’s contract; Nast was principal when Marc Glenn, a member of Philpot’s legal team, graduated from Stamford High School.
But the better news for Steven Colarossi was that Nast worked with a committee intent on reducing outside legal fees and that the New Haven BOE worked with Corporation Counsel on most legal matters.
In New Haven, the school board is appointed rather than elected. That might not be such a bad thing to investigate for Norwalk. But the key take away, as the under Mayor John Destefano, education reform was the number one issue. Destefano, regardless of his politics, likes to hire very smart people to implement and execute rather than people who just like to talk about reform. I’m hoping Nast fits the former. Case in point:
Last month, DeStefano surprised many by appointing longtime critic Alex Johnston, executive director of the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now, and Southern Connecticut State University Provost Selase Williams.
He’s a school change coach:
Michael Nast is a school change coach with CSSR. Michael previously served as superintendent in Stamford, CT, an urban district with 17,000 students, for six and a half years. Prior to that, he served as an assistant superintendent for curriculum and professional development. In addition, Michael was a high school principal for 17 years of two large urban high schools, one in New Haven, and one in Stamford, CT, where he introduced small learning communities, established advisor/advisee groups, and 9th grade clusters.
In his work with the Education Alliance at Brown University, Michael served as a mentor to high school principals, helping them to implement their school improvement plans, identify school reform issues, and engage in the change process. He coordinates the Administrative Preparation Internship Program for the University of Connecticut.
Michel is a specialist in helping school leaders to balance administrative priorities with curriculum, instruction and assessment initiatives. He has coordinated professional development workshops for CT superintendents, focusing on staffing issues, safety, data analysis, and improving student achievement.
The mere fact that data analysis and that he serves as mentor to principals is a welcome change in the usual lack of communication style we’ve seen out of the Norwalk BOE thus far.
