Interim superintendent bids farewell to UFRSD

BY JANE MEGGITT Staff Writer

BY JANE MEGGITT
Staff Writer

ALLENTOWN – Robert Smith calls the Upper Freehold Regional School District the best-kept secret in Monmouth County.

Smith, who has been serving as the district’s interim superintendent of schools for nearly two years, was replaced last week. He has been the interim superintendent since September 2005, when former Superintendent Robert Connelly officially left the school district.

“I was surprised to learn about the successes of these communities and their diversity,” Smith said. “Expanding selection of [advanced placement] courses, rising achievement test scores and a special-education program that is so successful that parents move here in order to enroll their children.”

Smith also noted some of the district’s other achievements. He said that a national expert is assisting the district with the development of a middle school program, a choice program in agricultural sciences, an award-winning marching band, choral students who have been placed in state select groups, a second-to-none security program and a lighthouse program in applying new technology to instruction and operations.

During Smith’s tenure, the district happened to be going through some difficult times. For one, the Board of Education could not immediately find a replacement for Connelly. The proposed site for the new middle school was found to have contamination issues. The district also discovered that the middle school construction project would fall subject to significant cost increases, even though work on it had not yet begun. In addition, a board member was accused of directing an ethnic slur at a community member.

When asked if the interim superintendency was a job more difficult than he had anticipated, Smith replied, “I had no preconceived notions of how difficult the job may have been.”

When he interviewed for the interim position, he told the board that he had no interest in being a caretaker.

“I want to lead improvement and to make a noticeable contribution,” he said. “I was frustrated at times, but there were many times of satisfaction.”

When asked what he considers the district’s strong points, Smith said the solid values of the communities in the regional district and the dedication of the staff, as well as the generally attentive and cooperative students.

He said the district should work on improving parental involvement beyond the classroom; raising the expectations of staff, students, parents and the general community; and adjusting program and course offerings to varying levels of achievement in order to challenge every student.

While the last area for improvement is usually referred to as “individualized instruction,” Smith said he does not like that term because every school ascribes to the practice but few of them do it well.

Although Smith thought his stay in the district would be shorter, he said he was glad that he was there long enough for the board to find new Superintendent of Schools Richard Fitzpatrick. When asked what he plans to do next, Smith said that he intends to take the summer off.

“I hope to have an interim appointment in about mid-September,” he said. “The location is unknown at this time.”

Smith also said he hopes the community will support the Board of Education.

“The position of board member is the most demanding volunteer job in the country,” he said. “In the same vein, I hope the community will give the new superintendent enough time and space to analyze the school district and to decide what needs to be done.”

He continued, “Our national emphasis on punishment of people in highly visible jobs when they make a mistake encourages mediocrity in performance.”

Smith said the only way he knows to avoid making mistakes is to only do things that are safe. “People who venture into new areas and take risks often are praised for their accomplishments,” he said.

Smith said that when Thomas Edison was asked how he tolerated the frustration of 10,000 failed experiments before making a light bulb that worked, Edison replied, “I discovered 10,000 ways not to make a light bulb.”

“We all need to return to this focus on gaining knowledge in place of the focus on failure,” Smith said.