Search for new superintendent and high school principal top 2022 to-do list

by Judy Stringer

Dec. 13 school board meeting

The Hudson City School District will be filling two major administrative positions for the 2022-2023 school year, following the resignation of Superintendent Phil Herman and retirement of Hudson High School Principal Brian Wilch.

Herman announced he would be stepping down late last year to accept a job at The Impact Group, a Hudson-based communications firm.

At the Dec. 13 meeting, members of the board officially accepted his resignation and thanked Herman for his leadership and contribution to the district with over 16.5 years of service. Herman’s last day will be Feb. 18.

The board also approved the hire of former Hudson Superintendent Steve Farnsworth as interim superintendent at a rate of $608 per day. In addition, it agreed to bring Farnsworth on earlier, as needed, as a “special assistant to the superintendent” at the same rate.  

Board Vice President Steve DiMauro said Farnworth was a fitting interim choice because he “knows the district” and can help “fill in” as the board begins the search for Herman’s successor.

A search for a new high school principal will soon be underway too. Wilch retired formally in 2012 and has been “rehired” in multiple contracts since that time. He became HHS principal in 2009, after serving as principal at Brecksville-Broadview Heights High School. His last day will be July 29.

1927 building

In what may be one of his final official actions as superintendent, Herman said he plans to provide a recommendation on the fate of the 1927 portion of the former Hudson Middle School to board members by the end of January.

The board held a work session in November to discuss several options. A proposal by Liberty Development Co. would retain the building’s façade and renovate the inside front-third of it into five townhouses. The back two-thirds would be demolished, and four additional carriage-style residential units would be constructed behind the remaining structure. The Saywell Residence on Oviatt Street, owned by the district, also would be refurbished.

Hudson Heritage Association has proposed the 1927 building be repurposed as a community/cultural arts center, and if that is not economically feasible, demolish and replace it with an outdoor learning center and a cultural amphitheater in a park-like setting.

Herman said he and board members Dave Zuro and Tom Tobin will meet again with each of these groups to discuss this proposal before he finalizes his recommendation. In comments following Herman’s presentation, DiMauro said Liberty’s latest plan reduces the density of housing that would be constructed as a response to neighborhood concerns about traffic and parking and retains the front lawn and view of the façade from Oviatt Street.

Board member Alisa Wright said she was concerned that HHA’s proposals for an amphitheater or cultural arts centers might draw traffic to the area.

“I think there’s a proposal to actually increase the seating in the [old Hudson Middle School] auditorium in order to attract the events that are 500 to 1,000 in attendance [and] sustain whatever cultural arts programming might be going on,” she said. “I have a really, really hard time reconciling that kind of activity with the residential neighborhood in which the building is located.”

PIF renewal

The board made its first move to ask voters to renew a five-year 1.5-mill Permanent Improvement Tax Levy on the May 3 ballot, passing a resolution declaring the levy’s necessity. The current PIF levy, in the same amount, expires at the end of this year.

The PIF is used to maintain buildings and make other long-term investments in areas like technology and transportation. Board member Tom Tobin said, “it allows us to keep everything in good shape so that we don’t have the big bills that we could have if we let it expire.”

The board also:

• Accepted several gifts and grants including a $4,000 grant from the HPSEF Memorial and Tribute Fund to support the New Dimensions class trip to New York City; Lowe’s Audio Video donation of $800 for a TV to be used in the McDowell Early Learning School conference room; Emily Hertz’s donation of a $75 Amazon gift card to the Student Assistance Fund; and Derek Miller, R2 Land Holdings LLC, with a donation $12,000 for the high school wrestling program.
• Passed a resolution giving Herman and district Treasurer Phillip Butto a 3% salary increase for the 2021-2022 school year, which will be applied retroactively.
• Accepted the retirement of educational aid Mary Eleo after 20 years of service and middle school science teacher James Nold after 33 years of service.
• Approved a $30,000 contract with Live Nation to hold the May 25 graduation ceremony at Blossom Music Center. ∞