New Mamaroneck School Superintendent Selected

Dr. Paul R. Fried Now Administrator With Ossining Schools

by Judy Silberstein

(May 5, 2005) If all goes as expected, the Mamaroneck School District will be welcoming Dr. Paul R. Fried as its new superintendent next Tuesday, May 10, according to a May 4 release. The public is invited to meet Dr. Fried, currently the Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Education and Human Resources in Ossining, at a 7:30 pm reception in the Post Road Conference Center at Mamaroneck High School prior to the school board meeting where he will be appointed.

Also expected is the appointment of a new assistant superintendent for operations to replace Sarah Tate, who is retiring after fifteen years in that position.

The Search Begins

The district began its search for a new top leader in January, when Superintendent Dr. Sherry King announced she was retiring at the end of June after almost 10 years at the helm of the district. She will become Director of Special Projects for the national educational improvement organization, America's Choice, Inc., a subsidiary of the not-for-profit National Center on Education and the Economy.

The board brought in consultant Jacqueline Roy to assist in a multi-step process that included: surveys, advertisements, and over 25 focus group meetings with various segments of the school and general community. (See: Search on for New Superintendent.) After a nationwide search, the board interviewed 8 candidates from 6 different states and then interviewed four of these a second time. Two finalists returned for interviews in mid-April with a group of stakeholders representing teachers, secretaries, administrators, special educators, management team, PTA, and the broader community. This lengthy process is concluding with Dr. Fried’s appointment at the May board meeting.

Dr. Paul R. Fried

Dr. Fried, age 54, is coming to Mamaroneck after 19 years with the Ossining schools. His own schooling began at PS 114 in the Bronx and culminated with his earning undergraduate and masters degrees from SUNY New Paltz and a doctorate in educational administration from Teachers College of Columbia University. He began his professional life in 1972 as an elementary school teacher and has been with the Ossining schools for nineteen years, most recently in central administration and before that serving as a principal of the Brookside School (K-6) and Park School (Pre-K –1), which was designated a Blue Ribbon School during his tenure. As a district administrator, he has been involved with initiatives to create more personalized education through a house system at the middle school and “small schools” and advisories at the high school.

Dr. Fried lives in Ossining with his family that includes two children enrolled in the Ossining public schools and two more who are “post-high school.”

The Match

What attracted Dr. Fried to the district? “Mamaroneck enjoys a wonderful reputation in the county – for its caring parents, talented staff and high achievement,” he told the Gazette on Thursday morning.

He was also impressed with the issues the school board has been grappling with – gatekeeping, special education and closing the achievement gap. “As a professional educator these issues have interested me and have made me feel that coming to Mamaroneck would be a good match,” he said. “When you look at education today, the challenges are raising achievement for everyone while closing the gap – wherever they exist – in socioeconomic status, ethnicity or gender.”

In particular, his first goals in Mamaroneck are to meet people and build relationships. “Those are my strengths – building relationships, creating a sense of community and working with people to identify challenges,” he said. “We’ll be working to that end with the board, staff and community members.”

Consensus, collaboration and leadership were important to the board’s choice of Dr. Fried, suggested Celia Felsher, board president. "He is someone who has very successfully worked through collaboration and consensus building, but yet it is clear from the references and our discussions with him that he also understands the need to make decisions once the consensus is reached and to makes sure those decisions are successfully implemented," she said.

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