Updated 2:30 pm, Tuesday
David Fabrizio, current principal of Ipswich Middle School, dropped out of the running for the job of Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School principal Monday.
In a press release issued Monday afternoon, Assistant Superintendent of Schools Richie Smith announced Mr. Fabrizio’s decision.
“Mr. Fabrizio explained that Ipswich’s superintendent and school board stepped up to retain him,” Mr. Smith said. “MVPS (Martha’s Vineyard Public Schools) wishes Mr. Fabrizio the best and congratulates him for being valued and respected so highly by his district and community.”
Following the announcement on Dec. 30 that Mr. Fabrizio was one of three finalists for the Vineyard job, Ipswich officials said they would do their best to keep him.
In a phone conversation with The Times on Jan. 5, Ipswich school board chairman Carl Nylen told The Times Mr. Fabrizio was a key member of their team. “Our hope is that we will convince him to stay in Ipswich,” Mr. Nylen said.
In a conversation with The Times on Tuesday, Mr. Fabrizio said it was a very difficult decision to take his name out of the running. He said he began reconsidering the job during a presentation he gave to the Ipswich school committee last week and ultimately felt an obligation to see through the work that he started at Ipswich Middle School.
“As I got into that presentation and put it out there, I realized we’ve come a long way, but we have a long way to go,” he said. “How can I leave when we’re halfway to where we wanted to be when I came here? At the end of the day, as much as I really want to go to Martha’s Vineyard, the bottom line is that I have work to do here and it would be unprofessional to leave midstream.”
He said he was 100 percent ready to come to the Island, and is still torn by the decision. “I was into it, I was excited about it, but when it came down to it, I have stuff going on here … I’ve made these promises and we’ve got these initiatives, and we’ve got people working on the same page,” he said. “To walk away would jeopardize what we’re doing.”
He said he was impressed by the people he met on the Vineyard, and applauded the search committee.
“They’re doing the right thing down there,” he said. “I really enjoyed meeting assistant superintendent Smith and the committee. I thought they were awesome. This has nothing to do with me not wanting to go to the Island.”
Two finalists remain
The remaining finalists are Sara Dingledy, the current principal of Westchester Square Academy of New York City and former assistant headmaster of the Brooklyn Latin School, and David Williams, former principal of York Middle School in York, Maine, and former assistant principal of Newmarket High School in Newmarket, N.H.
“I remain very confident that we will find a leader that will be the right fit for the staff, students, and community,” Mr. Smith said in his press release.
The next step in the selection process is school visits. Mr. Williams will visit on Thursday, Jan. 14, and Ms. Dingledy on Jan. 15.
The candidates will arrive at MVRHS at 10:45 am, meet with students from 11 am to 12:30 pm in the Library Conference Room (LCR), tour the facility with a student guide from 1 to 1:30 pm, meet with administration, Island principals, and school committee members from 1:30 to 2:30 pm, meet with faculty from 2:30 to 3:30 pm, and finally meet with parents and community members in the LCR from 4 to 5:15 pm.
Following the visits to the Island, Superintendent of Schools Matt D’Andrea will review feedback from students, staff, parents, and the community, and then, with a “small, representative contingent,” visit the current or former schools of the finalists.
Mr. D’Andrea will make the final decision based on those site visits.
Mr. Smith said he expects the process will conclude in early February.