Gary Vecchio

Former educator and Shrewsbury Street Neighborhood Association president, Gary Vecchio, who has been an avid opponent of Dr. Boone’s recent handling of school safety issues, said, “The most recent national search for Worcester City Manager proved to be a joke, while the national search that resulted in Worcester hiring Dr. Boone, ended up being a disaster. It is my hope that the school committee can find someone within our school system to replace Dr. Boone on a permanent basis, before we go to a national search.”

“I must admit that I was shocked that another school system would actually hire Dr. Boone, but I am happy that they did. This gives Worcester a chance to correct many of the mistakes that have occurred in our school system over the past six years,” Vecchio added.

Donna Colorio

Former School Committee member and current School Committee candidate Donna Colorio said, "With the resignation of  Dr. Boone, we have the opportunity for new leadership, including new School Committee members, to lead Worcester in educational excellence with a focus on school safety, transparency and teacher support. I do not support Mayor Petty's appointment of Dr. Rodrigues as acting Superintendent; it is the wrong choice, as he is a continuation of poor leadership of the Boone administration. Rodrigues was behind the safety plans with Boone that received criticism from teachers, parents, students, politicians and the teacher's union (EAW).  Rodrigues is Boone 2.0.  With the municipal election in three weeks, the new School Committee members should appoint the acting superintendent. Appointing someone now is purely a political move.  It is unfortunate that our current leaders continue to put politics over the needs of our students and teachers. It is time for new leadership."

Brian O'Connell

Regarding the WPS' future, School Committee member Brian O'Connell said "A lot is going to depend on the direction the school system takes. That, in turn, will determine the type of leadership we have in the future."

"I'm optimistic. If we have leadership that's active, aggressive, determined and focused on the best interest of the students, then the future will be promising," O'Connell added.

Using the term "critical mass," O'Connell called a good superintendent as one that works well with teachers, students and parents.

"With a superintendent like that, Worcester would be a second-to-none urban school district," O'Connell said. 

Michael Gaffney

In a released statement, City Councilor Michael Gaffney said, "I am pleased with the news that Superintendent Boone has decided to leave the Worcester Public Schools. Throughout my campaign I have highlighted the negative affects her failed policies have had on our schools, teachers, and students. We lost $2.7 million in Chapter 70 funding to school choice as parents were opting out of sending their children to our schools due to the failed leadership of Dr. Boone and the School Committee.

"It is for these reasons and many others that I see her untimely exit as a short-term victory for our schools, but the selection of the new Superintendent is critical to the long-term success of our schools. The next Mayor and School Committee will have the responsibility to find a replacement. It is imperative to the future of our schools that we select a superintendent that will not continue the same failed policies, but one that will be able to restore our schools and bring new ideas that will once again establish safe and effective learning environments. We have many great teachers and students in our schools that deserve better from leadership and the administration."

Hilda Ramirez

School Committee member Hilda Ramirez said, "Worcester is in a great position to get a new Superintendent and to engage the community in what characteristics we are looking for.  Personnally i would like to see a leader with experience in a Gateway city. I'm not sure we can really tell what the impact is (of Dr. Boone resigning) untill we meet to discuss the options."

Cotey Collins

"The future of our public schools depends whether our next Superintendent is willing to make the changes needed to move our public schools towards the right direction. In other words the actions and decisions of our next Superintendent will determine the future of our public schools," said School Committee candidate Cotey Collins.

Collins added, "There's a lot of work that needs to be done. The actions and decisions of our next Superintendent will determine whether our public schools are in better or in worse shape."

John Monfredo

School Committee Member and GoLocalWorcester MINDSETTER™ John Monfredo said, "Dr. Boone has done many positive things during her tenure. She is a professional. Our graduation rate has improved, and our dropout rate has declined.. AP courses have moved up, and professional development for teachers has been a positive experience.

"She has had bumps in the road with the lack of communication and lack of transparency -barred the press from North High, never developed an action plan with the teachers at North High. The system has moved forward and now we need to unite everyone as we move into another direction. I would like to see Maureen Binenda, South High Principal, as our interim Superintendent so that we can review what we have done well and what needs to be improved as we go forward."

Nick D'Andrea

"I feel that the Worcester Public Schools has an opportunity to position itself for exponential growth.  The focus should now turn to the future of the Administration.  The selection of the interim superintendent is just as important as permanent replacement," said School Committee candidate Nick D'Andrea. "The next superintendent should have a working knowledge of the Worcester Public School system and should have the reverence of the teachers and the Worcester Community.  The next superintendent must be an effective communicator with a vision of the future and makes no excuses.

"We can't argue the increase the test scores and graduation rates.  That is a credit to the wonderful teachers and administrators we have in place.  With that said we have had an increase in safety issues and a serious lack of transparency over the last several years, and that does not sit well with people who are looking to trust their children with a school system.  That is why we are seeing a serious uptick in students either going to private school or other school districts."