Public invited to comment on Haverhill High principal candidates

Mike LaBella, The Eagle-Tribune, North Andover, Mass.
·2 min read

Jul. 11—HAVERHILL — Haverhill Public Schools invites members of the public to comment on two candidates vying for the job of principal of Haverhill High School.

Those interested have until Tuesday, July 12, at 6 p.m. to submit responses to a feedback questionnaire the district indicated it would post on its website early Monday evening along with video recordings of interviews with the candidates conducted Monday in the high school's library.

Adam Gagne, an assistant principal at Whittier Regional Vocational Technical High School and Meghan Patrissi, an assistant principal with the Woburn Public Schools, are seeking the job vacated by Haverhill High principal Jason Meland, who resigned at the end of the school year after leading the high school for one year.

Meland will become a principal for Boston Public Schools next school year.

Members of the public can review the recorded interviews at www.haverhill-ps.org, and are asked to click on a link to a questionnaire and to fill it out and submit it for review.

School Superintendent Margaret Marotta said she would like to make a final decision on a new principal by the middle of next week.

Like many other schools across the country, Haverhill High experienced a tumultuous school year. Meland had to respond to multiple student fights, including one in the high school's cafeteria in which a female student was arrested after a knife was discovered at the scene of the fight.

Gagne has worked at Whittier Tech since 2018, where he is responsible for student affairs, discipline and security. He previously served as the athletic director for Westford Public Schools from July 2017 to July 2018, as a high school business teacher at Westford Academy from 2010 to 2017, and as a business education teacher for Lawrence Public Schools from 2007 to 2010.

Gagne has a master's degree in business administration and a certificate in school management and leadership. His DESE (Department of Elementary and Secondary Education) licenses include superintendent/assistant superintendent, vocational technical superintendent, high school and vocational technical principal/assistant principal.

Patrissi has served as a sophomore and junior assistant principal in Woburn since 2017 and previously served as the freshman assistant principal from 2014 to 2017. Her prior roles with Woburn Public Schools included wellness department coordinator and physical educator. Patrissi has a master's degree in special education, a grade 9-12 principal/assistant principal certification and an educational leadership certification. Her pending certifications include 9-12 special education and K-12 family and consumer science.

Reporter Olivia LeDuc contributed to this story