RCSD Interim Superintendent Carmine Peluso: 'I think I bring some stability'
Carmine Peluso is a veteran of many first days of school in the Rochester City School District, first as a teacher at Edison Tech High School, then as principal at Louis Cerulli School 34 and most recently as a school chief.
Wednesday, he greeted students getting off buses with a new title: interim superintendent.
"It's not a whole lot different, except for more attention to the role, and more people want to talk to the superintendent than others, right?" Peluso said.
The 47-year-old will be at the helm until the school board chooses a permanent replacement for Lesli Myers-Small, who last week came to terms on an early departure from her post. The district has not yet responded to an open records request from the Democrat and Chronicle for that agreement.
Peluso would not venture a guess as to how long he will remain as interim superintendent and also said he has not decided about applying for the permanent position.
Every RCSD superintendent faces a wide array of challenges, and Peluso is no different. Among other things, he will be responsible for assigning and spending federal COVID stimulus funds and leading the early stages of a newly adopted plan to standardize grade-level configurations across the district.
More:Who is Carmine Peluso, the new Rochester City School District leader?
Below is an interview with Peluso, conducted Wednesday afternoon and edited for length and clarity.
What made you want to become an educator?
I love being in schools and with kids and being around the school community. For me, that’s one of the coolest things, just seeing how kids manifest their talents outside of just being in a classroom. And then being connected to a school. Schools are the hub, always, of a community. I always wanted to be around the center of that.
You’ve been a teacher or principal or chief when a superintendent leaves. What is that experience like for someone who’s working in a building or somewhere lower down in the organization?
I think from a principal’s lens, it’s always a little bit of uncertainty. Is the direction you’re going in going to be the direction the new superintendent comes in with? Do you have to validate what you’ve done already and re-present yourself in terms of what supports you need? The uncertainty of having someone come that doesn’t know the community and its needs is always a concern for principals. And from a teacher’s perspective – are they going to be supportive of the district, of the unions, all of that?
What were the last two weeks of the summer like this year compared to last year?
Last year, returning back from the pandemic, we were setting up so many precautionary measures ― everything from transportation to masking to just returning to school ― that it really strained the system. This year, although obviously COVID and being safe and having the protocols are important, we didn’t have those parameters restricting us, and it really has made for a different year.
What does a successful tenure look like for you, however long it lasts?
I come back to really connecting us as one unit, one RCSD. That’s really been my focus right now. I feel like we’re fractured on so many levels and I really want to be collaborative and collective and bring everyone back together for the constructive good of the district. That’s inclusive of everyone ― all units, all people. Being that I was a teacher, administrator, school chief, I have those lenses from all the different positions I’ve been in.
The proposed grade-level reconfiguration is expected to take effect in 2024. Will there be school closures before then?
Really, the narrative for me needs to be more about resources in schools. Teachers with certification ― teachers in general ― are a tough find across the country. If we don’t consolidate how we utilize our resources, we’re impacting kids’ instruction by not providing them high-quality certified instructors every single day. That should be more of our narrative versus it being about school closures, per se.
What we’re doing is investing in tomorrow. We need to see how 2024 and beyond looks for this district. I’d have to bring closures to the board in October for them to vote in January on closures for the 2023-24 school year. I don’t anticipate right now doing that.
There are staff, parents and students who saw Lesli Myers-Small leaving and said: ‘Here we go again, it’s always the same thing, here’s another interim and then it’ll be someone else and someone else.’ How can you reassure them?
I think I bring some stability right now. I was a chief, I was a deputy, I was a principal, I was a teacher. I think me being in this position shows some sense of stability for the district. That’s been my message all along ― I’m here to support them. I believe that knowing I’ve been a part of this district helps them get that sense.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Rochester schools Interim Superintendent Carmine Peluso Q&A
