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Jack Milton/Staff PhotographerABOUT THIS SERIES
MONDAY: Incoming Portland Superintendent Jim Morse plans to work on reducing the district's dropout rate, something that has been a personal issue for him as an educator since he dropped out of Portland High School when he was a junior.
TUESDAY: Portland's multilingual student population is growing, and it's one area where the incoming superintendent has little experience.
TODAY: A look at the administrative, financial and facilities challenges that Portland's new schools chief faces when he starts the job in July.
MEET THE NEW GUY
The Portland School Committee has scheduled several public gatherings to introduce Jim Morse to the community before he becomes superintendent in July. All begin at 6 p.m.
April 28: Moore Middle School, 171 Auburn St.
May 8: Presumpscot Elementary School, 69 Presumpscot St.
May 12: King Middle School, 92 Deering Ave.
May 21: Deering High School, 370 Stevens Ave.
Third in a series
PORTLAND — Jim Morse was surprised when he visited Peaks Island Elementary School recently and noticed that a piece of plywood had been used to fix a broken window.
Morse, who will become Portland's superintendent in July, was equally mystified when he saw that duct tape had been used to mend frayed carpeting in the public meeting room where the Portland School Committee gathers each week.
And throughout the district, Morse has spotted numerous water-stained ceiling tiles that leave a pretty grim impression of the condition and level of caring for Portland's public schools.
"It takes a few seconds and little money to replace a tile," Morse said. "But it makes a big difference in the way we see our schools and what taxpayers think about how we spend their money."
As incoming superintendent of Maine's largest school district, Morse promises to have a similar eye for detail and high expectations for everything from academic standards to administrative oversight.
It's a tall order for Morse, 54, who has been superintendent of School Administrative District 47, the Messalonskee School District, since 1997. He faces significant challenges in a much larger district that's still recovering from a $1.8 million deficit in 2007 and taking steps to make sure it doesn't happen again.
At the same time, the district is wrestling with rising costs during an economic recession, diverse and rapidly changing educational demands, and aging facilities that require about $45 million to pay for delayed maintenance and repairs.
Many of those issues will converge as school officials review a task force report, released Tuesday, on the district's building and program needs.
The report bodes of numerous politically and emotionally charged decisions to be made in the coming months and years, including the possibility of redistricting and closing some schools.
To ensure the best results possible, Morse said he plans to set clear expectations for everyone, including himself, and to hold people accountable, from administrators in the central office to students in the city's 10 elementary schools, three middle schools and three high schools.
That's exactly what many School Committee members want Morse to do, especially those who have been pushing to develop a comprehensive, long-term plan for the district. They include Jaimey Caron, who led the task force that reviewed the district's building and program needs.
"My sense is that (Morse) can be a leader and a partner in moving the district forward," Caron said. "There has to be a holistic approach to some of these issues, so we need someone who understands the big picture. But we also need someone who can delegate. I think he's going to be able to organize everybody so we're all pulling in the same direction."
Soon after he starts, Morse said, he plans to establish a "visioning committee" of school and community members to help him set goals for the district. Having clear goals will help justify budget expenses and ensure measurable improvements, he said.
"Then the budget and the outcome isn't based on the superintendent's vision of the world, it's based on the community's vision of the world," Morse said.
He said he'll wait to make significant staffing or program changes, but he understands that the School Committee has high expectations of him. He said he's not afraid to make decisions or recommendations, and he expects that some of his actions will be met warmly by the community and others will cause a stir.
"I need a chance to connect with city and school leadership, and with community leaders in general," he said.
Morse praised interim Superintendent Jeanne Whynot-Vickers for the work she has done in turning the district...
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