PITTSFIELD — Outgoing Superintendent Joseph Curtis started his education career as a teacher at Silvio O. Conte Community School in 1994. He was a 21-year-old Springfield College graduate who wasn’t sure how long he’d remain in the city.
He never left.
And Wednesday, during his last School Committee meeting, Curtis noted that the City Council approved up to $2 million for a feasibility study of a new elementary school to replace Conte and Crosby Elementary School.
“To end my career with the possibility the children on the west side of our city will have an outstanding new school facility that will also serve as a model for our city is quite an honor,” Curtis said. “And so I’m very grateful to them, because certainly in times of what could be fiscal issues down the road, it would be easier to vote to not to pass this.”
Curtis, who officially steps down Monday and will be succeeded by interim Superintendent Latifah Phillips, was thanked Wednesday by School Committee members for his service and commitment to the city schools, particularly steering the district through the COVID pandemic.
Curtis, who has also served as the principal of Morningside Community School and as a deputy superintendent under former Superintendent Jake McCandless, became interim superintendent when McCandless resigned in 2020.
He was offered the permanent position in 2021 and was appointed on a split vote, following a search process that frustrated some committee members. Then-School Committee member Dennis Powell resigned over the choice, and City Councilors Earl Persip III and Patrick Kavey criticized it openly.
On Wednesday, Curtis revealed that at the time, he asked then-Mayor Linda Tyer if he should decline the appointment.
“She said ‘Absolutely not. You’re the right person,'” he said.
Reached Thursday, Tyer confirmed Curtis’ memory of that conversation.
“I absolutely respected him quite a bit for his willingness to step aside,” Tyer said. “However, if you recall, I was one of the votes in favor. … The majority had confidence in him and I felt he deserved the opportunity to take on the role.”
At the time, criticism of Curtis focused on his being an inside hire who would protect the status quo. But on Wednesday, he touted ways he pushed for change: updating the district code of conduct, developing a strategic plan, and taking on redistricting efforts that led to a middle school restructuring proposal. He also declined a pay raise when he was offered a new contract in 2023.
But the 2024-25 school year proved a more difficult challenge.
A year ago, Earl Giver Essien, a 12-year-old Herberg Middle School student taking part in a school-sponsored summer program, drowned during a field trip in Monterey. That incident resulted in felony charges against two school employees, which were revealed Wednesday.
Then came the Dec. 11 arrest of Pittsfield High School Dean of Students Lavante Wiggins on federal cocaine distribution charges. That opened the floodgates for additional allegations of wrongdoing by current and former PHS educators, as well as harsh criticism and questions about what the district knew, or should have known.
On Feb. 12, Curtis announced he would resign, leaving two years remaining on his contract. He did not say whether his decision had any connection with the allegations at PHS. But he did say it was his decision alone, “because I firmly believe it is the right time, the right decision for me, for the district and the community I deeply care about.”
On Wednesday, Curtis said he had “no regrets” about spending his entire career in Pittsfield. He acknowledged that he is “not universally popular,” but remained committed to the city, its children and its educators.
“I stayed because I believed in the people here. I stayed because I saw the potential in children, strength in the families, and the resilience of our educators,” he said. “I stayed because I wanted to be part of something real, not always easy, certainly not always perfect, but deeply meaningful. And in staying here, I’ve been given far more than I ever expected.”
“I operated with a clear guiding principle, if your focus is on championing the needs of the children we serve, then we are alike. If your priority is yourself over students, then we are not. And I’ve never wavered on that distinction,” Curtis said. “I understand that taking such a clear and uncompromising stance hasn’t always made me well liked, and I’m at complete peace with that.”
School Committee members offered Curtis their thanks, support and best wishes.
“Joe has made himself available to the public in ways no other superintendent of my acquaintance has ever done,” committee Chairman William J. Cameron said. “He has been as selfless a superintendent as I have known in 47 years in public education. He is also a thoughtful and decent man who, since 2020, has seen the Pittsfield Public Schools through monumental crises.”
“We will not easily replace the skills and dedication Joe Curtis has brought to performing the work that public policy, local needs and fate gave him to perform.”
Committee member Sara Hathaway reminded Curtis of an online comment made by one of his former students in January, during the height of criticism of Curtis and the schools.
“In a sea of vitriol, one of his students had written ‘I had no idea what’s going on, but I will say he was my fifth grade teacher, and he was by far one of the best and one of my favorites. He went above and beyond for all his kids,’” Hathaway said. “That’s as much as you need if you’re in education.”
Mayor Peter Marchetti thanked Curtis not only for his work as superintendent, “but the years of service that you did with the School Building Needs Commission — the rebuilding of the new Taconic and hopefully, in the future, a building of a new Crosby.”
Vice Chair Daniel Elias commended Curtis for his long-range planning and for the growth he showed in the top job.
“I know in your early days, you had issues. You worked really hard, and I think you expected everyone around you to work equally as hard. And I think at times, you didn’t come across well,” Elias said. “And I think you learned from that, you grew from that, and there was a transformation.”