WESTBROOK – Westbrook High School Principal Marc Gousse will also be the principal of the new Westbrook Middle School next year – one of several administrative positions being altered in order to balance the budget.

The plan, which was approved by the School Committee last week, is the second administrative restructuring brought forward by Superintendent Reza Namin this year. Those changes, along with some alterations to teaching positions, will save the department $184,000, bringing the budget for the fiscal year beginning in July in at $2,000 less than the current year’s budget.

In the first round of administrative restructuring, the School Committee approved Namin’s proposal to eliminate six positions, including the assistant superintendent. He also created two new positions – director of teaching and learning and director of the No Child Left Behind program, the gift and talented program and professional development. In total, that plan saved the department about $600,000.

Peter Lancia, the current principal of the Congin School, was hired to fill the position of director of teaching and learning. In the latest restructuring plan, Brian Mazjanis, the current principal of the Westbrook Middle School, will become the new Congin School principal.

The real savings in the plan comes from the elimination of one of the two assistant principal positions at the high school, but the two men who fill those roles will remain in the district.

Assistant Principal Howard Jack’s role will be slightly changed and renamed dean of students for the high school. Assistant Principal Matt Nelson will become the dean of curriculum at the middle school, overseeing the day-to-day operations of that school. Bob Griffin, who is the assistant principal at the middle school, will be the dean of students for that school.

The role of the dean of students will largely be the same as that of an assistant principal, but Namin said he would like the focus of those deans to be on the emotional needs of the students. As the dean of curriculum, Nelson’s focus will be on instruction and academic performance.

“Everyone’s on board. They showed us a lot of leadership,” said School Committee Chairman Ed Symbol at the meeting last week. “I think, in the end, it’s what’s best for kids.”

The impetus for the second round of restructuring was a directive from Mayor Colleen Hilton for the department’s budget not to increase taxes in the city. The School Committee had settled on a $33.2 million budget, which was slightly higher than the current year’s budget.

“This further administrative restructuring plan would address this budget request and the revenue shortfall,” said Namin. “This plan is also aligned with our strategic planning and belief that we need to protect our classroom and continue supporting our teachers while maintaining jobs at the Westbrook School Department.”

The elimination of a high school assistant principal will save the department $96,000. In addition, three teachers who retired will be replaced by less experienced teachers, saving $74,000. Two educational technician positions at Prides Corner Elementary School are being eliminated and replaced with one full-time teacher, which will save $14,000.

The $33 million budget that the School Committee gave preliminary approval to last week must be voted on in a referendum on June 8.

Gousse, who’s been the high school principal for nine years, said this week that he’s excited to take on the challenge of overseeing both schools.

“All things being equal, would we have done this? I don’t know,” he said. “We have to recognize the economy is not what we would like it to be. We all need to be doing more with less.”

Gousse said he started his career as a middle school teacher and realizes that age group comes with different needs, academically and emotionally. He hopes his new role will help to smooth students’ transition from middle school to high school by better coordinating academic programs.

Throughout the budget process this year, school leaders have said they would do what they could to make cuts that wouldn’t affect students. Gousse said this change could have an impact on students, but that it’s not necessarily a bad thing.

“My hope is that it will impact students positively,” he said.

Mazjanis said, with his experience at the middle school, he, too, hopes to help with students’ promotions to the next educational level.

“I know exactly where they’re going,” he said about kids moving on from Congin to the middle school.

It was teaching swimming to elementary school students that Mazjanis said inspired him to go into education, and he’s excited to be working with that age group again.

Mazjanis, who’s been principal at the middle school for five years, said he will miss working closely with his colleagues at what he called “a school that’s on the rise.”

“A lot of the seeds that were planted are ready to grow,” he said. “It’ll be fun to watch it happen anyway.”

Nelson said it’s a busy time at the high school, so it’s hard for him to start thinking about next year, but added that he’s “fired up” to take on his new role.

“I’ve got a lot of ideas,” he said.

The fact that the high school has two assistant principals is something that taxpayers have questioned for a long time. Gousse said that Nelson and Jack each manage two grades of students and have “a laundry list” of duties.

When Jack takes over the management of all high school students, Gousse and Namin said they’d be calling on other staff members, like guidance counselors and alternative learning educators, to take on some extra work.

But, for now, everyone’s still trying to focus on the tasks at hand as the school year wraps up. On Tuesday, Nelson was handing out cupcakes to students for their birthdays – a tradition he started during his five years as assistant principal.

Nelson said he hasn’t figured out who’d take over that role in the high school once he’s gone.

“We’ll have to do that in the restructuring,” he said.

Next year, Marc Gousse will serve as the principal of both Westbrook High School and Westbrook Middle School. Current middle school Principal Brian Mazjanis will become the principal of Congin School. (Staff photo by Leslie Bridgers)
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