Salem gets new chief of schools

The new superintendent is ending his tenure as a Canton school principal.

STAFF REPORT

SALEM — The board of education has selected Thomas Bratten as the school district’s new superintendent.

The board made its decision at a special meeting Friday. Bratten begins his duties Aug. 1. His salary and length of contract were not included in a school district press release.

The board began looking for a new superintendent last November. In August 2008, interim Superintendent Lou Ramunno and the board extended Ramunno’s original contract for a second year to provide time for the board to find a replacement.

The search process included reviews of more than 35 candidates and three rounds of interviews, including a town-hall-style forum April 27.

The pool of candidates included individuals from as far away as New York and two from within the district.

The board sought a candidate who had experience in working with students and parents from a full range of socioeconomic backgrounds, an educational leader with strong business sense, strong communication and people skills, training and experience with student achievement as a major emphasis and a desire to make a long-term commitment to the Salem schools.

“Tom most fully met the criteria we established as a team,” said Cathy Hergenrother, school board vice president. “In addition to bringing innovative ideas to our district, he brings a professionalism that will serve him well in Salem — a strong work ethic, a passion for kids, enthusiastic respect for our district and a straightforward approach that our community will appreciate.”

The selection process concluded with the board’s taking a trip May 13 to Bratten’s employer, Canton Local Schools, where they observed him in action and met with employees, colleagues and students to confirm his qualifications.

While a principal at Canton South High School, Bratten oversaw the implementation of a districtwide engineering curriculum, the first of its kind in Ohio and the second in the nation.

As part of the program, he raised more than $100,000 for Canton South by establishing partnerships with companies such as Diebold Inc., LuK, and Penske Corp.’s Penske Racing Group. His development of innovative programs for at-risk students also is notable, board members said.

As a result of his efforts associated with implementing the engineering curriculum at Canton South, Bratten recently was awarded the prestigious Building The Future Award, granted by the Society of Manufacturing Engineers Education Association. He was the only Ohioan and only nonteacher to earn the award given to 10 recipients across the nation.

In addition to earning a cash award and national media coverage, he will be flown to the awards recognition dinner in Austin, Texas, in November.

“We’re excited to have Tom join our district,” said board President Steve Bailey. “Tom emerged as a really strong leader during our search process. The more we talked to him and explored his credentials, the more obvious it became that he is an outstanding fit for Salem.”