Littleton School Committee creates 19-member superintendent search screening panel

LITTLETON -- January 8, 2026, Littleton School Committee votes to launch superintendent search with a 19-member screening panel drawn from 50 applicants. The committee voted unanimously Thursday night to formally create the screening committee, assembled by Clerk Elaine Santelmann and member Sean Aherne with guidance from MASC consultant Alicia Mallon; it includes teachers from every school, parents, central office staff, and a Select Board representative. A community survey opens Friday and a public forum is set for January 15 at 6:30 p.m. Finalists are expected to be presented to the full School Committee around March 23, with finalist interviews the week of April 6. In other business, the committee approved a 3 percent annual pre-K tuition increase for three years, generating roughly $4,000 per year against $120,000 in current tuition revenue, and the budget subcommittee reported it had found $600,000 in cuts to meet a town-mandated reduction target for fiscal year 2027, partly by drawing on reserves in a move Chair Justin McCarthy called unsustainable beyond one year. The committee also unanimously chose construction firm Gilbane Building Company to manage the new Shaker Lane school project.