Fran Rabinowitz, the Bridgeport schools chief, has withdrawn from consideration as the state’s next education commissioner, and plans to instead continue running Bridgeport’s public schools.
“I want to stay here and do the work here,” Rabinowitz told the Connecticut Post yesterday.
Rabinowitz was one of three candidates who was to be interviewed by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy for the commissioner’s post.
Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch welcomed the news that Rabinowitz would be sticking around.
“I have two kids who currently attend Bridgeport public schools, and I couldn’t be happier to have Fran Rabinowitz remain as the superintendent of schools in the state’s largest city. She’s committed to helping our city achieve universal pre-k for kids, ensuring our kids are learning in the right environment through new school construction, and that kids are learning important life lessons outside of the classroom through high-quality after-school programs,” he said.
Also interviewing for the commissioner’s job is Nate Quesnel, who has been the superintendent of East Hartford public schools for nearly three years and principal of a middle school in that district for three years before that.
The other candidate to be interviewed is Alan Ingram, who has been the deputy commissioner of the Massachusettes Department of Elementary and Secondary Education for the last three years. A retired sergeant from the U.S. Air Force, he was the superintendent of Springfield public schools for four years.
Almost two dozen candidates applied for the post.