BPS Superintendent Finalist Welch Fields Educator Questions on Pipelines, Equity, and School Culture

BOSTON — July 20, 2026 — Boston Public Schools superintendent finalist Dr. Tommy Welch faced a 90-minute educator panel on July 20, answering questions from seven BPS educators and multiple anonymous public submitters as part of the district's formal superintendent search process. Welch, who has served as Region 1 superintendent for seven years overseeing 15 schools in East Boston, Charlestown, and the North End, is one of two remaining finalists — the other being Mary Skipper of Somerville Public Schools — after two candidates withdrew before the public interview stage. Moderated by Carlene Pignato, principal of the Channing Elementary School and a search committee member, the panel covered teacher recruitment pipelines, services for students with disabilities and multilingual learners, school autonomy, chronic absenteeism, and the continuity of anti-racist equity work. Welch, who completed his doctorate at Boston College in 2020, repeatedly cited his Region 1 experience, his homegrown paraprofessional-to-teacher pipeline model at the Otis and Umana schools, and roughly $300 million in remaining ESSER funding as resources for addressing pandemic-era academic and social-emotional gaps. He said he expects a July 1 start date if selected, adding, "Boston is the district I want to be in, and this is the job I want to do for the students of Boston."