The School Committee voted 5-0 Wednesday to extend the offer of interim superintendent to former Village School Principal Theresa McGuinness.
The committee’s selection comes roughly one week after the committee tabled a vote to select an interim superintendent between McGuinness and Jannell Pearson-Campbell on Thursday. Two days prior, the committee held interviews with both candidates.
McGuinness was announced as a finalist for the position, along with Pearson-Campbell, on Sept. 28.
A Swampscott resident, McGuinness currently serves as the assistant superintendent for Watertown Public Schools. From 2012 to 2016, McGuinness was the principal of Village School. In 2020, she was one of the finalists for the superintendent position before Buckey ultimately landed the job.
McGuinness has held a variety of positions in several districts, including as guidance counselor at Nashua High School North in New Hampshire and principal at Doherty Middle School in Andover.
Her undergraduate studies were completed at the University of New Hampshire, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in microbiology. She also received her Master of Education in secondary education/biology and a Master of Education in counseling, also from UNH. In 2016, she earned her doctorate in educational leadership and policy studies from Boston University.
School Committee member Meagan Taylor initially voted against offering the position to McGuinness, but then joined the rest of the committee in a second vote.
McGuinness will replace Acting Superintendent Michelle Cresta, who has been serving in that role since former Superintendent Dr. John Buckey’s resignation in August.