Dr. Randy Bos, who was recently suspended from his post as Superintendent of the North Babylon School District. The recent suspension of North Babylon School Superintendent Dr. Randy Bos sent shockwaves throughout the community and left many residents wondering why the school district's top administrator may be out of a job less than a year after being hired by the same board that unanimously decided to suspend him.

Bos claims it was a difference in management philosophy and a desire of board members to micromanage day-to-day operations of the school district, something he said he resisted.

William Harrigan, school board president, disagrees and attributes the problems between the board and superintendent to poor lines of communication.Whatever the reason, day-to-day operations of the school district will be handled in the short term by Dr. Joseph Laria, who will serve as acting superintendent of schools.

In a letter from school board members to school district residents, the board sounded as if it was moving on without the possibility of Bos returning, saying Laria "will be able to work constructively and harmoniously with our staff and parents in moving our educational agenda forward and ensuring the best possible education for our children."The growing tension between Bos and board members had grown more palpable in recent months, and rumors began circulating around the district that the board was attempting to have remove the superintendent. However, when repeatedly questioned by residents at school board meetings, Harrigan continually declined to answer questions since inquiries centered on a personnel member of the school district.During a January school board meeting, school district residents turned out in force, seeking information on the future of the school superintendent.

While little information was forthcoming from the board, an overwhelming majority of residents expressed support for Bos. The only comment made by Harrigan at the January meeting regarding Bos what that the school board was not looking to fire the superintendent.For his part, Bos told The Beacon.

"This is a dispute between myself and the board over the internal operations of the school district. The board president wants to have total control of daily management of the school district. It is my belief that in any school district, teachers teach, students learn and the rest of us help."

According to Bos, problems between himself and the school board began early in his tenure in August 2005, as his second school board meeting. He declined to comment on what issue or issues had arisen at that time. He was hired last summer by the board, replacing longtime superintendent John Micciche who retired.

Bos also claimed that numerous daily inquiries from board members to himself and other members of the district central administration staff made it difficult to complete the day-to-day business of the district. Harrigan, however, disputes Bos' claim.

"All I would say is that we have different views on what the board of education's responsibilities are," he said. "We had no intentions of getting involved in the dayto day operations of the district."

The school board president noted that since the start of Bos' tenure, he talked to the superintendent "only five times" on the phone. "We have not had that kind of relationship. We mainly communicated at school board meetings," Harrigan added. The deterioration of the relationship between the board and the now-suspended superintendent comes less than a year after the board touted Bos' hiring. "We are delighted to have an educator of Dr. Bos' caliber join our school district," Paul Buraczenski, then-board president and current board vice president said of Bos. "His years of experience on both the teaching and administrative levels, especially in the area of curriculum development, make him a true asset to the district."

Prior to joining North Babylon, Bos served as the superintendent of the Waterloo Central School District in Waterloo, New York; of Montabella Community Schools in Edmore, Michigan; of the Losco Intermediate School District in East Tawas, Michigan; and of Marcellus Public Schools in Marcellus, Michigan.