New Haven’s school board took another step toward strengthening its in-house facilities management team in order to pay less to private contractors.  The Board of Education did so by unanimously approving the promotional appointment of longterm Conte West Hills School building manager Dennis Tondalo to director of facilities at its Monday night meeting. As of Tuesday, Tondalo officially holds the newly created position for the school district. Tondalo, who has overseen Conte facilities for the past 15 years, will receive a starting salary of $126,504.  Supt. Madeline Negrón described the new position at Monday’s meeting as “much needed,” as New Haven Public Schools (NHPS) looks to transition its facilities management away from being dependent on outside contractors, particularly New York-based ABM, to whom NHPS previously outsourced 14 management positions totaling $1,997,816 annually.  The director of facilities will lead the district’s facilities team and oversee their work while reporting to Chief of School Operations (CSO) Paul Whyte. While Whyte has been spearheading much of the district’s facilities work over the past year, his role oversees much more than facilities including the district’s Adult Education, security, transportation, and food services departments. The newly filled role will allow for Tondalo’s full focus to be on facilities. His responsibilities also include budget oversight, Request For Proposals (RFP) monitoring, and purchasing coordination. Negrón said that Tondalo’s more than two decades of facilities work and leadership has equipped him for being the lead for the district’s facilities department.  Tondalo has led custodial teams through major projects and managed emergencies while remaining focused on safety, community, accountability, teamwork, and staff development throughout.  Negrón concluded that Tondalo’s role is rooted in “what we all want,” which is a safe, clean, functional, and well-maintained school environment. This will require a proactive approach, she said, focused on financial responsibility and safety for school building facilities maintenance.  Board of Education members Andrea Downer, Ed Joyner, and Daniel Juarez congratulated Tondalo on Monday.  Tondalo said his main priorities for his role will be boosting staff morale and strengthening teamwork to not just get jobs done but to encourage his team to have ownership of their work. “I believe in strong communication, accountability, and clear expectations,” he said at Monday’s meeting. “Most importantly, our students must remain at the center of everything we do.” Downer described the promotion as “well deserved” because she has seen Tondalo’s exceptional leadership over the years. She described him as having integrity while showing a deep commitment to the district and broader school community. She concluded that she hopes his work will continue to strengthen facilities operations.  Joyner added that NHPS made a major mistake years ago when privatizing some of its services. He said he has watched Tondalo use own personal equipment on the weekends to keep school facilities maintained. Whyte and Tondalo will be like Batman and Robin, he said.  Juarez said that he too supports Tondalo and is willing to help as a board member as much as he can. He and other board members also cautioned that NHPS facilities have a lot that needs addressing and that improvement won’t happen overnight.  “I am ready to get to work,” Tondalo told the board.  The post School Board Taps In-House Facilities Director appeared first on New Haven Independent. ...read more read less