As Boston embarks on a search for a new school superintendent, Mayor Martin J. Walsh and the Boston School Committee will wade into an age-old question: Do the Boston Public Schools need a strong business-like manager or a proven academic leader at the helm?
The question has taken on greater urgency in recent years as the 55,000-student system has encountered one public uproar after another over everything from late-running school buses to dire budget cuts to deteriorating school buildings.
All the while, academic performance in many schools has been declining. Just last month state education officials identified about 40 schools for targeted assistance to remedy low standardized test scores and student attendance.