Calling for Cala 

A petition to draft Bill Cala as the next Rochester schools superintendent is on Change.org. It's not clear who is behind the effort.

The petition is directed at the Rochester school board, and the goal is to gather 500 signatures.

Cala is former superintendent of the Fairport school district and is also a former interim superintendent of the city school district.

The petition says that Cala is a creative natural leader, a dynamic social entrepreneur, and an ambassador for educator.

"We should select a person who uniquely embodies qualities of leadership and compassion, as well as someone who will be a gladiator, agitator, and spokesperson for children and their education," it says. "Cala is that person."

Cala also has the enthusiastic support of Rochester Teachers Association President Adam Urbanski, who calls Cala a strong and courageous leader.

School board President Van White says that he receives notifications from Change.org about the petition. The website enables individuals to create a petition that can be easily accessed by large numbers of people.

White says that he's aware of Cala's qualities and achievements.

"But we have a process in place," he says. "We can't pick a person based on popularity."