By Laura Hayes — [email protected]
Candidates for Select Board and School Committee floated ideas about cost-cutting, diversity, and the tenor of the town’s political discourse during a packed Sunday forum.
The League of Women Voters of Concord-Carlisle forum at the Town House drew all four candidates for two Select Board seats and the three candidates vying for two slots on the School Committee in the April 8 election.
When asked what changes she would work hardest to make if elected, Select Board hopeful Elizabeth Akehurst-Moore, owner of Concord Market, said for her, cell service and growing the commercial base were top of mind.
However, she said she was struck by “animosity” between different elected bodies in town. “It should not be [a] ‘School Committee versus Select Board’ discussion. It should be, ‘[Let’s] all work together,’” Akehurst-Moore said.
Current Select Board Chair Mary Hartman said there are “healthy disagreements” between the board and School Committee.
“To call that ‘animosity,’ I think, is an exaggeration. That’s not helpful,” Hartman said. “I believe that we have different priorities, so it’s only natural and healthy that we would be talking like that.”
As for changes she’d focus on, Hartman called herself an advocate for a more diverse housing stock. “I think we need a healthy middle in this town. We’re doing a lot of work around affordable housing at the low end. The high-end market will take care of itself,” she said.
Consultant Joe Laurin, making his second Select Board run, called for “turning the temperature down” on town discourse he said is no longer “healthy.” Laurin also argued that “there is a way for us to bring in commercial business in town [and] diversify our tax base so it’s not completely reliant on residential taxes.”
And candidate Paul Boehm, an environmental scientist, said the Select Board must play a more active role in the budget process and communicate better. “I think there’s a lot of opportunity to be had in coordination and communication across our silos,” he said. “I’d be dedicated to breaking down those silos.”
School Committee hopefuls
Diversity, achievement gaps, and the METCO program were a forum focus for School Committee incumbent Alexa Anderson and hopefuls Sandeep Pisharody and Michael Williams.
METCO brings Boston students into suburban high schools to increase diversity. In November, the Concord-Carlisle METCO Parent Teacher Group disbanded, with leaders voicing frustration about student achievement and communication with school administrators.
Williams, a retired surgeon, noted that METCO leaders have praised the Concord program. But METCO parents want the same for their children as do families from Concord, he said, and there “seems to be room for improvement.” He called for a dialogue to understand the PTG’s dissolution and the academic gaps and to rebuild “faith and trust that’s been lost.”
Anderson said School Committee METCO rep Ayesha Lawton has taught her about diversity within the METCO population itself.
“They are not all like-minded,” she said of the METCO families.
The incumbent pointed to survey results showing that a high percentage of METCO families believe they’re “welcomed, valued and encouraged” to participate in school activities, but Anderson also said a percentage of families are not having this experience. She called for listening, collaborating, and communicating better.
“We will, I think, continue to experience some movement in the right direction,” said Anderson.
Pisharody, a MIT technology officer, said it appeared the School Committee “extended a hand” regarding METCO, and while Concord should be proud of its lengthy partnership, the town may not be “seeing a universally positive message,” he said.
“It’s important to understand where that disconnect [is] and address that,” he said.
Among possible solutions, Pisharody said the district might step up engagement and try a different way of connecting with parents.
“Maybe what we’re doing until now is not enough,” he said.
The audience also heard briefly from incumbent Town Moderator Carmin Reiss, who is running unopposed for a tenth term.
Watch the full recording here:
