The PTO Mom Sticks her Neck Out

Election Day is on Tuesday.  Consider this a reminder in case you have spent the last month or two in an undisclosed location and have not seen the yard signs, the flyers, the direct mailings, and have not received the phone calls and e-mails asking for your vote.  Tuesday, November 5th.  

If you recall, back in September, in the City primary, I pleaded with all of you to vote and only 7% of eligible voters listened and actually did vote.  
http://waltham.patch.com/groups/true-confessions-of-a-pto-mom/p/gotv  This gave an edge to the incumbents running for School Committee, Lisa Limonciello and Susan Burstein: both of them are on the ballot for the three School Committee seats.  In that race, John Frassica came in first, followed by Kaytie Dowcett.  Steve Rando, a former School Committee member, former teacher, and former principal, came in third, followed by Limonciello and Burstein.  Susan Monfette made the cut and will be on the ballot on Tuesday.  Despite having a lot to offer, Michelle Kosboth did not have enough votes to move on to the general election.  Only a few votes separated her from Monfette.  If you don't vote because you think that your vote doesn't matter, in local elections and, especially, in primary elections, it does.  It matters a lot.  With reference to the School Committee, the people who we elect will have responsibility for $68 million dollars of our money.  If you think it's a good idea to have some oversight over that kind of coin, you need to vote on Tuesday.

Voting is a right and it is a privilege.  It is also a civic responsibility, just like shoveling in front of your house and putting your garbage in a garbage can and cutting your lawn.  More than anything else, I endorse voting.  Even if you are planning to vote for different candidates that I am, I respect that and I respect your right and responsibility to vote.  Please vote on Tuesday.

The PTO Mom lends her enthusiastic support to the following candidates for School Committee: John Frassica, Kaytie Dowcett, and Susan Monfette.  It is my belief that the energy that these three have put into campaigning is a sign of the energy that they will bring to a staid School Committee that has been energy starved.  Frassica's pledge to have office hours to meet with constituents is a welcome change from School Committee members who don't even bother to reply to e-mail messages.  Dowcett's academic background and global experience give her a view that may take the rest of the committee beyond Waltham.  Monfette's professional experience as a teacher in another district and as a parent of young children, as well as her enthusiasm for the role, make her a person who I want advocating for my kids.  Additionally, Monfette has shown remarkable persistence and doggedness throughout the campaign.  It's not easy to run as the last place finisher in a primary, although, from handing out pencils at community events to standing around talking to anyone who will listen at house parties across the city, she has campaigned like a winner.  If a comparison can be drawn between a candidate's campaign and how s/he will participate in an elected position, then Monfette, Frassica, and Dowcett will serve the city and our students well.  

The School Committee should work as a team and it hasn't.  Watching School Committee meetings has been painful and would be funny if only $68 million and the future of all of the kids in the Waltham Public Schools weren't at stake.  Waltham deserves a team that won't continually kick the can down the road to the next meeting instead of making decisions.  Dowcett, Monfette, and Frassica will work well with the remaining incumbents, Tarallo, Graceffa, and Donnelly, to identify and address the issues facing the district and to bring us the school district we deserve.

See you at the polls on Tuesday.  Your vote for School Committee and City Council matters.