Q & A - “What is your platform? What are you running on?”
Community & Connection
I love this community. I feel like we’re all really stressed, though. It makes sense that we would feel this way. The closing of Indian Point created a fissure in the district’s finances. The pandemic isolated all of our families. The repeated reorganization of the elementary schools has disturbed our sense of home and belonging. Of course we’re stressed.
I feel like what we need now is need is a chance to recover from the upheaval and trauma we have all experienced over these past few years. We need to recoup and rebuild that sense of belonging that makes this district feel so special. We need to learn how to trust one another. We need to feel like we are being heard, and we need to make sure that we are listening and that we actually hear each other. We need to rebuild our sense of community.
And I think we do that by finding and cultivating connection with one another. That starts with listening, but then we also have to follow-up on what we’ve heard and what we say. It’s my life’s work to listen and to take care of people. As a social worker, part of my job is to help connect people to one another and to the services and providers that they need. I am used to hearing about problems and looking for ways to help solve them. I also think, as a community, we need to do better at looking out for one another and taking care of each other.
As a Trustee, I want to help a build a stronger connection between the Board and the community - including and especially the schools, the teachers, and the families. I want to be a strong leader that will help broaden and strengthen communication so that the people we serve feel like they are actually being heard. That means transparency whenever possible, and honesty always. I can not promise that I will always be able to solve every problem, and I may not always know the answer, but I can promise that I will always listen with the intent of trying to be of help and of service. I will lead with curiosity and be always-learning, rather than trying to be all-knowing. As a member of the Board of Education, this community will know that I will always be there to help.
