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North Middlesex school committee creates legislative advocacy subcommittee, keeps building-committee rosters
Summary
The committee voted to create a legislative advocacy subcommittee, assigned chairs and members for standing subcommittees, and heard an update that accelerated repair projects are nearing final closeout around October.
The North Middlesex Regional School District School Committee voted May 5 to create a Legislative Advocacy subcommittee and approved membership rosters for its standing subcommittees, including the accelerated repairs and building committee.
The new legislative advocacy subcommittee will be chaired by Keenan Francois, a senior at North Middlesex High School who said he would lead the group with support from several committee members. Committee members named Kim Craven, Alex Bancutti and others to the new panel; Keenan agreed to chair and a member said the Massachusetts Association of School Committees (MASC) will be consulted on how the subcommittee should operate.
Nut graf: The creation of a legislative advocacy subcommittee formalizes members’ recent informal advocacy at the state level and establishes a small team to coordinate outreach and training.
The body also reviewed standing subcommittees and appointments: finance (Kim Craven named finance chair), policy (Randy Rush as chair with Lisa Bloom assisting on a five-year policy review), warrant (payroll and warrants), and negotiations panels for teachers and nonteaching units. Committee membership for the accelerated repairs and building committee will continue with Lisa Martin as chair, Randy Rush, Business Administrator Nancy Hanes, Jeremy Hammond (director of operations), and Brad Morgan listed as members.
Members reported that accelerated repair projects at Varnum Brook, Hawthorne Brook and Squana Cook have largely been completed and that staff are tying up loose ends; the committee heard a target closeout date of October for final completion and paperwork.
During the subcommittee discussion, members emphasized the workload of policy review and the potential to form an advocacy or legislative subgroup to coordinate testimony and communications at the state level. One member described the district’s new group as a response to “members who actually want to advocate for the schools at the state level and elsewhere.”
Ending: The committee approved the subcommittee slate in a single motion; members instructed staff to coordinate schedules and to consult MASC on advocacy training and structure.
