The four candidates seeking seats on the Sunderland School Committee had an opportunity last week to introduce themselves at a virtual forum hosted by the Sunderland Public Library.
The two seats on the School Committee are the only contested races on the ballot for the town’s May 1 election. Polls will be open from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at the library.
As outlined by Aaron Falbel, the library’s head of adult services and the interim director, each candidate was given 10 minutes to introduce themselves to the audience, and to explain their goals, qualifications and reasons for running for one of the two open seats.
The latter portion of the session was reserved for questions from attendees. Questions ranged from experiences with finances, to opinions on increasing out-of-district special education placements and the effect on the budget.
Meghan Arquin, owner and operator of Riverland Farm on River Road, said she is running for a seat after a year of watching and learning how decisions are made on the School Committee, and how those decisions affect her children’s experience at school.
“Many families and households were members at our farm, and it was in those weekly conversations as people came to pick up their vegetables that I became more present to Sunderland as their community,” said Arquin, who has two students at Sunderland Elementary School.
Through her role at the farm, Arquin has donated vegetables and shares to fundraising events, has grown vegetable starts for the school gardens and has had classes visit the farm on field trips.
“I’m a team player. I’m the kind of person that tries to see and hear all sides of the conversation without judgment,” she said. “I believe that the results of my decisions as a part of the School Committee will be based in the interest of the students, the faculty and our broader community.”
Alison Booth Maio, a mother of two students in the Union 38 and Frontier regional school districts, said after the last year living through the COVID-19 pandemic, it has never been more clear to her how important school is in the life of a child.
“This is what’s motivating me to run for School Committee,” she said. “I’m seeking this position because I feel strongly that more voices are needed on this committee to advocate for the needs of children and families. I will make assessments of issues based on logic, facts and true caring for the community.”
Booth Maio, a longtime resident of the area who has lived in Sunderland for the last decade, is a lawyer in the financial services industry.
In her opening statement, she outlined four areas she sees as priorities for the School Committee, including developing policies to address learning loss and mental health needs; bringing about normalcy for children as soon as possible; and finally, finalizing the budget.
“I’m a critical and independent thinker, and detail-oriented and thorough, and I assess issues based on logic and facts,” she said.
Kara Gorey, a former teacher and a Sunderland resident since 2014, said in her closing statement that she wants to make the “working parts of the education system flow better.”
“That’s what I did as a teacher,” she said. “I facilitated a transparent flow of education.”
Gorey, mother of two toddlers, holds a bachelor’s degree in education from Westfield State College (now Westfield State University). In addition to 16 years of experience as a teacher at Deerfield Elementary School, she also described a “historical background knowledge” of education that would guide her on the Sunderland School Committee.
“I was the daughter of a first-grade teacher in South Deerfield, a granddaughter of a trade school teacher at Smith vocational school, and a student of the K through 12 Hatfield school system,” she said.
Gorey said she is a listener and researcher, and if elected would ask questions and follow-up questions before making decisions.
“Ask me a question about education and I can tell you, or I will find out for you,” Gorey said. “I’m not kidding when I say I spent my entire life in the Massachusetts public education system.”
Peter Gagarin, an incumbent running for re-election, is once again asking for support to return to his seat after serving 3½ years on the committee.
“I’ve been involved in much of Sunderland’s town government for much of the last 30 years,” he said, noting the seven years he spent on the Finance Committee, the four years he spent as a community member on the Sunderland Elementary School Council, and roughly four years on the Building Committee for the Sunderland Public Library.
Gagarin said he understands municipal financing and budgeting in general, and school financing in particular.
“From my time on the Finance Committee, I learned to always consider what’s best for the whole town, not what’s best for a particular group,” he said.
Gagarin said in addition to the skills he brings from his varied experience, he is always thinking about how to use resources better, how the school and town can work together, and how to improve learning for all students.