Letters to the Editor

LETTER: Bergen Thanks Supporters, Encourages Continued Engagement

Cottage Road resident Lisa Bergen, who recently fell just short of winning a seat on the Concord School Committee, writes that it's 'time to direct our attention back to the issues and how they are handled.'

Dear Concord, My sincere and heartfelt thanks to everyone who encouraged and supported me in my campaign for a seat on the School Committee. I am especially grateful to my campaign staff for their tireless efforts and to the countless volunteers who pitched in on everything from handing out flyers to standing in the snow(and sleet and rain!) on Election Day.   Through this campaign I have had the honor and privilege of meeting with hundreds of Concordians and discussing their concerns and hopes for our schools and our town. I know from this experience that Concord is blessed with knowledgeable and active citizens who truly care about transparency, inclusive government, and serving the greater good. With the election over, it is time to …

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Boynton and Snook Win School Committee Seats in Snowy Election

Despite wintry weather, Concord’s March 19 election saw the highest turnout for an annual Town Election since 2006

First the threat of snow postponed MCAS testing and trash pickup, and then the snow itself stopped school and postponed the opening of town offices. But the wintry mix that persisted throughout the day could not stop Concord’s annual Town Election. The snow may have affected voter turnout, and certainly it led to some creative campaigning in the form of sign-holding snowman that popped up around town. Weather, however, was but a twist in the day’s main plotline: The contested race for two seats on the School Committee. In the end, Johanna Boynton and Kathleen Snook edged out Lisa Bergen and Cynthia Rainey. The race was close, with more than 6,000 ballots cast and all four candidates separated by fewer than 400 votes. Check back with …

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Boynton, Snook Elected to Concord School Committee

Johanna Boynton and Kathi Snook won the four-woman race for two seats on the Concord School Committee.

The preliminary results are in, and they say Johanna Boynton and Kathi Snook have narrowly won seats on the Concord School Committee. According to preliminary numbers posted to the town website—numbers which Town Clerk Anita Tekle said could change slightly but not so much as to affect the outcome—Boynton and Snook both earned more votes than Lisa Bergen and Cynthia Rainey, the other candidates in the race. Snook was the top vote-getter, according to the preliminary results, tallying 1,638 votes. Boyton was second with 1,565; Bergen earned 1,444 and Rainey 1,287. According to Tekle, there was about a 24 percent voter turnout, the highest for an annual Town Election since 2006.   Check back tomorrow morning for more about Concord’s annual …

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LETTER: Supporting Bergen for Concord School Committee

Elsinore Street resident Susan Kalled writes that Lisa Bergen "places the utmost importance on what is right for Concord Schools."

To the Editor, I write to urge your support and vote for Lisa Bergen for School Committee. It would be accurate to say that all town citizens care about quality education for Concord children. How, then, does one measure the characteristics and qualities of a person who would be best suited to represent all of Concord on the School Committee when all candidates share the same commitment to education? One could start by asking who has put words into action, who has exhibited that commitment by actually showing up in the past year to nearly all School Committee meetings to be informed of the issues, the challenges, and the processes for decision-making? Who has attended FinComm meetings when the school budget was being discussed, the …

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LETTER: Supporting Bergen and Rainey for Concord School Committee

Sudbury Road resident Anne Hayden writes that Lisa Bergen and Cynthia Rainey 'would encourage the School Committee to open up the process by which citizens participate at committee meetings.'

To the Editor, I support Lisa Bergen and Cynthia Rainey for School Committee because they are ready to work on the issues that are before our schools. Both will continue to actively support the CCHS Building Committee to ensure that we have the best new high school that we can afford. They will also work to resolve the school transportation problem by encouraging the committee to pull together all stakeholders and develop a comprehensive five year plan to determine not only where our buses will be next year but what our school transportation system will look like in the future. Lisa and Cynthia would encourage the School Committee to open up the process by which citizens participate at committee meetings. Lisa did this successfully when …

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Mr Smith

10:08 pm on Thursday, March 14, 2013

John, the mistake was rectified. The School and Building Committees worked with the School Administration to make the necessary adjustments as requested by the MSBA. The MSBA was satisfied and reinstated funding. Lisa Bergen's issue was that she didn't get the response that SHE was looking for. As I recall, a petition was floated last fall requesting that the MSBA reinstate funding. There were …   more ›

LETTER: Supporting Rainey and Bergen for Concord School Committee

Annursnac Hill Road resident Janet Rothrock says she supports Lisa Bergen and Cynthia Rainey 'because they have proven they will work on behalf of all of us for positive change.'

To the Editor, Lisa Bergen and Cynthia Rainey have already hit the ground running. During the past year Lisa and Cynthia have attended almost all of the School Committee and Building Committee meetings as well as many Board of Selectmen and Finance Committee meetings.  In addition Lisa served as Chair of the Citizen's Transportation Committee and as a member of the School Committee's transportation committee. She knows how to ask questions, listen, research and come to an actionable conclusion. She served both committees gracefully although they came to very different conclusions. Cynthia's dogged research during this past year uncovered the Keystone study, a report on the experience of towns in Pennsylvania with outsourcing of school …

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LETTER: Bergen and Rainey Represent Citizens

Hemlock Street resident Pat Kager says School Committee candidates Cynthia Rainey and Lisa Bergen would "act on our behalf and who have an irrefutable track record for opening doors for real positive change in our schools."

To the Editor, Cynthia Rainey and Lisa Bergen will represent all citizens’ interests as School Committee members. While acting on our behalf, they have accomplished a lot for our community and schools. During the last year they volunteered their personal time attending Building Committee, School Committee, and Finance Committee meetings to truly understand how our schools are actually being governed. While working with town officials and serving on committees, they worked to institute creative and viable solutions for better fiscal outcomes and school management. Our School Committee has this key responsibility: "The School Committee is responsible to the people for whose benefit the school system has been established.” We can trust Lisa …

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