ating for our children and human rights inform my decisions on the school committee and as a citizen of Reading. Please vote on April 4th to enable me to serve for another three years on the Reading School Committee. You can also help by spreading the word! Along with my husband, Mark, and my children, Joshua, Aaron, and Jennie, I have lived in Reading for over twenty years. Volunteering in the schools has been my passion. Through this work and writing the School Notes Column in the Reading Daily Times Chronicle, I have worked alongside innovative teachers, observed inspirational programs in action, interviewed passionate Reading Educators, and witnessed the blossoming of students nurtured within the Reading Public Schools. Volunteering along with my writing was a perfect mix. It enabled me to work hands-on in applying my skills as a professional educator to help our schools and our community. My doctoral degree and background in educational programs, special education, assessment, psychology in education, and learning spaces for children enhance my interactions with local educators, while the Reading Schools have offered me wonderful opportunities to learn, grow, and contribute. When my children were in elementary school, I relished the time I had volunteering in classrooms, teaching with the Understanding Disabilities Program, and pitching in where needed. For nine years, in conjunction with a wonderful staff and school community, I developed and led a Pillars of Character Program at J.W. Killam Elementary School, now evolved into the TeRRiFiCC Program. Through a series of “Pillow Talk” workshops on using children’s literature as catalysts for discussions of enhancing children's character development, I introduced "Have You Filled a Bucket Today" by Carol McCloud. A program deriving from this book now enhances TeRRiFiCC Program at J.W. Killam. I have enjoyed sharing these programs with schools in other towns, as well as engaging community craftsmen and businesses in their success. With seven assemblies each year and lessons about character integrated throughout the curriculum, both students and staff have been inspired to incorporate and role model core values in and outside of school. School Councils have also been a vehicle for my participation. For over ten years, I served as a Parent Representative, starting with J.W. Killam and moving into Coolidge and RMHS as my children matriculated. I also served as Community Representative on Coolidge's Council in order to facilitate the connection and communication between the Middle and High Schools. I have been continually inspired by my experiences with the Peer Leaders of the RMHS ‘A World of Difference’ Program, as well as with students and parents volunteering with extra-curricular groups including the Robockets Team, Parents Supporting Student Theater (PSST), and Vocal Organization Inspiring Choral Excellence (VOICE). I miss my time circling the Performing Arts Center selling raffle tickets to support RMHS Drama and now that I have the responsibility for the School Budget, it is more clear than ever how important the collaboration and support - time, emotional, social, and financial! - is to the functioning and culture of the Reading Public Schools! I believe that learning is not confined to the classroom, the school building, or the work place. Learning crosses boundaries and provides opportunities for connection, discussion, and empowers each of us to make a difference in our own lives and the lives of those around us. Over the last decade, this motivated me to bring speakers to our schools and community, and raise the necessary funding to do so. I have organized visits by “Pillars of Our Community” to the J.W. Killam School, as well as arranged speakers including Nancy Kerrigan, Michael Fowlin, Rosalind Wiseman, and Holocaust Survivors. My commitment to engaging students with the community in meaningful learning has been the catalyst for programs such as “Musical Healing After the Holocaust” (May 2013) which was funded by the Reading Cultural Council and Reading Education Foundation. This program brought school and community musical groups together with the Terezin Music Foundation to celebrate the power of the arts even in the face of human atrocities which defy imagination. Likewise, over the last three years, I have organized the Annual Multi-Community Martin Luther King Day Celebrations through my leadership of the Reading Human Relations Advisory Committee. These programs draw citizens across all generations and perspectives to learn about, reflect on, and commit to working towards Social Justice for all. I share the vision of the Reading Public Schools to: “to instill a joy of learning and inspire, engage and support our youth to become the innovative leaders of tomorrow.” I believe in the academic and extracurricular opportunities our schools have to offer, as well as their potential to inspire, motivate, challenge, and empower our students to be fulfilled individuals as well as “productive informed independent citizens in a global society.”
I would appreciate the honor and privilege of continuing to lead our district work towards inspiring, motivating, challenging, and empowering ALL of our students, teachers, administration, staff, and community to work and learn together in the Reading Public Schools and beyond. Please help me by casting your vote on April 7th, 2017! and by liking my page and sharing it with others who care about our schools and our community. Thank you!
07/10/2022