Superintendent says good-bye, leaves parting request
By Angela Greiner Contributing Writer

Hudson - Superintendent Sheldon Berman addressed the Board of Selectman at the board's June 25 meeting to say good-bye, thank them for their support and to leave a parting request about school financing. Berman explained that the school district broke a lot of trends over the past several years and, thanks to the support of the selectman and the work of the School Committee, the town of Hudson has become a leading district in quality education.

Berman expressed concern about the critical need for a new building for the JFK Middle School. He explained the quality of education at the school is extraordinary and that the rebuilding needs to stay on the capital budget plan and that getting it done would require the support of the board.

"The school budget is in great shape," Berman said.

He attributed much of that situation to Executive Assistant Paul Blazer.

"He is the finest negotiator I have ever dealt with," Berman said. "I have never left his office thinking I have won."

He explained that next year is going to be tough, with even higher budget requests, and was hoping that the board would lend their support to the new superintendent.

Selectman Joseph Durant commended Berman for his time in Hudson, saying that they had had some good debates and that he had the utmost respect for Berman professionally. Durant praised Berman for his work.

"You made it [the school district] a gem," Durant said.

In other business, the selectman unanimously endorsed and officially recognized the efforts of the Hudson Medical Reserve Corp (MRC). MRC members Carl Barnett, chair, and Dr. Sam Wong, the Board of Health agent for the town, explained that the banner of the organization is: "Our Community - To Support our Neighbors."

The MRC is a national effort of community-based chapters founded by the U.S. surgeon general to organize locally trained medical and lay volunteers to support existing emergency and public health workers during a state of disaster. Their primary initiative, Barnett explained, is to train a team of volunteers to educate the businesses and citizens in the community on the concept of preparedness.

"It is sad, but as we have seen in recent events we cannot solely rely on national agencies to assist when calamity occurs," Barnett said.

In other news the selectman voted in four members to the newly formed Community Preservation Committee (CPC): Joseph Durant, Jennifer Burke, Linda Ghiloni and John Parent. Burke and Ghiloni explained that it took diligence and hard work to get the community to pass CPC and they were excited to get working on a long list of projects.

The board also approved an order change in the amount of $67,266 for additional work on the splash park as part of the South Street Park project. The park is still scheduled for completion in the fall, although the skateboard park will be opening in the next week or two.

The next selectmen's meeting is scheduled for Monday July 9.