Voters to decide among Regional School Committee members

Southborough - Voters in both Southborough and Northborough get to choose who sits on the Northborough Southborough Regional School Committee in the Town Election Monday May 11. While the two candidates for the Northborough seats, Susan Sartori and Helynne (Lynne) Winter, are running unopposed, there are three candidates for the two Southborough seats: Susan Dargan, Kathleen Harragan and David Rueger.

 

In unopposed Southborough races, Town Moderator David Coombs, Selectman William Boland and Assessor Arthur Holmes are running for re-election, along with Maryanne Cole for the Board of Commissioners of Trust Funds, Louis Fazen for the Board of Health, Jane Smith and Kent Matthew Read for Board of Library Trustees, Susan Dargan and Marybeth Strickland for the Southborough School Committee, Dana Cunningham for Planning Board, and Nancy Morris for the Housing Authority.

Asked to describe their qualifications and the greatest challenge facing the regional school district, the Southborough candidates for the Northborough-Southborough Regional School Committee had this to say:

Susan Dargan

Susan Dargan Candidate for Southborough seat on Regional School Committee

 

I earned my B.A. in Sociology and Government from Simmons College and my Ph.D. in Sociology from Boston University. I am currently Chair of the Sociology Department at Framingham State College and Director of the FSC's Center for Global Education, a professional development center for K-12 teachers. My college teaching experience provides me with a sophisticated understanding of the kinds of skills and knowledge that are necessary for high school students as they enter college. My experience working with teachers has taught me a great deal about state and national standards and how they impact the practice of teaching and learning.

I am married with two daughters, 18 and 15, both of whom attend the public schools. Originally from Natick, I have lived in Southborough for the past 18 years. I am currently Chair of the Southborough School Committee and have represented the School Committee on the screening committees for three principal searches and the searches for Assistant Superintendent and Director of Technology.

The most important problem facing the regional district today is the current fiscal crisis and the dwindling funds available to support the mission of our high school. Over the years, both towns have invested a great deal in Algonquin, and as a result it has developed into a highly regarded high school with solid academic programs, as well as outstanding programs in the arts and athletics. I will work hard to protect this investment. A secondary problem related to the current fiscal crisis is the growing conflict over Algonquin's funding formula. We need to move towards a prompt resolution of this conflict. I have a long history of working collaboratively with groups of people to develop consensus on difficul t issues. If elected, I will make it a priority to provide the leadership that is necessary to keep us all focused on our common goal of providing a quality high school education to the residents of Northborough and Southborough.

Kathleen Harragan

Kathleen Harragan Candidate for Southborough seat on Regional School Committee

 

I feel the biggest problem facing our regional school district today is that of collaboration. The school committee is a legal agent of the state and must fulfill state and federal mandates but at the same time, it must be responsive to the communities and taxpayers it serves. In these days of fiscal crisis, we are consistently asked to meet our goals and policies with fewer and fewer funds. It is the school committee's responsibility to make an informed decision after reviewing and discussing information from the schools' administration as well as taking advantage of the professional experience and all points of view of the other members of the committee and other (or both) town committees. A sense of teamwork on the school committee is essential. The school committee is the primary advocate for your schools. As a parent of a 10- and 12-year-old, I am as interested in the Algonquin Regional High School of the future as the ARHS of today. I am willing to take the time and attend all the meetings and do whatever research is warranted in order to collect the information needed to make informed decisions.

I am a product of the New York City private and public school systems, but I came to Boston for college and basically never left. I have a B.S. in Marketing and Technology from M.I.T. I have worked in sales and marketing for large companies (Disney, IBM) as well as small companies and start-ups. I have lived in Southborough for 14 years. I have two sons who are in the 5th and 7th grades at Neary and Trottier. I have been actively involved in board and volunteer positions for Kindergroup, Finn, Woodward, Neary, and Trottier SOS, Cub Scouts, and St. Matthew's Parish, Southborough Youth Baseball and NSYLA. I am also a substitute teacher in the Southborough schools and currently serve on the Southborough K-8 School Committee. In my first year as a school committee member, I have far exceeded the mandatory 8-hours required for courses on school finance, open meeting law, public records law, conflict of interest law, special education law, collective bargaining, school leadership standards and evaluations, education reform and school committee roles and responsibilities. What I have learned through all those hours of instruction is that there are still many grey areas and much is still left open to interpretation. I feel having this background will give me a distinct advantage in being able to be instantly eff ective in dealing with the complex issues facing a regional school district such as Northborough-Southborough.  

David Rueger Candidate for Southborough seat on Regional School Committee 

David Rueger

 My name is David Rueger and I am running for a seat on the regional school committee. I have been a resident of Southborough for 14 years living on Pine Hill Road. Since my daughter has entered the excellent schools in this town, I have wanted to participate in an active role in the schools. She is currently a freshman at Algonquin. As a result of now being semi-retired, I have the time to volunteer in my community and assist with the success of our regional school.

I believe my education and professional background allow me the opportunity to be an asset to the school committee. My background includes a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Duke University and a business program certificate from Harvard Business School. I am also a veteran of our Armed Services. My early professional career was spent as an instructor at Harvard, but most of my background is in the biotech industry where I have spent the last 25 years in Research and Development. My role as Senior Program Director involved managing multimillion dollar budgets and a wide range of activities and personnel at multiple levels of education and experience.

The most significant problem facing the school district today is certainly the major problem everywhere, the current economic climate. I believe we cannot go against the calls for conservative spending but we absolutely must maintain the tradition of excellence at Algonquin. I know that difficul t budge t decisions will have to be made, but if more transparency and discussion are promoted, I believe we can have and achieve the goal of raising the level of excellence even higher.

Finally, I would like to point pilot and am a graduate of Naval Fighter Weapons School, better known as Top Gun. I welcome input from Northborough voters about the issues that concern them and will do my best to bring new ideas to the table.

out that I am the only outsider running for this committee from Southborough. Both my opponents are currently on the Southborough School Committee and desire to be on both school committees. I believe it's time for more participation in town government, not less! My role would be to bring a new perspective, leading to more variety in discussions and more informed decisions that will benefit our community.

Thank you for your consideration in my candidacy.