Photo Credit: Larry Kelly
School Committees are elected bodies which represent the entire community. They establish educational goals and policy for the operation of the school systems. During public meetings, a school committee will reach a decision by majority vote. A school committee also review and approve budgets. They also negotiate rates of pay for Amherst's educators, in addition to selecting, appointing, and evaluating the Superintendent of Schools.
Sarah Marshall - School Committee Candidate, Member of The Zoning Board of Appeals, previous member of Amherst Forward. Co-Owner of The Amherst Current. In The Amherst Current, she recently compared Former President Trump's Election Fraud Theory (The Big Lie) to opposition to the new over budget, 50-million-dollar Jones Library Demolition/Expansion. She also is concerned about "Shielding children from the culture wars" as stated on her website and has said that declining school rankings may be due to ELL learners, special education students or unqualified teachers.
Bridget Hynes - School Committee Candidate, teacher/director of a higher education equity and access organization that works to build a college-going community among students from under-resourced Springfield schools. Supporter of LGBTQ+ students and ARPS educators.
Irv Rhodes - Candidate for reelection to the Amherst School Committee, former educator, librarian and school administrator. Supported LGBTQ+ students following events at the Amherst Regional Middle School.
Jennifer Shiao - Candidate for reelection to the Amherst School Committee, educator at the University of Massachusetts, authored much of the legislation to support LGBTQ+ students and owns a blog where she provides transparent updates to the community.
Laura Jane Hunter - School Committee Candidate, educator at the University of Massachusetts, has 2 children at Amherst Regional Middle School and her husband is a teacher at Amherst Regional Middle School as well. Explicitly advocates for LGBTQ+ students and the Amherst Pelham Educators Association.
Deborah Leonard - School Committe Candidate, physics professor at UMass who often spends time as a substitute at ARHS. Endorsed by Amherst Forward, with a past record of divisive social media commentary in town.
Martha Toro - School Committee Candidate, former Amherst special education teacher and administrator with 34 years of experience in education. Lifelong commitment to public service. Authored many articles disclosing concerns in the ARPS system from an educators perspective.