School Committee Chair Endorses Paul Brodeur: Letter

The following was submitted by School Committee Chair Ed O'Connell. Let your voice be heard by signing up for a free account and posting.

The Tuesday, September 17th, municipal election in Melrose which will determine the two candidates who will go on to the general election on November 5th, finds our community at a turning point. The choice we each make as voters answers for our city the age-old question of “where do you want to be in five years?”

Indeed, where do we want to be as a community at the end of the next mayor’s term in office? How will the person we vote for work to get us, as a community, where we want to go, where we hope to be, as a community? In a field of candidates rich with talent and passion for public service, which one of the five hopefuls is best positioned to lead our city?

For me, as an individual voter, the answer to each and every one of these questions is Paul Brodeur. None of the other candidates brings to the table the kind of skills and experience, commitment and effectiveness, ability and maturity, that Paul has brought to his two decades of eminently capable public service, day-in and day-out.

Paul Brodeur’s extensive experience, first as an attorney in government service and then as an elected official in both local and state government - serving with distinction at every point - uniquely positions him as the one candidate fully capable of seeing and understanding where we have been as a community; where we’ve made progress and where we’ve come up short. He will be able to apply that knowledge and experience in a responsible, forward-thinking fashion, to get us where we ought to be as a community: healthy, engaged, safe and secure, and possessing a shared quality of life that benefits everyone.

In my position as Chair of the School Committee, I have seen, first-hand, the importance of having a strong, capable municipal partner in the mayor’s office, not simply as the seventh member of the School Committee, but as a person capable of bringing to bear the power of local government in support of our schools and our students.

The relationship between the “city” and “school” sides of our municipal government is vital to the success of public education in Melrose. Both financially and practically- speaking, we are inextricably linked, and that relationship is fraught with potential pitfalls.

With the academic success and personal well-being of a generation of young Melrosians at stake - not to mention their impact on the shared future of our community - there is simply no time for on-the-job training for our new mayor. This is not the time or place to “hire” a mayor with a steep learning curve.

We don’t need a laundry list of new ideas and initiatives without the skills and experience in government to bring them to fruition. Nor will our schools and students be served by a mayor lacking the foresight and understanding to see that the financial stability of our city is highly dependent on the financial stability of our schools.

What we need, instead, in my opinion, as someone who has served in elected office for the past several years and who, as School Committee Chair, has worked closely with city hall in support of our schools, is a proven, capable, forward-thinking leader. Someone who can keep a steady hand on the tiller when things get rough and, fair or foul, will always have an eye to the future of Melrose.

We need a mayor who understands the value of public education to our city’s vitality, present and future, and who can capably wield the levers of power in city hall - and at the State House - to get our schools and our students the resources they need, while otherwise meeting the duties and responsibilities of municipal government, in a turbulent political environment and potentially uncertain economic times. We need a mayor with the actual capacity to make progress. We need - and deserve - a leader.

At this particular turning point in our city’s history, Paul Brodeur has stepped forward to be the leader we need and deserve. He will have my vote on Tuesday, September 17th, and again on Tuesday, November 5th. I hope you will join me in making this investment in our community.