Newton School Committee Member Says She Will Not Run Again

NEWTON, MA — Bridget Ray-Canada a School Committee member from Ward 1 said she will not be running for a third term in November’s School Committee election, citing a desire to focus on family and "other aspirations."

School Committee Chair Ruth Goldman said Ray-Canada's family was planning to move.

Ray-Canada said in a statement Jan. 21 there was one area in the district that she wished had made more progress under her watch.

"Given the diversity in our schools, I had hoped there would be more progress towards inclusion during my term, but the district still has some work to do," she said calling on the district to take a "bold stride" to maintain equity lens in all aspects of teaching and learning, including learning plans, placement of students, SPED, sports.

She said she was hopeful that having a new Diversity, Equity and Inclusion director to support the district’s work would bring about meaningful change.

The outgoing school committee member was first elected to the school committee from Ward 1 in 2017. She ran again in 2019.

Ray-Canada said that while in office she supported full-day kindergarten, pushed to address Horace Mann missteps, negotiated contracts, and supported a reopening plan to provide in-person learning options and safe facilities for students and teachers to return to school.

In addition to Ray-Canada, school committee members Ruth Goldman of Ward 6 and Margaret Albright of Ward 2 are also stepping off the board and leave vacancies in the November 2021 election. So far both Paul Levy and Shawn Fitzgibbons have indicated they plan to run for Goldman's open seat.

It's not yet clear who will run to take Ray-Canada's place in Ward 1, but Rajeev Parlikar is set to run. Chris Brezski filed a statement of organization with the candidate's committee for Ward 2.

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Jenna Fisher is a news reporter for Patch. Got a tip? She can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna). Have a something you'd like posted on the Patch? Here's how