'Deeply Unfortunate': Swampscott School Committee Chair Resigns Amid 'Untenable' Discourse

SWAMPSCOTT, MA — Swampscott School Committee members called for the town's governing boards to come together with a renewed spirit of collaboration, civility, and an improved understanding of school finance after School Committee Chair Amy O'Connor resigned from the board after 12 years because of "an environment that had become untenable."

"It is very tempting to go scorched earth," School Committee member Glenn Paster said in reaction to the reasons O'Connor stated for her resignation last week. "I think it's deserved. ... But that doesn't get anyone anywhere."

Instead, Paster said he hopes O'Connor's resignation will act as a "moment of reckoning for our community."

"We should all take pause when someone with Amy's passion for public education chooses to step away because of an environment that had become untenable," he said, citing "long-standing divisions and an us vs. them mindset that pits town and school interests against each other."

O'Connor had long been a proponent for the need for additional school funding, even if it meant larger tax increases, as town leaders preached fiscal discipline.

"Amy deserved better," Paster said. "For those who may say, 'she chose to resign,' I want to make it clear that interpretation misses the heart of the issue."

He said the reasons O'Connor stated for her resignation should "be deeply unfortunate for all of us."

"Losing someone of her caliber is personal," Paster said. "It is also undeniably professional. This board and this town have lost a dedicated public servant whose expertise, integrity and passion elevated every topic of discussion at this table.

"Her absence leaves a void and our community is diminished because of it. Let this moment lead us toward a healthier, more informed and more united approach to supporting our schools."

School Committee member John Giantas called O'Connor's departure "a significant loss for our community."

"I would like to issue a call for a recommitment to respectful collaboration," he said. "I would urge all town boards and committees to recommit to productive, respectful engagement so all of us can move forward collectively to fulfill the needs of our students and our schools.

"I would like to look back on Amy's resignation is looked back upon as a turning point. One that will strengthen our commitment to civility and allow us to work together more effectively for the benefit of the entire community."

Paster said that once the protocol notifications of O'Connor's resignation take place, the School Committee and Select Board will meet jointly to determine what will become of O'Connor's seat until the annual town election this spring — when the seat will be up for vote for the two years left on her term.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)