Craigie, Pecoraro, Noonan prepare for Town Election
Published on March 24th, 1999
STONEHAM, MA - Some call it a thankless job but for the three candidates vying for the two open seats on the School Committee, that job is what each sees as satisfying their passion and loyalty to the children of Stoneham.
As Election Day nears, Stoneham residents Mary Pecoraro, Thomas Noonan and incumbent Jeanne Craigie hope that voters will choose them for the position that will ultimately have an impact on the quality and reputation of the Stoneham school system.
For Walsh Avenue resident Mary Pecoraro, this race marks her first run for an elected office. Her decision to take the plunge was based on her desire to help the school system continue to prove to the rest of the country that it is in fact a good value.
"I think Stoneham schools are great," said Pecoraro, whose own three children have gone through the system.
In her 12 years of leadership with the Girl Scouts organization, Pecoraro has interacted with many of Stoneham's young people and their families, and considers the move to the School Committee a natural progression to do something for the town she has called home for the past 21 years.
"I think it is important for people to be involved with the town they live in."
Pecoraro said that even before she and her husband had children, they always paid attention to the school system.
"We saw that Stoneham kids were always well prepared for college."
Charles Street resident Thomas Noonan likewise feels a sense of responsibility to his town and is making his first run for office in a town election.
He foresees his role as a School Committee member as "one voice of five," and stated that he considers it natural and even helpful for members to come together with diverse points of view, as long as they emerge with one collective School Committee voice.
Of particular concern to Noonan are the numbers. With a 10.2 percent enrollment increase over the past ten years, Noonan stated that the budget, in contrast, has grown by 1000 percent, from $8 million to $17 million. He would like to focus on this by doing an audit of the system for the past ten years.
His greatest qualifications for the job, he said, is his common sense and "the ability to open my mouth and express myself."
For the past 23 years, Noonan has lived in Stoneham with his wife and together they have raised three sons.
"I go forth into the election with many more questions than answers," he stated and is committed to getting all the information needed in order to make the tough decisions.
Craigie, a Duncklee Avenue resident, goes into the election seeking her fourth term to the committee.
"I made a decision a long time ago that my public service should be devoted to the schools," she said of her continued interest in serving the town through her School Committee affiliation.
"These are exciting times for Stoneham schools with new buildings and the challenge of new state mandates," said Craigie.
A Stoneham native, Craigie and her husband have raised their two sons here. She states that she can bring a sense of history to the committee and will continue to keep the centrality of the classroom of utmost concern.
The issues concerning many people in town, as well as the three candidates includes Stoneham's eligibility for state aid for education.
As has been reported recently, the formula for determining cities' and towns' level of funding through Chapter 70 disbursements has been one that has put Stoneham at a disadvantage relative to other surrounding and like towns.
"This a real issue throughout the state," said Pecoraro.
According to what she has learned about the subject, there are approximately 100 of the state's 351 communities which face a similar situation to that in Stoneham where the formula's inequity forces those towns to raise their own funding for much of the increasing state mandates.
Pecoraro has spoken with Stoneham's representatives to the state legislature, Paul Casey and Michael Festa, regarding how Stoneham can get its fair share of the state's aid. Both representatives stated that the although the funding formula is due to be reviewed in another year, there may be some hope for those communities that have been short-changed through legislation proposed by the League of Women Voters aimed at addressing the inequity.
"Stoneham people have been very good about paying for their schools," she said.
If and when the town begins to receive more state funding, Pecoraro stated that she would like to see additional dollars spent on keeping up to date with computer technology, strengthening the math and science programs, and adding world languages in earlier grades as the state is suggesting.
Noonan sympathizes with the how the community has felt the brunt of Stoneham's lack of substantial Chapter 70 funding, while the state continues to increase it mandates for schools.
"It has hurt the entire community - the kids going to school as well as the taxpayer," said Noonan.
He praised the work of Finance Board member John Warren for recently bringing the inequities to light and questions why seemingly nothing has been done earlier to look into the problem.
"If it wasn't for John Warren, we wouldn't know what was going on," Noonan stated.
Where additional state monies should be spent, if and when the town receives them, is an area he would leave up to the expertise of Superintendent Dr. Joseph Connelly, whom he refers to as the CEO of the organization.
Craigie stated that school officials have tried in the past to address the lack of funding to Stoneham. She spoke at a legislative hearing with the League of Women Voters four years ago in an attempt to alleviate some of the burden that taxpayers have shouldered for funding the schools.
"We don't have a large, diverse population. We don't have much industry...It's all property taxes in Stoneham," she said.
While explanations regarding the funding formula application point toward the level of funding schools were receiving from the town when Ed Reform began, Craigie stated that although the town was helping the schools at the time, that ultimately hurt them for future state aid eligibility.
"We probably would have benefited if we weren't getting our fair share from the town," Craigie stated, but added, "I believe the community has met the demand."
She credits the financial summit meetings for bringing together members of the Finance Board, Board of Selectmen and School Committee to view all the town's needs in light of the "big picture."
With regard to MCAS testing and the attempt to align all communities' curriculums to the state's, Pecoraro praised Stoneham students for doing very well.
"At the same time, there is always room for improvement. We can move on from here," she added.
For Noonan, Stoneham's scores were "a wake-up call." He added that the highest scoring community, Harvard, Massachusetts, received the equivalent of a grade C and that Stoneham was approximately 40 points below that.
He again questioned why, when the entire state education system knew the test was coming, nothing was done to prepare for it.
Craigie rebutted that no school administrator saw the test or how the curriculum would fit into the state framework. Further, she explained, the state continued to rework the curriculum framework right up until the test arrived at schools.
"Its going to take 3 years to totally align curriculum with tests," said Craigie.
The issue of how to fund school bus service is one of concern throughout the town.
"Everyone wants busing, but if there is no money, you must look outside the classroom," said Craigie.
"If there is money, I will support bringing busing back," she added. However, she vowed that she would not support funding the program if it resulted in cutting back classroom staff or programs.
"It's a matter of prioritizing," she said, adding that Stoneham schools need remedial teachers for MCAS and reading teachers throughout the system.
Noonan looks at the busing issue in a somewhat different light.
"Busing is no longer a luxury. It's a necessity," he said, while expressing optimism for securi
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