Supporting All Our Children to Reach Their Full Potential

My heart broke as I listened during public comments at the Jan. 26th Winchester School Committee meeting to the experiences of countless families who described, one after another, how their children, who were later diagnosed as having dyslexia, were not assessed nor received the mandated structured learning support as required by state and federal law.

As a parent of a child with special needs and on an IEP, I understand all too well how it falls to the parents to be the primary advocates for their children. Like many of the parents who spoke, we too, had to take it upon ourselves to get a private evaluation, enlist outside specialists, and hire an advocate to help us get our son the supports his needs.

We are a family with many privileges and yet, despite having the means to take this on, the financial and emotional toll on the family is significant. While our experience at Lynch was positive, with the school proactively helping us navigate the IEP process, it has not been an easy road, and I can only imagine what it must be like for each of the families that spoke out.

I applaud the bravery of these families in sharing their experiences. I recognize that for every parent who spoke out there are many others who did not. And, for every parent who has the means to afford a private assessment, advocates, private school, etc., there are many more who do not.

The Winchester School Committee oversees public education in our town. We don’t have the luxury of being selective in our enrollment and just accepting neurotypical or high performing kids. We oversee a public good and must meet the needs of all our students. This starts with identifying their needs and putting in place the supports to meet them.

The Massachusetts Legislature approved Chapter 272 of the Acts of 2018 on October 19th of that year requiring that the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), in consultation with the Department of Early Education and Care (EEC), "issue guidelines to assist districts in developing screening procedures or protocols for students that demonstrate one or more potential indicators of a neurological learning disability, including, but not limited to, dyslexia." We need greater transparency and accountability around our work to bring our district into compliance.

I reflected upon Superintendent Evans’ words about the commitment of our educators and administrators to help every child, about how Winchester consistently ranks in the top few percent statewide, and how we must work harder to not let kids slip through the cracks. I believe that our teachers and administrators are working hard with the best interests of our children at heart. And, I believe that we need to do more to ensure people aren’t slipping through the cracks.

For over twenty years I have worked to bring people together – often direct competitors -- around common purpose. I have been an advocate within our district for those who are not being heard. I have challenged what I feel is a “majority rules” culture and approach to leadership by, for example, specifically calling for demographic information to be included in our surveys so we can gather all the voices in our community – those of families with different special needs, health conditions, races or ethnicities, socioeconomic privileges, gender identities, etc.

If elected to the School Committee, I will continue to do what I have always done: I will listen to all viewpoints, bring all perspectives together, build support around shared interests, and work transparently with all stakeholders – teachers, parents, administrators, mental health professionals and other specialists, unions, etc. – to make meaningful change. The stakes are too high to not get this right and I commit that I will leverage my position to help ensure that more kids don’t slip through the cracks.