I am humbly asking for your vote as a write-in candidate for School Committee in the June 23 Town Election.
I have a master’s degree in education and taught middle school social studies for just shy of 15 years before deciding to stay home with our four girls. My professional background in education and volunteer work on committees and advisories in the Harvard Public Schools make me uniquely qualified and prepared for a seat on the School Committee.
I am passionate about education and fervently believe that public schools can and must provide an excellent, equitable education for all learners. I have a keen understanding of how schools work and think the School Committee will benefit from my background in education and experience in the classroom.
Since moving back to Harvard in early 2017, I have served the Harvard school community. I sit on both the HES and Bromfield school councils, the superintendent’s start time advisory, and the Athletic Fields Subcommittee. For the past three years, I have served on the board of directors at the Village Nursery School. I also worked on the HES Principal Search Committee. All of these endeavors in town have given me the opportunity to work alongside teachers, administration, and other community members to make decisions and inform policy. I plan to take this firsthand knowledge about the issues that impact our schools and broader school community and bring it with me to the School Committee.
The Harvard Public Schools are facing the significant, immediate challenges of school reentry in the fall and the looming budget crisis. There will be very difficult decisions to be made. I am ready to make these decisions by listening to the community, working with the administrative team, and collaborating with other school committee members while keeping what is best for the students of Harvard at the forefront of the decisions. Ultimately, my goal for my term on the School Committee is to balance our current excellence in education with continued equity, social and emotional health, and a fiscally responsible school budget.
Thank you for considering my candidacy.
Abby Colwell Besse
Westcott Road
