State Rep Rogers Seeking Summer Internship Applicants

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Photo: State Rep. Dave Rogers

State Rep. Dave Rogers is pleased to announce that he will once again be welcoming interns to his team for the summer. Feedback through the past few years is that interns enjoy a richly rewarding experience and learn a great deal about our system of government generally, and the legislative process specifically.

Internships are available to college students, graduates, and high school students who have completed their junior year from the 24th Middlesex District. Those interested should send both a cover letter and resume – if the student has one – to Kira Arnott at Kira.Arnott@mahouse.gov by Friday, April 30.

In a typical summer, interns would be in our office for about 12 hours a week. However, this summer our office will be holding our internships remotely due to Covid-19, so interns can expect a more flexible schedule.

Internships with the State Legislature offer many opportunities, including policy research, constituent services, networking, and daily seminars presented by the State House specifically for interns. Particularly in times like these, it is rewarding to help young people begin to understand the importance of our democratic institutions.

Opinion: Defining The ‘No’ Victory

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Photo: A No

By Marie Warner, Precinct 6

Gratitude. 

Before any commentary on the path that led to a victory for NO Override NOW, we start with profound gratitude. 

Thank you to all the voters who voted no on Ballot Question 1. Thank you for your support and your hope that your vote makes a difference. It did.

Thank you to our neighbors, homeowners, renters and business supporters who promoted the campaign with our yard signs and through our flyers and through calls. Thank you for this courage. We are appalled that some of you now are experiencing backlash and bullying from disappointed ‘Yes’ supporters.

Thank you to the NO Override NOW volunteers who assembled, delivered and held campaign signs for hours, while swamped in a sea of maroon and white “Yes Override” signs. You are the best, most dedicated team ever.

Thank you to the Belmont neighbors who cheered on those sign bearers with your “thumbs-up” and car honking. Your encouragement gave us hope. 

Thank you to the campaign team and all our talented supporters who devoted time, boundless energy, innovative ideas and who donated their dollars to help boost this campaign to success.

Thank you all. You are totally awesome.

How it started: The path to No Override Now started in September 2020, when the Select Board approved a $12.5 million override for the November 2020 ballot. Although town officials acknowledged this override was “a big ask,” it was approved.  

This “big ask’ was later withdrawn, citing unanticipated funding from the state, and an unexpectedly high cash reserve. Or perhaps the town officials surmised that the $12.5 million would not succeed at the polls and withdrew the override. Nevertheless, in making this withdrawal, the “guarantee” of an imminent override was given by town officials, and sure enough, a $6.4 million override was unanimously approved by the Select Board and placed on the April, 2021 Ballot.  

The NO Override NOW Committee was launched in response to this “act of hostility” to struggling Belmont residents and businesses, as eloquently stated by one of the NO Override NOW supporters. We could not imagine how town officials, employees, committees could unanimously champion an added tax burden on residents and businesses still suffering from the stress and financial strain of the pandemic. We could not believe those town officials could advance another tax increase, after the 2020 debt exclusion, which significantly increased Belmont taxes, the highest tax increase of all 351 communities in the state.  

And we decided to fight.

The supporters of NO Override NOW are truly grass-root Belmontians. We had not been caught up in Belmont town politics nor special interests.  Many of us are long-term residents who have steadfastly supported the town of Belmont for years, some for multiple generations. We are diverse and inclusive, with progressives, moderates, conservatives, parents, seniors and young professionals. Our supporters showed heart and grit, in a fight that we knew was just; to help some of the most vulnerable Belmont residents who could not afford this additional tax burden.

Paolillo (Re)Joins Select Board

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Photo: The team that runs Belmont: (from top left clockwise) Select Board Chair Adam Dash, vice-chair Roy Epstein, Town Administrator Patrice Garvin, Select Board member Mark Paolillo, and Jon Marshall, assistant town administrator.

When Mark Paolillo served on the Belmont Select Board in the 2010s he would be continually fighting a losing battle with Boston traffic to get to the Board’s Monday evening meetings on time, which resulted in good-natured comments from colleagues when he would eventually come flying into Town Hall.

The three-term (2010-19) “selectman” returns to the board after running unopposed to secure his fourth term at the April 6 Town Election. And the next day, at the annual organizational meeting, it was as if Paolillo hadn’t missed a beat … as he was running three minutes late.

Paolillo said there will be a lot of work facing the Board in the coming year after the rejection of the Prop 2 1/2 override by the voters 12 hours earlier.

“We need to come together as a board and, frankly, as a community. It was an emotionally charged election and I think it’s up to us as members of the board to help the community move past its differences,” said Paolillo, pointing to reengage on fiscal issues within the town.

“That’s going to be my primary focus on the board, but there are other things that are in the back of my mind like the community path and our climate action plan,” he said. “I know we have a diversity initiative that I’m fully engaged and committed to.”

At Wednesday’s meeting, Adam Dash returned for his second turn leading the Select Board after he was named chair for the coming year. Dash said he will run the meetings – they have been pushing close to four hours – using three simple rules:

  1. No drama,
  2. Be respectful, and
  3. Don’t waste anybody’s time because there’s a lot to do this year.

Dash also mentioned the failed override vote resulting in “a lot of work to do in a very short time getting ready for Town Meeting” which will occur at the end of April.

Roy Epstein, who ran the board for the past year is now vice-chair. Epstein said he will continue his work of making Select Board meeting material available to the public via the board’s website.

“There’s been some difficulty in getting that organized as it’s logistically cumbersome and sometimes we have 15 to 20 and 30 documents. But I think it’s a good practice just to make everything available so nobody feels that they’ve been at some informational disadvantage at the time of the meeting,” said Epstein.

Town Election: A Big ‘No’ On Override; School Committee Incumbents Swamped By Populist Pair

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Photo: Belmont Town Clerk Ellen Cushman announcing Town Election results.

In the biggest – and far reaching – decision of the 2021 Belmont Town Election, voters defeated a Proposition 2 1/2 override by approximately 1,000 votes, 4,539 to 3,526; a repudiation of the three year $6.4 million fiscal package targeted to fill the growing structural deficit that has been haunting the town’s finances for more than a decade.

Tuesday’s night results – read from the Town Hall steps by Town Clerk Ellen Cushman at 9:35 p.m., Tuesday, April 6 – was just one of a number of results suggesting the populous was seeking change in how governance is conducted in the Town of Homes.

Roughly 47 percent of voters cast ballots – a total of 8,271 voting – which is slightly less than the 51 percent (8,607 votes) which participated in 2015, the last time Belmont went to the polls to decide an override.

For unofficial results, head over to the Town Clerk’s webpage and the 2021 election.

“Voters have clearly decided not to go forward with this override now but the problems that we face as a town are not going to go away,” said Nicole Dorn, who chaired the ‘Yes for Bemont’ campaign.

“We are disappointed, but most of all we are concerned about the future of Belmont. As both our elected leaders and the professionals who oversee our budget have indicated: Belmont residents should expect a tough few years ahead,” said Dorn.

In the crowded field for Belmont School Committee, a pair of populists – Meghan Moriarty and Jamal Saeh – handily defeated the two current members, Tara Donner and Evelyn Gomez, and challenger Tim Flood.

Running on a platform that first surfaced on a local Facebook page where parents believe children were not being served by the actions of the Belmont School Department during a world-wide pandemic, education consultant Moriarty (3,838 votes) and pharmaceutical executive Saeh (3,989) struck a nerve with a portion of residents who felt aggrieved by a perceived lack of movement by the district and School Committee in opening schools full-time.

With their defeat Tuesday, the school committee loses its only active teacher in Donner (1,995 votes) and with Gomez (2,355), a champion of advancing racial and cultural diversity in her single year on the committee.

In another surprise, first-time candidate Adrienne Allen defeated incumbent Stephen Fiore, current chair of the Belmont Board of Health, by a margin of 117 votes, 3,067 to 2,950.

Another office holder, the venerable candidate Tomi Olson was defeated by veteran campaigner Anne Mahon by nearly 950 votes for a five-year seat on the Belmont Housing Authority.

And Mark Paolillo will be back on the Select Board for his fourth three year term after winning unopposed.

Town Meeting Results

Some surprises on the Town Meeting front as two long-time members in Precinct 6 – Joel Semuels and Robert Reardon – the chair of the Board of Assessors – lost the 12th seat to first-timer Marie Warner, head of Citizens for a Fiscally Responsible Belmont, who managed the “No” campaign against the override.

Over in Precinct 3, newcomer A. Ayodeji Baptista impressively topped the ballot with 463 votes.

There will be three Town Meeting members who will be joining the approximately 300 member group via write-in ballots from Precinct 7.

Belmont Votes: 2021 Town Election

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Photo: Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The annual Belmont Town Election takes place on Tuesday, April 6.

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. 

Wear your mask/face covering, maintain at least six feet of distance and be patient as you wait your turn to vote.

Whose running for town-wide office and Town Meeting?

Click here for the Belmont League of Women 2021 Voters Guide for candidates and their campaign message.

Polling Places

For voting purposes, Belmont is divided into eight voting precincts, located as follows:

  • Precinct 1 – Belmont Memorial Library, Assembly Room, 336 Concord Ave.
  • Precinct 2 – Belmont Town Hall, Selectmen’s Room, 455 Concord Ave.
  • Precinct 3 – Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St.
  • Precinct 4 – Daniel Butler School, Gymnasium, 90 White St.
  • Precinct 5 – Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St.
  • Precinct 6 – Belmont Fire Headquarters, 299 Trapelo Rd.
  • Precinct 7 – Burbank School, Gymnasium, 266 School St.
  • Precinct 8 – Winn Brook School, Gymnasium, 97 Waterhouse Rd. (Enter from Cross Street)

Please adhere to the posted parking restrictions and use caution to ensure the safety of pedestrians around the voting precincts.

Are You Registered to Vote in Belmont and Eligible to Vote April 6? 

If you are wondering if you are a registered voter and your voting precinct, go to the Town Clerk’s web page or phone the Town Clerk’s office at 617-993-2600.

Please be aware that April 6 is the second day for students of the Belmont elementary schools to return to school in person. Children will be excited to see their friends and arrival/departure patterns will still be new to them. Voters of Precincts 4, 7 and 8  at the Butler, Burbank and Winn Brook  are asked to consider avoiding the drop off and pick up times, 8:20 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 2:20 p.m. to 3 p.m.  allowing the students and their guardians space and time to perform the drop off or pick up. Please pay attention to the voter parking signs placed at each polling place and use them.

Celebrating 25 Years, Join Team Belmont In Virtual Mother’s Day Walk For Peace

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Photo: Poster for this year’s Mother’s Day Walk For Peace

Belmont is preparing for a strong presence in the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute’s Annual Mother’s Day Walk for Peace, a beloved Boston tradition and celebration of the potential to create more peaceful communities.  As the Institute’s largest fundraising event, the Walk for Peace helps to grow and sustain the organization’s services, advocacy, and training as it demands dignity and compassion for all families and children impacted by murder.  

Every year in the United States, approximately 15,000 people are murdered, leaving behind at least 10 immediate people directly impacted by that loss. This leaves tens of thousands of new survivors of homicide victims who must deal with the emotional, physical and financial stress of losing a loved one to a traumatic death.

The Louis D. Brown Peace Institute continues to be a center of healing, teaching, and learning for families and communities impacted by murder, trauma, grief and loss, which can strike anywhere. Participating in this event is a powerful way to honor all of the loved ones lost to murder and support their families. Together, our community can help to heal and have an impact. 

This year, the Institute’s Mother’s Day Walk for Peace will be held online. Participants will be able to walk virtually to celebrate the organization’s 25 years of walking for peace. 

The First Church in Belmont Unitarian Universalist is heading up TEAM BELMONT and urges all Belmont residents to join in this important collective effort. Find the TEAM BELMONT DONATE page at: https://lbdpeace.z2systems.com/belmont2021.  

Join 25 Days of Walking, beginning in April, which will culminate in an online broadcast on May 9 at 9 a.m. on www.mothersdaywalk4peace.org. 

More about the Institute’s work can be found at: https://www.ldbpeaceinstitute.org

For more information, please contact Margaret Eklind at  socialaction@uubelmont.org.

Letter To The Editor: Vote ‘Yes’ To Secure Our Shared Future

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To the editor:

I’m a Belmont parent who likes clear and simple. For me, Tuesday’s override ballot question can be reworded simply: Do you support funding smaller classes for students?

After a long, hard year, my son goes back to school in-person full time on Monday. Finally. He will have 23 students in his class, less than five percent of his teacher’s divided time. Without the override, smaller classes are impossible, there will be fewer teachers, and no math coaches. The past year has been hard, hard, hard. I’m exhausted by the slow pace of return-to-normal, and how it has affected us all. Yet the forward looking question remains: do we support smaller classes for all our students in 2021 and beyond? I say YES.

As a member of our connected community, the override could also be worded as: Do you support hiring a social worker for the senior center?

I say YES. Without the override, our seniors get even less support. I will be a senior one day in Belmont.

I’m hopeful for our future, and want to invest in our community. I like running our streets and trails, being outdoors, and the smell of grasses and pine trees on Lone Tree Hill. The override might be rewritten as: Do you support finding more green infrastructure opportunities in our town?

I say YES. Without the override, we will underinvest in sustainable infrastructure and our shared outcomes.

In running every street in Belmont, I’ve unblocked storm drains, tripped on too many sidewalks, and carried home the trash I found along the way. You might read the override as: Do you support hiring more DPW workers to help maintain our community? How about Police, and Fire?

I say YES. Without the override, we will fall farther behind in essential maintenance and public safety resources.

Many of those most affected have no choice, and no voice. Our school children cannot vote for smaller classes and more teacher time. Our non-US citizen neighbors cannot vote. We can choose. They are counting on us to invest in our shared future. Please vote YES with me on Tuesday.

Matt Taylor, Edgemoor Road

Letter To The Editor: Civil Rights Groups Call For Transparency Investigating Racist Incident

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Photo: Recent protest in Cushing Square (Credit: COS New England Facebook page)

Dear Belmont Police Department, Belmont Public Schools, and the larger Belmont community:

We are writing to express our disgust with the hate filled and racist graffiti found on the Wellington School Building this past Monday. This is unacceptable. We stand, in solidarity, with our Belmont and Boston students and families of color.

We must not and will not tolerate racism in any form or manner. The severity of the incident should be acknowledged and there should be follow through with students and families, alike.

We thank Belmont Superintendent John Phelan for bringing this to our attention as quickly as he did and we thank Belmont Police Chief James MacIsaac for keeping the community informed of the ongoing investigation.  

We ask that the investigation of this hateful incident be swift, thorough, and transparent. We ask that any conversations with students, particularly of color, regarding this incident be thoughtful and transparent. We are here to be a support for our Belmont and Boston students, families, and educators. This is a community issue which is why we are asking for transparency.

For our students and community to heal, you all must be incredibly thoughtful in the manner in which the investigation is handled and how the information is disseminated. We would like to be included, along with community members, in the communications to students and families. We would like to receive updates on the investigation. 

The common theme is transparency.

ALL of our children should feel safe and welcomed in their environment. This incident proves that there are individuals in the Belmont community who continue to try and foster a climate of fear and intimidation. We, as a community, need to be vigilant in our fight against racism. Belmont schools are part of a greater community and we should all be informed when incidents like this happen. If it affects one, it affects all.

We look forward to receiving updates and working closely with you all.

In solidarity,

Community Organized for Solidarity (COS)

Black and Brown Families in Belmont (BBF)

Belmont Pan-Asian Coalition (BPAC) 

Belmont Antiracism Discussion Group (BADG) 

A Request For Your Vote: Tara Donner, School Committee

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Photo: Tara Donner is the incumbent in the race for a seat on the Belmont School Committee

The Belmontonian is providing candidates/campaigners of ballot questions in contested races the opportunity to make a request for votes in the final week of the election race.

All students deserve an excellent education. 

This last year has created unprecedented challenges, tremendous inequities, and unparalleled obstacles for the education system beyond any we have known. 

I am running for re-election to the Belmont School Committee because my role as an active public school educator teaching in the COVID environment, a BPS parent, a long-time Town Meeting Member, and an experienced School Committee member give me a unique perspective to move the Belmont Public Schools forward now and post-pandemic.

An effective School Committee member needs not only passion and ideas, but also the experience and skills to translate that passion into action. From my time growing up in Milton when I served as the student representative to the School Committee and as a 21 year-old Town Meeting Member, through my 17 years teaching middle school, and in my 20 years in Belmont, including 14 as a Town Meeting member, I’ve cultivated deep perspective about the needs of a student-centered school system. My work as a teacher during COVID is paramount to my understanding of the challenges students are facing, and their broad range of pandemic experiences. Supporting students in a virtual learning environment gives me the skill set to listen effectively to all voices, including the quiet ones, and to seek out those voices that don’t feel empowered to speak up. 

The School Committee is facing many challenges. We must support the school department in executing a full return to in-person school over the next several weeks, while maintaining a meaningful remote learning program for families that need it. Even after the upcoming transition to full in-person learning, important work remains. The needs of each student will be larger than ever before, and it will take the careful oversight by experienced educators to make sure the district has a comprehensive plan of targeted support for each student. We must ensure summer school recovery programming is ready for students who have struggled this year. We must make sure that plans for the in-person opening of school for next year are educationally sound, as well as COVID-safe. 

Despite the scale of immediate concerns, we cannot lose sight of the non-pandemic educational vision for our district so that we continue to build 21st century skills in our learners. 

  • We need to decolonize our curriculum and establish a fully inclusive, equitable, and anti-racist community. The Equity Subcommittee, which I co-founded, is a good start. I’d like to continue what we started: completing the district Equity Audit, partnering with a wider range of community members, and making sure our teaching staff reflects the diversity of our community and wider world. 
  • Though we successfully eliminated full-day kindergarten fees this year for the first time since the program’s inception, our fees for music, athletics, transportation, and other activities remain quite high. I’d like to make further progress reducing the undue burden of fees on families with school-age children. 
  • We need to ensure after-school care is fully available for any family who needs it. The after school care programs have struggled tremendously during COVID, and the School Department must work with them so families have access to the after school care they need. 
  • The Chenery Middle School solar array installation must be completed as one piece of the school department’s role in meeting Belmont’s Climate Action Goals. 

My School Committee service has given me specific knowledge about the challenges our schools face. We need to pass the override, AND we need to resolve the structural funding deficit that limits the resources needed to educate our students and support the entire community with needed services. My years serving on Town Meeting give me a deep understanding of the budgetary needs of all the departments in town and the ways in which many of the services our town provides for all ages are impacted by limited funding. Diversifying our income stream as a town is critically important so that we can fully fund our schools and seniors can afford to stay in their homes. 

None of this is easy. With your vote, I will continue to devote myself to these goals as I have for the last three years. I would be honored to have your vote on April 6th.

A Request For Your Vote: Meg Moriarty, School Committee

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Photo: Meg Moriarty is running to fill a seat on the Belmont School Committee

The Belmontonian is providing candidates/campaigners of ballot questions in contested races the opportunity to make a request for votes in the final week of the election race.

The Belmont School Committee has lost the trust of the community. Since the COVID crisis began last year, they have been discussing options and obstacles instead of prioritizing learning. If there are problems, the School Committee must solve them. It must act to provide the best possible education for our children.

I am running for School Committee because I want to restore trust in the School Committee by solving the problems facing Belmont. I want to do this by engaging and being transparent with the community and by making our children’s education our highest priority. My experience in managing budgets, working with teachers and students of all abilities and cultural backgrounds, assessing educational programs, and serving as Butler PTA president and a Town Meeting Member makes me a strong candidate for the position.

The School Committee must also do its part to address Belmont’s fiscal crisis. It must identify and cut inefficiencies and collaborate with other town committees. And it must explain to the Belmont community how it uses town financial resources to fulfill its mission of educating our students.

Parents, friends, and former School Committee members have encouraged me to run because of my deep involvement in educational issues as a parent, volunteer, and owner of a small education consulting business. For three years, I served on the Butler PTA, including two years as president, where I worked with other parents, teachers, and administrators to build a strong community. I understand school and town concerns and our financial constraints. And as owner of an education research and evaluation business, I have experience planning, creating partnerships, and budgets. 

In addition, I have more than twenty years’ experience in the Massachusetts education community and a doctorate in education. Early in my career, I ran a Boston University science outreach program for middle and high school students that served dozens of Massachusetts school districts. Later, at the Museum of Science in Boston, I wrote grants and managed outreach programs for underrepresented students and teacher professional development. Today, I teach best teaching practices to MIT graduate students and I own and run an education research and evaluation business, consulting for school districts, universities, and private organizations. I will bring these skills and experience to the School Committee.

Our School Committee has not responded to the COVID-19 crisis with urgency or vision. Last May, school committees in nearby towns began planning for students to return to school, declaring that they could not wait for guidance from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) to get kids safely back in school. They presented preliminary re-opening plans in July and August. Other Massachusetts school districts created remote learning academies with administrators and teachers dedicated to teaching remote students. In contrast, the Belmont School Committee voted to start with remote instruction in September and it appears they are moving to full in-person learning for students only in response to orders from DESE. Their delayed planning has forced students who must remain remote due largely to health reasons into classes taught by new teachers.

Our students have suffered academically and emotionally because of the School Committee’s inability to act and its broken decision-making process. Throughout this year, families and teachers have learned of decisions through last-minute emails about scheduling. The School Committee also oversaw elimination of the Chenery Middle School math acceleration program without explaining upfront why the program was eliminated. School Committee meetings have lacked open discussion and debate among the members, making it difficult for the community to discern why they vote in favor or against these issues. 

Any decision affecting our students should be made after careful consideration of complete and correct data, community input, and open debate. Rather than engaging in open debate, consulting with neighboring school committees, learning best practices, or implementing effective plans, the Belmont School Committee continued to study, propose, and discard new schedules without implementing them. These delays have hindered teachers’ abilities to respond to the academic and social emotional needs of our students.  

Belmont has always supported its schools. It deserves a School Committee that preserves and enhances that tradition in a transparent, respectful, and decisive manner. I ask for your vote on Tuesday, April 6.

Meg Moriarty, Candidate for School Committee

www.electmegmoriarty.com