Who’s running: Quincy School Committee

Voting places open at 7 a.m. Nov. 6

ABCs of this race: Construction

—One of the largest tasks facing the School Committee in the next few years is the construction of the NEW QUINCY HIGH SCHOOL as well as renovations to Sterling Middle School and renovations or new construction of Central Middle School.

ABCs of this race: spending

—The school department has a budget of $81.4 million. Many candidates have expressed the need to increase the use of technology in the classrooms, but the question will be how to pay for it.

Numbers that matter

$126 million cost to build the new Quincy High School

8,785 students in the district

676 teachers in the district

Five candidates are vying for three open seats on the school committee. Nick Puleo, a budget analyst for the state senate, is making his first run for elected office, while Jo-Ann Bragg is looking to return to the school committee after stepping down from more than a decade in the office. Eileen Mullen, an education consultant, is emphasizing her knowledge of what’s best for students educationally. David McCarthy and Elaine Dwyer are the two current office-holders, running for re-election.

JO-ANN BRAGG

AGE: 52

ADDRESS: 74 E. Elm Ave

OCCUPATION: Tax accountant; owner of Up & Running

EDUCATION: Financial management certificate, Northeastern University; associate’s degree, Quincy College.

MUNICIPAL EXPERIENCE: Quincy College Board of Governors since 2006; Quincy Teen Mothers’ Program board of directors; school committee 1994-2005;

CIVIC ACTIVITIES: Quincy After-School Child Care board of directors; chairman, Quincy Education Fund Committee; former chairman, Fair Housing Committee; former executive director, Teen Get-Away

FAMILY: Husband, Richard; three children and three grandchildren

The issues:construction

—Bragg said when she had been chairman of the building needs committee before she left the school committee, there was a critical needs report addressing Central and Sterling middle schools. Since that time, the city has changed direction with the location of the high school and the state has changed its funding mechanisms.
“I want to get them back on task,” she said. “I know they’re working on it, but we need to make sure we have a plan that works for students.”

the issues: new initiatives

—Bragg said she’d like to strengthen teacher mentoring by developing teacher resource libraries in every school. She said that new teachers she talks to say they would like someplace to go when they are building their lesson plans to find out what other teachers are doing.
She’d also like to expand the current five-year technology plan to bring more computers into the schools and more updated training.
She says she could hit the ground running because of her prior school committee experience.

ELAINE DWYER

AGE: 52

ADDRESS: 425 Sea St.

OCCUPATION: Owner, Global Destinations Inc. travel agency

EDUCATION: Quincy Junior College (now Quincy College)

MUNICIPAL EXPERIENCE: School committee member since February 2002

CIVIC ACTIVITIES: Adams Shore Neighborhood Association; former Merrymount Elementary School PTO president; former Broad Meadows PTO president; former Broad Meadows School Council president; former Ward 1 Democratic delegate; former Qunicy High School PTO president; charity work for Juvenile Diabetes Foundation and American Parkinson Disease Association

FAMILY: Husband, Michael; two children

The issues:
construction

—Dwyer, who has been active on the school building needs committee during her time on the school committee, said the renovation or construction of a new Central Middle School remains a top priority in coming years.

The issues: new initiatives

—Dwyer said she wants to make advance placement classes available at all the city’s middle schools. Currently, Central Middle School houses the advance placement program.
“My feeling is it’s only 100 seats,” she said. “There’s certainly more than 100 seats that would qualify for that program, but we just don’t have the room. If it was at every school, we’d probably have to add a few teachers, but not many - it’s more of a rescheduling, retraining type thing.”
She is also interested in creating a pre-kindergarten program, and said she’d support lengthening the school day but is concerned that there are not enough funds available.

DAVID MCCARTHY

AGE: 46

ADDRESS: 48 Whitney Road

OCCUPATION: Security manager, General Dynamics

EDUCATION: University of Massachusetts

MUNICIPAL EXPERIENCE: School committee since 2004; park and recreation board member; Quincy Urban Development Plan Citizen’s Action Committee member; Mayor’s Downtown Redevelopment Committee

CIVIC ACTIVITIES: QPAC member; Carroll Center for the Blind Advisory Board member; Quincy President’s Youth Baseball League coach; Quincy Redstocking’s AAU Baseball coach; Quarry Hills Golf Course Advisory Board member.

FAMILY: Wife, Roseanne; seven children

The issues: budget

—McCarthy, who chaired the school committee’s budget committee, said that the budget has been “very very solid” during the time he’s been on the school committee; things like cutting sports programs, which other districts are considering, haven’t even been on Quincy schools’ radar. He said he’d like to keep looking for ways in the budget to afford things like new technology.

The issues: new initiatives

—When McCarthy chaired the school committee’s health and safety committee during the first few years on the school committee, he said he initiated a new health curriculum for the city’s middle schools. Now, he says he’d like to do something similar at the high school level.
“It needs a good look - not even an overhaul, but a new start up there.”
He also wants to beef up the schools’ music and fine art programs.

EILEEN MULLEN

AGE: 50

ADDRESS: 17 Trafford St.

OCCUPATION: Educational consultant and education advocate

EDUCATION: Master’s degree in education, program development, Eastern Nazarene College; bachelor’s degree in human resource management, University of Massachusetts at Boston

MUNICIPAL EXPERIENCE: Former president, Quincy Parents Advisory Council; former liaison for Quincy Citywide Parents Council’s to Quincy School Committee; parent-to-parent counselor, mayor’s Commission on Families.

CIVIC ACTIVITIES: Sterling Middle School Gifted Drama Program; former Ward 4 delegate to state Democratic Convention; former member of Department of Public Health’s Early Intervention Committee; past member of Office of Childcare Services Day Care Committee.

MORE INFO: Former substitute teacher, Quincy Public Schools and Language and Cognitive Development Center, Boston; former owner and lead teacher, Delightful Days Day Care, Quincy.

the issues: budget

—Mullen said that she would use her expertise in education to help with deciding where to put money in the school budget.
“Yes, we need the ‘3 R’s’, but we need science, technology. It’s not just passing line item budgets, it’s how you develop the programs.”
She thinks the school district should increase its grant applications and work with state legislators to increase funding.

The issues: new initiatives

—Mullen wants to extend the school day, and proposes combining that with a community center in every school.
“We have a diverse population in the city - it’s a great way for them to interconnect and expand school hours,” she said. “It also has the opportunity for more parents to be involved.”
She’d like to bring more technology into the classroom and better train teachers to use it.
“If a computer is in every room, what are they going to do with it?” she said.

NICK PULEO

AGE: 24

ADDRESS: 31 Acton St.

OCCUPATION: Senior budget analyst, Massachusetts Senate Ways and Means Committee

EDUCATION: Northeastern University, political science and history

MUNICIPAL EXPERIENCE: Democratic City Committee

CIVIC ACTIVITIES: Assistant den leader for Pack 42, St. John’s Quincy; assistant scoutmaster for Troop 5, St. Agatha’s Milton; former Ward 5 Community Association president

FAMILY: Wife, Sarah

The issues: budget

—Puleo said that while the financial picture in Quincy is better than in other towns in the area, he’d use his budget expertise to look for creative ways to fund programs. He said he’d look to do more scientific projections to make the budgeting process more accurate.
“I think we can be a little more scientific and a little more financially savvy,” he said. “The financial picture in Quincy is better than in a lot of cities and towns, but it doesn’t mean that there’s not work to be done in our schools.”

The issues: new initiatives

—Puleo wants to see the schools make a technology infrastructure commitment.
“When you go into a business, every desk has a computer - that needs to be reflected in our schools,” he said.

Where you can vote

—Ward 1 - Precinct 1 - Merrymount School, 4 Agawam Road

—Ward 1 - Precinct 2 - Snug Harbor School, 330 Palmer St.

—Ward 1 - Precinct 3 - Thomas Crane Public Library (Meeting Rm), 40 Washington St.

—Ward 1 - Precinct 4 - Adams Shore Library, Sea St.

—Ward 1 - Precinct 5 - Saint Thomas Aquinas Hall, Darrow Street

—Ward 2 - Precinct 1 - Fore River Club House, 16 Nevada Road

—Ward 2 - Precinct 2 - Senior Citizens Housing, 1000 Southern Artery

—Ward 2 - Precinct 3 - Martensen Street Housing, 95 Martensen Street

—Ward 2 - Precinct 4 - Saint John's Church, 44 School St.

—Ward 2 - Precinct 5 - Saint John's Church, 44 School St.

—Ward 3 - Precinct 1 - Covenant Congregational Church, 315 Whitwell St.

—Ward 3 - Precinct 2 - First Baptist Church, 81 Prospect Ave.

—Ward 3 - Precinct 3 - Montclair School, 8 Belmont St.

—Ward 3 - Precinct 4 - Wollaston School, 205 Beale St.

—Ward 3 - Precinct 5 - Wollaston School, 205 Beale St.

—Ward 4 - Precinct 1 - Lincoln-Hancock Community School, Water Street Entrance

—Ward 4 - Precinct 2 - Quincy Lodge of Elks, 254 Quarry St.

—Ward 4 - Precinct 3 - Quincy Lodge of Elks, 254 Quarry St.

—Ward 4 - Precinct 4 - Lincoln - Hancock Community School, Water Street

—Ward 4 - Precinct 5 - Morrisette American Legion Post, 81 Liberty St.

—Ward 5 - Precinct 1 - Charles Bernazzani School, 701 Furnace Brook Parkway

—Ward 5 - Precinct 2 - Quincy Community United Methodist Church, 40 Beale St.

—Ward 5 - Precinct 3 - Quincy Community United Methodist Church, 40 Beale St.

—Ward 5 - Precinct 4 - Beechwood Knoll School, 225 Fenno St.

—Ward 5 - Precinct 5 - Beechwood Knoll School, 225 Fenno St.

—Ward 6 - Precinct 1 - North Quincy High School, 318 Hancock St.

—Ward 6 - Precinct 2 - Knights of Columbus Hall, 5 Hollis Ave.

—Ward 6 - Precinct 3 - Beechwood Community Life Center, 440 E. Squantum St.

—Ward 6 - Precinct 4 - Atlantic Middle School, 86 Hollis Ave.

—Ward 6 - Precinct 5 - Squantum School, 50 Huckins Ave.

Other races

Mayor

—Thomas Koch
—William Phelan

Councilor at large

—Joseph Finn
—Michael McFarland
—Jennifer McCauley Logue
—John Keenan
—Victor Ng

Ward 6 Councilor

—Brian McNamee
—Jimmy Liang

Uncontested seats

—Ward 1 councilor: Leo Kelly
—Ward 2 councilor: Daniel Raymondi

—Ward 3 councilor: Kevin Coughlin

—Ward 4 councilor: James Davis

—Ward 5 councilor: Douglas Gutro