Lynn candidates stress importance of community schools

LYNN – School Committee candidates agreed on the importance of community-oriented schools at an open forum at Ford Elementary School sponsored by the Highland Coalition.The six incumbents and three challengers vying for six spots on Nov. 5 answered questions on school lunch nutrition, keeping neighborhood culture, restoring Ford as a Ward 4 polling place and providing English as a second language classes to parents to a full audience in the school?s auditorium Monday.Candidates agreed wholeheartedly that Ford should be restored to a polling place, students should attend their respective neighborhood schools and students should have access to a fair education by making the same resources available to the schools.A small disagreement among the table occurred when incumbent John Ford boasted his night school ESL program at Lynn Vocational Technical Institute as a supplemental program to Operation Bootstrap?s long waiting list. Both challengers and incumbents pointed to his class fee of about $100 as a hindrance to the solution, while Ford defended the fee as a means to show the class?s value.Fellow incumbent Charlie Gallo came to his aid when he said, “John Ford has been a champion of keeping costs down. It?s not free to open school at night.”While candidates seemed to agree on many of the issues brought forward, they distinguished themselves from each other during their two minutes of closing remarks.Ford took his closing statements as an opportunity to cite his involvement in plans for a new Marshall Middle School in Lynn, and promised further work with the Massachusetts School Building Authority to replace more of the city?s aging schools.Incumbent Patricia Capano, who said she planned to be the “voice of reason” on the committee, also claimed she was “well-versed” in the needs of the many school buildings in the district.Challenger Lorraine Gately was surprised at the lack of nutrition in school lunches and said she honestly didn?t know much about why the Ford school was no longer a polling center, but as a retired Pickering Middle School teacher and former Ford student, Gately said, “No one here cares more about the schools than me.”Incumbent Rick Starbard said after four years on the committee, the most satisfying part of the job was being an advocate for parents, helping those who were “so frustrated” they felt they had nowhere else to turn. Gallo, seeking a second term, said he was running because education was important to him.Incumbent Maria Carrasco said she would continue to bring an open mind to the table. She encouraged voters to choose who they thought would “work as a team.”Incumbent Donna Coppola echoed her statement when she told her audience they would need to elect “a group of people who are going to work really hard for your kids,” adding, “I won?t be afraid to get answers for you.”Challenger Melissa Romaniello said she would ask even tougher questions than Coppola if she were elected to the committee. “You haven?t seen anything yet,” she told the audience.Challenger Stanley Wotring said he?s been attending School Committee meetings for three years and, as a candidate, refused to take any donations so he could be an objective member of the committee.Though a full crowd put many in the bleachers around the auditorium, Coppola remarked that the quiet room was the best audience she had ever had at a candidate?s forum.