Dennis Libby is seeking re-election to a second term on the Gorham School Committee because he enjoys working with the community and said he feels there is still work that needs to be done.

“Since I’ve been on the school committee, I’ve been very deep into all the different workings of it, and I feel that I have only partially accomplished some of the things that I want to accomplish,” he said.

Libby, 41, has lived in Gorham for eight years with his wife and two children. He graduated from Brunswick High School and is a stay-at-home dad and self-employed carpenter.

He won a seat on the School Committee in 2005 and said the biggest issue facing Gorham is trying to get its students prepared for the 21st Century. That’s difficult, he said, because federal, state and local budget crunches are limiting resources.

“Schools are essentially teaching kids the same way they have for nearly 100 years,” he said. “Changing the way we’re teaching or at least reviewing what we’re doing to make sure we are giving our students every tool possible to prepare them for this century is important.”

Since being a part of the school committee, Libby said he likes a lot of what he sees, especially the administrative team that he says is a group of dedicated professionals from the superintendent down to the teachers.

“They really care for the kids, and they are doing what they think is right for the kids, and I want to keep that at the forefront of everyone’s mind,” he said.

He says he would like to make change happen more quickly but admits that is difficult because the district is a large organization.

“The school committee only has limited power,” he said. “We make policy and recommend that the superintendent carries out that policy, but we cannot always make change happen as quickly as the townspeople would like.”

Libby is in favor of building the new White Rock Elementary School, and he is the vice chairman of that building committee.

“All of our elementary schools are so pressed for space,” he said. “With the new school being built, it will help the reconfiguration, and it will address the space issues that we have.”

Dennis Libby

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