Chris Brownsey, Jackie Perry and Colleen Staszko were all elected to the Scarborough Board of Education on Tuesday where 46 percent of registered voters turned out.
Brownsey and Staszko were running for three-year terms against Michelle Hallett and Grace Scarano. Brownsey was the top vote-getter with 2,547 votes followed by Staszko with 2,481, Hallett with 2,072 and Scarano with 1,967.
This is Brownsey’s second term on the board. He said he was excited to be reelected and is looking forward to developing the district’s plans for a new intermediate school and middle school addition.
“I think we have a good board makeup to make a proposal on the school facilities,” he said.
This will be Staszko’s first term on the board and she is looking forward to working with its members.
“It looks like it’s going to shape up to being a good board,” she said.
Staszko, an elementary school teacher, said she has been watching the school board meetings on television to keep up with issues said she is excited to develop building plans and work on next year’s budget.
“I’m looking forward to using my background and expertise on education issues,” she said.
Perry was running against Annalee Rosenblatt to finish a one year of a term vacated by Linda Gordius. Perry received 2,918 votes and Rosenblatt received 2,290 votes.
“I love participating,” Perry said. “The schools are my first love. I’m very excited to be back.”
Perry said one of the first things she will investigate as a board number is the number of children in the all-day kindergarten classes. She has recently learned that the average class size is 18 to 19 students.
“I think that’s far too many children, especially at this age,” she said. “It’s a major concern of mine. My personal opinion … is a kindergarten class should be around 15.”
Perry, who was a member of the school bus safety committee, also wants to continue working on the school bus stop situation, which she expects will flare back up again once the winter comes.
“I want to make sure we continue to have open communication with parents on this,” she said.
She also is looking forward to working on the school construction plans and also trying to “mend the fences” with the seniors over the town’s rejection of the senior center.
“You can’t blame the children for that vote,” she said.
Shawn Babine, Jeffrey Messer and Sylvia Most were all reelected to the Town Council. All three were unopposed. Most was the top vote-getter with 4,638, followed by Babine with 4,524 and then Messer with 4,266.
Charles Andreson, James Pandiscio and John Tarbell were all reelected to the Scarborough Sanitary District. Andreson received 4,539 votes, Pandiscio received 4,214 votes, Tarbell received 4,321.
Coleman Grimmett checking in with election worker Conny Carlson at the Scarborough polls on Tuesday night. Send questions/comments to the editors.
