Westbrook voters cast their ballots at the Community Center Tuesday. Chance Viles / American Journal
Westbrook voters Tuesday elected one newcomer to the School Committee and kept two incumbents in place.
Jessica Foley, one of three newcomers running against incumbents under the banner of a “new voice” for Westbrook, defeated incumbent Jessica Moninski in Ward 2, 438-365. At-large member Sue Salisbury and Ward 5’s Elizabeth Schultz were reelected.
Foley
Foley, along with candidates Brook Reed, Tracey Sardella and Katy Rice during their campaigns this fall, said that they were among parents in the city who are dissatisfied with how the School Committee has been running. Rice, who ran unopposed for the Ward 1 seat, replaces longtime member Steve Berry, who opted not to run.
While their platforms differed on some issues, the candidates said, they agreed there was a lack of communication from the committee to residents, particularly after a fire in July prevented the high school from opening to students in September and also about a previous School Department budget deficit.
“I am excited to work together with the members of the school committee for the betterment of our school, children and community,” Foley said Wednesday. She is married to Westbrook Mayor Mike Foley.
Moninski said her loss was disappointing, but she will continue to do all she can “to support the success of Westbrook Schools and their students and families from the sideline.”
Salisbury
“It’s been an honor to serve Ward 2,” Moninski said Wednesday. “I hope constituents will continue to prioritize equity as an educational goal for our students. As a community, we’re only as strong as our students who struggle the most, so we must improve opportunities and outcomes for all.”
Moninski was appointed to her seat in March 2020, after the departure of Nica Bates.
Salisbury soundly defeated her challenger, Tracy Sardella, 2,669 to 1,538.
“I am really pleased to have been reelected,” Salisbury said. “I am excited to get back to the work of getting the high school back up and running and getting students back in the school. We are getting ready to start our budget process, so really it’s getting back to work of supporting the students and staff of Westbrook.”
Salisbury said she will also focus on meeting quarterly with city officials to improve communication and she wants to bring translation services to School Committee meetings.
Schultz
Also the District 35 state representative in the Legislature, Salisbury was first elected to the School Committee in 2007, took a break in 2017 and returned the following year.
In Ward 5, Schultz was reelected with 563 votes over newcomer Reed with 458. Schultz was first elected in 2018.
Schultz said she too looks forward to getting the high school reopened and starting the budget process.
“I am very pleased that you know I am in the position to continue the work we have been doing on the School Committee,” she said. “There is still work that needs to be done. It’s good for Westbrook that we have a School Committee that moves forward and attends to the different issues in front of us.”
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