Opinion

Stand Up for Public Education and Vote for Collins, Coolidge, and Sturgis on June 14th!

| Adam Gilman: Letter to the Editor |

The stakes could not be any higher for our community in the upcoming election. There is a national far-right campaign to take over school boards in order to push a harmful agenda rooted in intolerance and fear. As difficult as it is to admit, this national campaign has found its way to our small town. 

The goals of this far-right movement are a laundry list of regressive policies: banning books that don’t conform to a narrow worldview; outlawing any discussion of LGBTQ issues in the classroom; eliminating sex-education programs that talk about the importance of consent and safe sex practices; and forcing teachers to teach their students a selective, whitewashed version of U.S. history and literature without reference to racism and social injustice. I wonder how many registered Republicans here in town even realize how extreme their state party leadership has become. 

If we don’t show up at the polls on June 14th in droves, we may wake up the following day with new school board members representing our town who want to implement components of this dangerous agenda. The MSAD 15 School Board has been working hard over the years to foster a safe, equitable environment for teachers, students, and administrators. This June 14th, all that work could be erased without a massive turnout of voters who are willing to stand up and support our students, teachers, and administrators. 

I strongly encourage my fellow New Gloucester residents to vote for Penny Collins, Misty Coolidge, and Laura Jane Sturgis on June 14 or by absentee ballot and to rally their friends and neighbors to do the same. These three candidates have years of combined experience in public service, a shared commitment to defend public education, and a clear understanding of the actual role of the school board. That role is to support the work of our professional educators by providing fiscal oversight, promoting responsible administration of our schools, and fostering a safe, equitable, and welcoming learning environment for ALL students and not to push a narrow, regressive, conspiracy-fueled political agenda.

Adam Gilman
New Gloucester

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