To the editor:

Watching the debate between School Committee candidates, it’s clear the values of the four candidates are very closely aligned. 

Despite what some people may want you to be afraid of, it's clear that the people of Barrington share a set of common values when it comes to our schools and education. It’s why most families choose to live here. 

Despite this reality, you might be thinking, How is it possible that these shared values resulted in such a different experience at the School Committee level over the last four years? How were there open meetings violations from not properly noticing the public? A forced, and failed, de-leveling initiative at BHS? Months of missed mathematics instruction for the Purple Cluster at BMS? A tangle of unnecessary lawsuits and legal fees? 

The answer is simple. Public leadership at the School Committee level is about skills not values.

After four years as an elected School Committee member, I can safely say that Committees are where individual values go to die. Between Robert’s Rules, process, consensus, agenda-setting, RIDE guidelines, and open meetings laws, there is little-to-no opportunity for members to have any individual impact on the School Committee based on their values.

The math at the School Committee level is pretty simple: a majority of three members is required to make changes to existing policy and bylaws.  

So why has it seemed as though an invisible hand is at the controls? A force, leading the School Committee down the path to decisions and actions that might not be consistent with our shared values?

That's because effective governance is hard. Asking critical questions in public is socially difficult. Peer pressure makes it hard to push the pause button. Timing of information delivery can affect decision-making capabilities. All of these elements require leadership skills, not personal values. 

I respect the importance of knowing where your elected leaders stand on issues that are important to you. I am saying that’s not enough. You need to know what your chosen candidate is willing and capable of doing in office. As we know from the last four-plus years in Barrington, values and action are two very different things. 

I want you, the voters of Barrington, to know the real decision on the ballot this November. This isn’t just about the topic du jour or a recent decision that affected or upset you. It’s a choice for candidates who are committed to improving how the School Committee functionally operates. 

This is why I am endorsing TJ Peck and Frazier Bell for School Committee. Both candidates understand that while Barrington values run deep, the process of how the School Committee functions -- which affects all aspects of the educational experience -- needs to be revisited and improved. 

I can’t predict the election, but I can safely say that another four years is likely not in the best interests of your students, our teachers, and the future residents of Barrington. 

Patrick McCrann

Barrington