Greenwich Board Of Education Elects New Chair, Vice Chair

GREENWICH, CT — On Wednesday night, the newest members of the Greenwich Board of Education were sworn-in.

Democrats Kathleen Stowe, Laura Kostin and Republicans Cody Kittle and Michael Joseph Mercanti-Anthony each took the oath from outgoing Town Clerk Carmella Budkins. Stowe returned to the board for a second term.

The four now join Karen Kowalski (R), Joe Kelly (R), Christina Downey (D) and Karen Hirsh (D), who were not up for re-election this year.

The school board also voted on leadership roles Wednesday, with Stowe getting elected as chair. Kowalski will serve as vice chair, and Hirsh returns to her secretary role.

Downey nominated Stowe for the chair position, which was previously held by Peter Bernstein, a Republican. Bernstein did not run for re-election.

Stowe served as the board's vice chair for the past two years, and has served as a liaison to the Greenwich Parks and Recreation Department, and to the newly formed Energy Management Advisory Committee.

She has also chaired the board's Policy Governance Committee and Budget Committee.

"Kathleen is starting her second term on the board, and she would bring significant experience to the role," Downey said. "Her detailed knowledge of how the board operates, particularly our policies and our budget, would make her an effective chair from day one. As a bonus, her three children are all currently at all school levels in our schools, which gives her some real time boots on the ground information on what's transpiring in our schools."

Kelly nominated himself, but did not give any remarks.

Stowe was appointed chair by a vote of 5-3, with Kelly, Kittle and Mercanti-Anthony voting for Kelly.

Kowalski nominated herself for vice chair, and said she believed her prior experience on the board would serve her well in the role.

"I think with my experience on the board for the last two years and working alongside [the other board members], we can put forward collaborative and challenging efforts to run a very focused and dedicated board to the 8,400 students that we serve," she said.

Kowalski was approved by a vote of 7-0-1, with Kelly abstaining.

Hirsh has served as secretary for the past two years. Downey said the board has appreciated her diligent note-taking and research. She was unanimously approved.

The past several months have been contentious for the board, as several members of the community have been outspoken about masking students and vaccine mandates for staff.

The election was also a hot topic, as Kittle and Republican candidate Meghan Galletta were separated by just 36 votes. A recount trimmed Kittle's lead to one, but the official certification by the town showed he won by 13 votes.

On Thursday, the regularly scheduled board business meeting featured more of the same rancor from previous meetings, with parents criticizing the district for opening up pop-up vaccine clinics at schools. Some also called for the board to rethink the testing policy for teachers.

Others urged the board to ignore the complaints from "a small minority" of people.

In her allotted portion to speak, Greenwich Education Association President Lil Perrone said she's looking forward to working with the new-look board, and mentioned several areas she'd like the members to focus on.

The GEA is a labor union that represents teachers in the district.

"We have the opportunity to fix special education and our systemic failures. We've failed to meet the full needs of our students. In addition we've failed to support staff and faculty who work with these students. We must continue to address the failures to maintain and expand our facilities so all students have access to playgrounds and safe buildings," she said.

"We must provide a workplace and educational space that is free from harassment or intimidation for our students and our members," she added. "These are some things I hope we can work together on."

In October, about 100 teachers rallied before a Board of Education meeting, and said they felt harassed by several members of the community over school curriculum