Nicola Davies Running For Wilton Board Of Education

WILTON, CT — The state Municipal Election is Tuesday, Nov. 2.

Patch contacted candidates to answer questions about their campaigns.

Democrat Nicola Davies, 50, is running for Board of Education in Wilton.

Family:Husband Alan, Two teenaged sons who are students at Wilton High School. We have lived in Wilton since 2005 and our children have been educated exclusively in Wilton Public Schools.

Experience: I am currently the PTSA treasurer at WHS. Previously I have been President of the Cider Mill PTA

Family in government: No

The single biggest issue in town is ______, and I plan to do this about it:

In education, the most pressing issue unfinished learning due to the Covid pandemic. Students did not have enough time in school to cover the curriculum last year, and this means that they have more ground to cover this year. We must ensure that our schools remain open and our children stay healthy. This means following covid protocols as laid out by the Governor. Masks should stay on children until all students have had the opportunity to be vaccinated.

Critical differences between me and my opponents:

Experience. Dedication. Commitment. I have done the hard work it takes to understand public education here in Wilton. I have held many leadership positions in the various PTAs in town. I have sat on District level committees; I have experience of working collaboratively with administration and parents and students in our town. I believe in our schools and their faculties and I want to ensure that our Board of Education continues to focus on achieving the best outcomes for our children.

Accomplishments:

Working with volunteers teaches you a lot about getting things done when no one is getting paid to do them. People need to feel heard and valued. I always take the time to observe and understand a situation before offering up a solution. I like to find more efficient, less resource heavy ways of doing things. For example I was the driving force in changing PTA membership directories from their paper format to the online membership platform MobileArq. Paper directories are out of date as soon as they are printed, there were not enough volunteers to create them. It was a tough job, I know because I created 5 of them over 5 years! I sought a better solution and worked with administration on data privacy issues, vendors to find our best solution and each other PTA to get everyone on board with doing something new. I had the vision to see how things could be different, I helped implement a new way of doing things and I brought a team of people along with me each step of the way. You can't just complain that things aren't working right and then leave it for someone else to fix it. Time and time again, I have worked tirelessly to make things better through understanding, and dedication and sheer hard work.

Other issues:

Social and Emotional wellbeing - Making sure our Wilton students feel supported and connected to their school.
Improving math outcomes - Through good data and frequent feedback, we need to bring people along with solutions that work to meet grade level success.
Transparency & Communication - I want to see both of these improved, and especially as they related to keeping current parents informed and not overwhelmed or at a loss on where to find out information. I am determined to work on behalf of all parents to ensure that calendars present full and accurate information in a timely fashion.

What else would you like voters to know about you?

Our kids are not a number on a standardized test. We are preparing our students to contribute to society in a meaningful way, we have to help them find their purpose, and we need all members of the school district to work together to achieve this. Students need to feel valued as individuals and know that all adults put their health and their academic outcomes as top priorities.