5 Candidates Compete for 2 Andover School Committee Seats

ANDOVER, MA - Five candidates are fighting for two seats opening up on the Andover School Committee.

Chairwoman Annie Gilbert and vice-chairwoman Paula Colby-Clements will be leaving the committee in March and are looking for successors, the Andover Townsman reported.

Here is a look at the five qualified candidates put together by the Andover Townsman, to see the full profiles click HERE.

Bob Pokress: Pokress has lived in Andover for 31 years. He was a U.S. Coast Guard. He received a Masters of Science in the field of Applied Math from George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and a Masters in Theoretical and Applied Mathematics from the University of California, Berkley.

“Over the past roughly 10 to 12 years, the school committee has been failing the children of Andover by being asleep at the wheel while a downward trend of academic achievement has been occurring throughout the system,” Pokress told the Andover Townsman. “I want the policies and the approach toward school governance to result in reversing that trend to an upward trend across the board to academic achievement through all levels in the district.”

Shannon Scully: Scully is vice president of the school’s Parent Teacher Organization and the parent of two boys in the school system. She is the founder and principal engineer of Scully Consulting, LLC and worked at Cisco Systems about 10 year.

“I think I’m a unique candidate because I take in a lot of data and I like to make decisions based on fact rather than anecdotal evidence,” Scully told the Andover Townsman. “I’ve been engaged in, and an active participant in Andover Public Schools and I think it’s time to expand my role into a leadership position.”

Paul Murphy: Murphy was educated in Andover Public Schools. He worked as a math teacher, coach, and administrator at Phillips Academy for 28 years.

“My hope is to do a lot of learning along the way,” Murphy told the Andover Townsman. “I certainly have an idea of how Phillips works, but I also know full well that independent and public schools face different challenges. My experience of being a teacher, and also an administrator, will allow me to offer a unique perspective to discussions at the committee table.”

Laura Gregory: Gregory has been an active member of the Andover parent organization and has lived in town for over 14 years. She was president of the Shawsheen School PTO for three years, president of the Doherty Middle School PAC for two years and is currently vice president of the Andover High School PAC. Both of Gregory’s children attend Andover schools.

“As a practicing attorney, I am negotiating every day,” Gregory told the Andover Towsman. “That experience, along with my roles throughout the district, make me a unique candidate, especially when it comes to contracts for next year and working on the upcoming budget. I also think transparency and communication between the schools and the community are extremely important, and working together with the town and schools in regard to the budget and capital projects will be a priority.”

Bill Perkins: Perkins has lived in Andover for over 35 years and has been involved in numerous community projects including co-founding Friends of Andover Football Team and Andover Youth Services. Recently he managed the redevelopment of the Andover High School baseball field.

“I’m a pragmatic business person and I’ve been involved in the town in a lot of ways so far,” Perkins told the Andover Townsman. “Our school rankings have dropped an incredible degree over the last few years. This negatively [affects] our quality of education as well as our property values. ... I believe I can help improve this situation greatly.”