LETTER: Support School Committee Candidate Silvia Nerssessian

SUDBURY, MA — The following letter was submitted to Sudbury Patch.

My family moved to Sudbury in 2013 because of the beautiful open spaces and a great public school system. My spouse and I are both successful public school graduates, and we want that for our children. Our experience at Sudbury Public Schools has been absolutely terrific.

I work full-time outside Sudbury and haven’t been able to be involved in the school community. However, over the last several months, and particularly with all the noise on the budget, I realized that I knew very little about the workings of SPS. Watching the long Committee meeting recordings and finding information on the website were low-yield. A late night meeting was out of the question – the hours were not possible for working parents with early morning (5:45am) commutes. From random encounters with other Sudbury residents, it seemed like others also didn’t have a good big-picture understanding of this entire process. I had questions: How do we assess education outcomes beyond test scores? Do we periodically evaluate the education needs and therefore adjust our financial infrastructure? With more questions came more questions, and it became clear it was a bit over my head. One thing was certain: I wanted someone with experience as an overseer, skills in strategic planning, and background in the complex realm of education finances to be on the Committee.

Silvia Nerssessian’s announcement immediately caught my eye, but I thought it might be too good to be true. Can someone who has successfully resuscitated a small private school have public school interest at heart? Can someone without formal training in education understand the needs of our teachers and students? I met with Silvia two weeks ago and I was sold. With one child at LSRHS and another entering SPS, Silvia is an equal stakeholder. We discussed her excellent work (from PTO up to school board) at the Atrium school, her understanding of the School Committee’s role, and the critical need to objectively evaluate every component of SPS.

Sustainability, transparency, and accountability are what Sudbury sorely needs so that we can maintain the top-notch education year after year. Silvia has the perfect combination of background, experience, and skill set to deliver those results. I am pleased to support Silvia’s candidacy for the School Committee; I can’t wait to see the great work she will do to support all our children in their path to success at SPS.

Cindy Ku

406 Old Lancaster Road, Sudbury