Guilford voters turned out in support of educators and schools yesterday and resoundingly defeated Board of Education candidates who had looked to censure teachers and micromanage classrooms. The election, which made national headlines, swept in a slate of five candidates endorsed by the Guilford Education Association who defeated their Republicans opponents by a two-to-one margin.
GEA President Regina Sullivan cheered last night’s results. “Children deserve an honest and accurate education that enables them to learn about the past in order to help create a better future,” she says. “We believe these five candidates will work together with us to ensure that we have the best teaching and learning environments in our schools to cultivate critical thinking and help all our students succeed and live fulfilling lives.”
Coventry also turned out to demonstrate that attacking educators and teachings about race and equity is not a winning strategy in Connecticut. Coventry voters defeated all four Republican Board of Education candidates who ran on a platform that disparaged teachers and claimed that educators push an ideological agenda.
CEA Members Rewarded for Commitment to Community
CEA members were on the ballot in a number of municipalities, running for local boards, councils, and commissions. Thirteen of the 24 CEA members running for local offices around the state won their elections, with two elections remaining too close to call.
Some of the winners include Lisa Bress, retired teacher reelected to the Windsor Town Council; Kevin Brown, CREC teacher reelected to the Vernon Board of Education; Lisa Fabian, Fairfield teacher elected to the Stratford Board of Education; Matthew Kyer, Coventry teacher elected to the Coventry Town Council; Charles Marenghi, Naugatuck teacher reelected to the Naugatuck Board of Mayor and Burgesses; Clare Taylor Neseralla, CREC teacher elected to the West Hartford Board of Education; Greg Perry, Integrated Day teacher elected to the Norwich Board of Education; and Lisa Thomas, retired educator reelected to the Coventry Town Council.
Bress, who will serve as Windsor’s deputy mayor since she received the second highest vote total, thanked voters for their support. “I’m looking forward to working hard in the next two years for the Windsor Community,” she says.
“Thank you to everyone who turned out to vote yesterday,” says CEA President Kate Dias, “and special thanks to those CEA members who stepped up and ran for office. Your colleagues appreciate your dedication to your students, your community, and your profession.”
