Newcomer Don Brueggemann believes Concord’s school board could do more to engage with its constituents.
He learned this firsthand as a vocal critic of the school district’s plan to route buses for the new middle school through Noyes and Cypress streets. He said the issue gave him a window into the frustration some residents feel with the board.
“What has been standard practice is that we make a proposal and don’t get to speak back when the engineer says, ‘that doesn’t work,'” Brueggemann said at a candidate forum at Concord High School Tuesday night.
Incumbent Liz Boucher pushed back, saying the board has held community meetings and has responded to constituents’ emails, relaying feedback from traffic experts and architects.
“He’s also been invited at the city and community committee meetings to sit at the table and have back and forths; the chair of that committee has allowed him to do that. So, I just don’t know how him being on the board would provide for some more opportunities for the outcome that he would like to see,” Boucher responded.
Boucher and Brueggemann are competing in Zone B for a spot on the Concord Board of Education. At a candidate forum hosted by the Concord Monitor, they fielded questions about navigating a tight budget, the Memorial Field project and upcoming legislation. Despite a few differences, they both expressed a strong desire to support Concord’s students and teachers and safeguard taxpayer money.
Both want to sell the Dewey School; they hold similar views on technology and AI policies in schools; and agreed that the school and city could work collaboratively to expand the tax base. They both also mentioned the lack of state funding as a major challenge for school districts.
They differed on the board’s relationship with the city, as well as the board’s communication efforts around topics like bus routes and the school tax cap.
Brueggemann was asked how he would work to find a compromise on the new middle school bus route with other board members.
Since no ideal bus route exists, Brueggemann said he would like to see the board sit down with neighborhood members and the engineer to look at each proposal and allow for some give and take. He said he is not running solely because of the bus route issue, but that the situation showed him the lack of engagement that is sometimes felt with the board.
“We saw that with the siting of Rundlett, and I don’t feel like the community has really been brought along in terms of the scope and size of Rundlett,” he said. “So I feel like on all of those issues, just better engagement. And that involves back and forth.”
Boucher was asked about a proposed city ordinance to ban district traffic from Noyes and Cypress streets. She said it would set a bizarre precedent that could open the door to residents who want to ban all kinds of things on their streets.
Brueggemann also commented on the board’s communication with parents and families. When asked about House Bill 1300, which requires residents to vote on a school tax cap for their local district, all candidates responded that they would vote ‘no.’
However, Brueggemann said he was against a statement sent out on ParentSquare, an app used for messaging the school community, urging voters to vote ‘no’ on the question.
Brueggemann said he was startled to see the district using the portal to advocate against the bill. He felt the school board should have solely put out the information rather than telling voters what they should do.
“Again, that kind of goes back to my point of listening and not trying to manipulate the community, but to really listen,” Brueggemann said. “And I was really disappointed to see, I think it’s called ParentSquare, used in that way.”
Boucher said it was important for the board to put out a statement because few people attended the board’s public hearing on Oct. 14 to discuss the implications of the tax cap.
“I urge everyone in the state of New Hampshire to vote no on this state-mandated ballot question,” Boucher said. “This is an assault on the public schools, and it’s not just Concord that’s going to be affected. It’s everyone in the state. I think this is a critical question of whether New Hampshire decides if it wants to be a home for young families, and we’re all responsible for the outcome.”
Brueggemann said he agreed with Boucher about the quality of the bill, but not the board’s messaging.
Boucher and Brueggemann also had slight differences in how they viewed the school board’s relationship with the City Council.
Boucher said she didn’t want to further the narrative that animosity exists between the board and council.
“I think it’s just perpetuating something that I never knew existed when I started on the board, and now that the questions keep occurring, it’s making it feel like there’s something going on with the City Council,” Boucher said. “I have never had a problem calling a city councilor if I have a question, getting a coffee with a city councilor.”
Looking to the future, Boucher said housing, safe routes to school, food access and piloting a secure firearm storage education are a few ideas she has for initiatives where the board and city can collaborate.
Brueggemann had a more pessimistic view of the board and council’s relationship, but said he appreciated the outlook provided by Boucher, and hoped it was true.
“I would say the relationship between the City Council and the School Board stinks right now to a large extent,” Brueggemann said. “At the city council meeting, there were kind of barbs being thrown at the school board, and I think there’s a lot of room for collaboration, but it’s not there right now.”
He said it would be good for the board and council to talk on a regular basis. Brueggemann brought up the Memorial Field project as both an example of the relationship between the board and the council and something that exacerbates those issues.
“I think we need a much more open and transparent process with the community at large,” Brueggemann said. “And I think that also goes a long way in terms of building trust and building collaboration all the way around.”
Candidates were asked about where the money for Memorial Field will come from.
Boucher said she doesn’t know where the board will find the money, but that the project needs to be done. She said the conditions are deplorable and students have testified at the City Council meeting that they have been injured playing on the field.
“I do know that if we have a design and we have a price tag, then we can go out and we can look for donations,” Boucher said. “So, I am very confident and I am hopeful that we will be able to find partners — public, private and working with the city — that we can look to fund this.”
Brueggemann said because the district has a good business staff, he believes bonds can be structured in a way that gives enough room to carry out the Memorial Field project.
“I think the idea of having donations and maybe even naming rights on some of the fields is a great idea,” Brueggemann said. “That’s not going to cover all the costs, but I think there are ways to structure the bonds so that they are not devastating.”
Brenda Hastings, a candidate in Zone C was also present at the forum. Aaron Thompson, challenging her in the race, was unable to join as he was teaching a class at New England College that conflicted with the timing of the forum.
The full forum can be viewed on ConcordTV’s YouTube channel.
