The Bedford School Committee for the first time is poised to appoint two non-voting members, representing households connected to Hanscom Air Force Base and the METCO program, respectively.
The committee will vote on the final wording of new appointment policies at its meeting next week, and make the appointments. At last Tuesday’s meeting, it welcomed the two all-but-appointees.
Superintendent of Schools Philip Conrad introduced the two finalists, and noted “how excited they are to help us really include the voices from our Boston and Hanscom families.”
Sarah McGinley is a Bedford resident who moved to the town with her family from Hanscom in 2019. She pointed out that her three children are all at Davis School, and her household is still connected to the Air Force, as her husband is an active Air Force Reserve member. McGinley, an attorney, stressed that the Hanscom connection transcends BHS into other schoolhouses.
Madeline Sanabria has been a Bedford METCO parent for more than 15 years—three are alumni and two are in eighth grade. “I’ve always made it a point to have a relationship with people who are directly involved with my children. A lot of times it’s the people behind the scenes,” she told the committee. “It’s important to be in all facets of the Bedford community.”
Sanabria is a care coordinator for Casa Esperanza in Dorchester, a behavioral health facility primarily serving the Latino population.
Conrad and School Committee Chair Sarah Scoville plan to convene later this week to incorporate modifications to the new policies suggested by members Tuesday. Conrad said the policies mirror each other.
These include specifying the appointment process, the length of term (several members favored 18 months for what is a pilot program), the role of parents in the selection, and how to fill an unexpired term,
The policies are modeled after the Lincoln schools, which manage the elementary and middle schools on the base. Air Force dependents have been attending Bedford High School since 1964.
For many years the School Committee has hosted a non-voting high school student, appointed by the principal as required under state law.
Mike Rosenberg can be reached at [email protected], or 781-983-1763
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