People have asked me why I support Dan Hynes for Senate over Terry Wolf– especially since I respect and like Terry very much.
Terry has always been cordial to me, and I appreciate that in a public servant. She served for several years on the Bedford School Board and has served as Bedford’s State Representative. She has made many decisions and voted enough for me to know that her political views do not line up with what I believed was best for Bedford residents or myself.
The former Superintendent, Chip McGee, who resigned after the recent controversy involving school counselors that spoke on behalf of a convicted child molester, had a history of failing students in Bedford. Terry supported his promotion from Assistant Superintendent to Superintendent when she served on the School Board.
I have been an outspoken critic of the failed Everyday Math program that’s been used in Bedford for many years. I even had a lengthy discussion with Chip McGee about how the math program needed to be improved. I went so far as to have him contact Math Professor David Klein to speak to the deficiencies in Everyday Math. Prof. Klein was involved with reviewing and has spoken publicly about how Everyday Math failed children across the country.
According to Sylvan Learning Centers in Bedford, tutoring students wasn’t needed, until they adopted Everyday Math. Now it’s the norm for Bedford children to have to get some kind of math tutoring.
At a school board meeting several years ago, the former IB Coordinator at Bedford High School spoke about how students were not prepared for the higher level math classes offered in the high school. Nothing changed during Terry’s tenure on the Board. The Superintendent showed he lacked good judgement when choosing a quality math program for the students. Terry, as a school board member never challenged the Superintendent to make those much-needed improvements. Recently a survey was sent out to parents and, one of the biggest complaints was, the Everyday Math.
Bedford’s school budget has been increasing every year to the point where it caused our property taxes to almost double. The budgets and our taxes increased year after year under her tenure as a school board member without any effort to improve the quality of the math curriculum.
The dumbed down Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards were brought into the Bedford schools by the Superintendent without a vote from the school board. This shows the glaring disrespect for school boards by superintendents not to mention, the lack of good judgement. As a school board member, she should have asked for a critical analysis of the standards, how they would be implemented in the school, and if there was a better alternative. This was never done.
When Chip McGee said he did not want parents consenting to invasive and controversial surveys in Bedford, Terry was ok with that. Informed consent is an ethical requirement that professionals like Child Psychologists must adhere to in order to receive their license to practice. Objecting to a school policy that supports ethical boundaries should have been supported by the Superintendent and all of the board members. Chip McGee and Terry Wolf opposing parental rights showed a lack of good judgement and support for the parents in Bedford.
Fortunately, we were able to bypass Terry’s opposition in the New Hampshire legislature and pass a law that requires parental consent on non-academic surveys. Parents are fed up with the data mining, and the disregard for their parental rights.
As a former Board Member on The Bedford Taxpayers Association, the BTA never endorsed Terry Wolf as a candidate for school board or state representative. Her record of fiscal responsibility is abysmal and reflects in her lack of endorsements from other fiscal watchdogs in New Hampshire.
I respect and appreciate that she has given of her time to serving the residents in Bedford, but if you value small govt., fiscal restraint, low taxes, parental rights, and a quality education, I believe Dan Hynes is the better candidate for the NH Senate. His voting record shows he will serve the community better.
One can like the person but acknowledge when there is a better candidate running for office. That is why Dan has my support.
Senate District 9 includes Bedford, Dublin, Fitzwilliam, Greenfield, Hancock, Jaffrey, Lyndeborough, Mont Vernon, New Boston, Peterborough, Richmond, Sharon, Temple, Troy.
