Just when you thought things couldn’t get any worse in the Merrimack School District, along comes Chuck Mower, the new Chair of the School Budget Committee.
We’d like to thank Narwood Ganter for this Op-Ed. If you have an Op-Ed or LTE you would like us
to consider, please submit it to either steve@granitegrok.com or skip@granitegrok.com.
Merrimack School District has struggled with a School Board that plays second fiddle to Superintendent Mark McLaughlin, allowing him to call the shots with little guidance. In just one year, Mark McLaughlin proposed the highest budget Merrimack has ever seen. He botched the feeding of children on free or reduced lunch at the beginning of the pandemic. And bored people to sleep ( in between painful umm and uhh pauses when he is speaking) with his self-serving pats on the back.
But that is not all.
He also made it clear earlier in the year that he would never cut staff if there were a cut to the budget. Instead, he would cut programs first. He made good on his word by cutting some programs for 2021 instead of cutting some of the 41 custodians they have on staff during the pandemic. How much work could there possibly be for that many custodians in empty buildings?
Now, Chuck Mower has been elected as the Chair of the School Budget Committee in what appears to be a pre-brokered deal before the July SBC meeting. Let’s add some salt in the wound and make Jordan Gaugliumi the Vice-Chair while his Wife is the School Board Chair. No conflict there, right?
When the School Budget Committee convened this year with it’s newly elected members, Chuck Mower announced two open seats needed to be filled, one from a member that passed away, and the other from a member that resigned on February 28th, 2020.
Chuck went on to explain that the vacancies would be filled by interviewing interested candidates at a subsequent meeting. This enraged the public in the audience because the election had just occurred 30 days prior, and there were several people that received votes during the election that were qualified. Chuck was having no part of the conversation and shut it down quickly.
Six candidates were interviewed, including four who ran for election, and two that did not, one of which was none other than Brian Stisser. In case you missed it, Brian did not run for re-election this year. However, he had inside knowledge that there was at least one position open. Brian Stisser, along with Ellen Wilson, were both appointed to the Committee that evening, leaving the four that ran for election out in the cold.
Brian’s plan was brilliant – sit back, don’t worry about campaigning, knowing all well that the majority of the Committee would appoint him. In fact, Carol Lang even mentioned that her mind was made up on Brian before the meeting ever started! That, folks, is collusion at its finest!
Brian made it very clear during his interview that he would never cut the budget and would “forcefully Argue” with anyone who had different opinions than him. Not to mention, he has already started to lay the groundwork for spending more money because “interest rates are at historic lows.”
The School Budget Committee is morally bankrupt and did precisely what they wanted to do. They made sure they appointed people that would not ask questions and would vote as they do. They are scared to allow an outsider in to challenge things. Maybe they are afraid something unethical will be uncovered. It would not be of surprise to see it happen.
