Use this search box to find articles that have run in our newspapers over the last several years.
Date: 2/2/2022
BELCHERTOWN - On Jan. 24, Belchertown residents voted against a recall to remove Diane Brown and Michael Knapp from their School Committee seats with margins of 592-1,925 and 662-1,845, respectively.
After the election, Brown and Knapp sat down with Reminder Publishing to discuss the victory and their next steps continuing their terms on the committee.
Brown said she was thankful for the number of residents who came out to vote for the out-of-cycle election.
“I am just really thankful, I was very proud of the town for the large number of people, I think 22 percent of the voting population came out so that is a much higher average than we normally get for a local election,” she said. “Throw on top of that it was a Monday in January when it has been really cold, I was heartened to see how many came out and gave the support for what we have been doing all along.”
Knapp said he was shocked by the voter turnout.
“My initial reaction came during the day when I saw the high turnout and saw how many voters were angry about the recall in general, and it shocked me that we had so many people show up on a cold day in January for the single purpose of voting in a recall for School Committee,” he said.
With the recall process over, Knapp said he was surprised to see how people went about fighting for the recall.
“The voters have spoken so now it is done. It is always interesting when you are in public office because there are always going to be different ideas about what you should do on every issue and throughout the pandemic that has been especially true,” he said. “I think it is a big mistake for people to argue that officials are not listening because they make a different decision. It shocked me the way people dug in their heels on all these issues.”
By voting down the recall, Brown said residents sent a clear message about their feelings on the ordeal.
“They have all been hard decisions and I understand that we are not always going to agree, but the recall process was never meant to pull people out that you disagreed with on an issue. I think we sent a clear message because if it had gone the other way it could have set a precedent for people feeling threatened by a recall every time they made a decision,” she said. “We sent a very different message that upheld democracy and supporting the people you have elected.”
Even before the election, Brown said residents were in favor of vaccinations and the work the School Committee continues to do.
“The rationale for the recall in the first place was that we did not represent the views of the town and that obviously has been proven incorrect. I thought that was incorrect all along in that over 70 percent of the town is vaccinated, over 70 percent of the students are vaccinated and we are all trying to maneuver our way through an ever-changing set of guidelines on how to deal with this and the overriding concern is to keep our kids in school and to keep them safe,” she said.
Knapp echoed similar sentiments and said parents and students were in favor of safe COVID-19 procedures.
“At the high school, 80 percent of the students are vaccinated and that is optional, so even before the recall I knew the community supported COVID safety and the community supported keeping kids in school so the level of voter turnout made that really clear,” he said.
Brown added that she wanted to thank residents for their support.
“I just wanted to thank the people that came out and the group of people who worked so hard with signage, standouts, sending out post cards or contacting voters to remind them about to vote – that was a huge challenge and they knocked it out of the park,” she said.
With the recall in the rear view mirror, Knapp and Brown discussed their goals for the remainder of their terms.
One goal Knapp said he has is to find ways to support students’ mental health.
“In terms of supporting student mental health, I think teenagers in particular need to have contact with caring adults, so some of that comes from these extracurriculars a lot of kids find meaning in, some of that comes from your teachers at school and some of it comes from your family at home. It is going to be a long process and I really hope the district will do some after school programs, which is a great way to reach a lot of kids, whether it’s for academic support or helping them make a connection with a caring adult,” he said.
Brown said she is looking forward to passing the feasibility study for Jabish Brook Middle School and Cold Spring School, which could lead to a new middle school and a realignment of grades.
“I am hoping we can get this feasibility study approved for a new middle school, I think it is going to be huge. Our two oldest schools are in serious need of work to be livable and safe for students to be in. Our town continues to grow, and we have a reputation of providing an excellent education and we want to keep it going. That means we need to upgrade our schools and to realign the grades to fit better with the middle school,” she said.
To help address learning loss as a result of remote learning and COVID-19, Brown said she hopes the district continues to offer after school programs and other programs over the summer.
“I know we are looking to have after school programs and things again this summer. Last summer we offered some ongoing educational services to many of the kids in town and I think that is the way we really have to go, there are gaps in there, it has been a stressful and difficult time for students and staff and we need to extend opportunities for kids to feel like they have caught up and have a handle on what is going on,” she said. “That is beyond academics, there needs to be something for social emotional support.”
Before diving into any programming to provide support for learning loss, Knapp said there needs to be an understanding that it will take time to address the changes.
“I think a lot of kids saw more sag in more mathematics than in English and I think it is because a lot of kids reading and thinking critically about issues and not a lot of quantitative reasoning. I think the biggest thing to keep in mind is it is not going to be a one-year fix and schools and teachers are going to have to appreciate that many kids will need some extra support,” he said. “I think it is more of a mindset than any particular new program.”
On top of everything, Knapp said teachers should continue to support students as they learn
“It does not help anyone to start over and pretend last year did not happen and I think a lot of kids can continue with no curriculum and new learning so long as the staff – and I think our staff are doing this – can provide support to fill some of those gaps from last year,” he said.