We’re just one dozen days from the Sept. 12 preliminary election when Newton voters will narrow the field of seven candidates to two. Who are you supporting and why?
Mayoral race: Who will you vote for on Sept 12?
by Greg Reibman | Aug 31, 2017 | Mayor's race | 91 comments
All in for Ruthanne Fuller.
Why? Super smart, business & political experience to deliver results, visionary, listener, collaborator & strong management & leadership skills. Really looking forward if she wins to see what her administration can deliver for Newton now & for its next generation. #Fuller4Mayor
We are lucky here in Newton to have several very qualified candidates in our mayoral election. I would be happy with at least 3 of them winning and they all have somewhat similar political stances, but I am leaning towards Lennon. I feel like he’s the most genuine and invested in Newton.
I’m voting for Amy Sangiolo. There are some very specific factors that make Amy stand out as the best candidate. She is the only one of the three who is against the new charter, which removes ward representation from the City Council. I also like Amy’s tempered, intelligent stance on development and affordable housing in Newton. I’m with her!
the City will be well served by any of the 3 leading contenders and the other candidates have also contributed more to this election cycle than they are given credit for. That said, I’m proudly supporting Amy Sangiolo in the preliminary election. Some of my support is issue driven.
We share similar concerns about the Charter Commission’s recommendation for a 12 member at large City Council that would eliminate ward councilors elected only by voters in each of their respective wards.
We also share some common positions about the role of development in Newton and more broadly on where we think the City should be going in the years ahead. I’m a member of the Highlands Neighborhood Area Council and I can state emphatically that virtually every other member of my Council has been tremendously grateful for how fully engaged Amy has been in the work that the 4 area councils do and how carefully she considers our suggestions.
But what clinched it for me was a community campaign session I attended with Amy a few months back in Newton Highlands. The meeting was scheduled to last for 90 minutes, but it went on considerably longer than that and it dawned on my at one point that this was a genuine listening session for both Amy for for all who were in attendance. I was talking with and listening to a candidate who spoke to all of us with deep substance and issue oriented passion where nothing was filtered out by campaign rhetoric, cliches or false promises. She knows what she’s talking about from her experiences on and off of the Council and her remarkable listening qualities. It’s almost impossible for any candidate to completely pull something like this off, but Amy did it flawlessly and with a certain humility I found refreshing. I knew then that I was listening to a genuine leader.
I haven’t been able to attend any of the debates, but I’ve looked at some of them on NEW TV and have heard back from several sources and there’s a general consensus that Amy performed extremely well in all of them and that people there took notice of it.
Amy represents everything that is good about Newton and I’m proud to be on her side.
Newton residents finally have the chance to elect a mayoral candidate who is smart, articulate, tough, creative, and fully-informed on all issues affecting Newton, by voting for Amy Sangiolo for Mayor.
Maybe you’ve seen Amy at the multiple mayoral forums—she’s the one fearlessly answering questions which other candidates dodge, stating they need to consult experts, and often deferring to “what Councilor Sangiolo said.” Only Amy draws on her 20-year experience as a Newton City Councilor, offering real solutions to the city’s most pressing problems from managing our $1 billion debt, to making our city 100% renewable, to ensuring developers work with residents to improve Newton’s villages, not just increase the city’s tax base.
Maybe you’ve heard that Amy is the only mayoral candidate fighting to defend the local democratic process, by vocally opposing the proposed changes to Newton’s Charter. She knows that eliminating ward-elected councilors weakens villages that are already at risk, and puts more power in the hands of those who already have it.
I can also share what many residents may not know about Amy Sangiolo: she quietly lives the values she espouses. A defender of the environment, Amy is the founder and trustee of the Charles River Neighborhood Foundation, generously funding grants to organizations like the Newton Conservators, the Newton Community Farm, Green Newton, and the Newton Tree Conservancy. A believer in the value of a public school education, her three children have attended Newton public schools, where Amy has been an involved parent, and fought to make sure every child can afford to participate in school activities. Finally, Amy is a life-long Democrat, spending decades working alongside Democratic candidates and causes, to preserve our Democratic institutions. I’m with Amy!
One of the above posts mentions Amy Sangiolo’s involvement as a public school parent. If I’m not mistaken, Scott Lennon mentions something similar in his campaign literature about sending his kids to public school. Obviously, being a parent of children in public schools would give a mayoral candidate valuable experience and insight. Here’s a question I haven’t thought of before… Where do Ruthanne Fuller’s kids go to school? Just curious.
@ Mike Striar – Belmont Hill
The public school issue is one reason why I prefer Lennon and Sangiolo over Fuller. She sent her kids to a pricey private school whereas Sangiolo and Lennon have firsthand experiences with NPS. Especially Lennon, who has a first grader. And I don’t mean to be like “ugh, rich people!” but the fact that Lennon lives in a small house in Nonantum and Sangiolo in a two-family home in Auburndale with extended family makes me feel like they can understand the issues that some of us on the North side deal with, e.g. the winter parking ban. I’m not sure I feel confident that Ruth Fuller will be able to appropriately advocate for our schools and other public services when in all likelihood she’s never had to use them.
*Ruthanne. Typo.
I hadn’t considered Ruthann’s Fuller’s lack of connection to NPS before this thread. I do think that makes a difference.
For whoever keeps bringing it up, I don’t know where your imaginary north/south line is located. Most of Newton is south of the Pike. The wealthiest section is West Newton Hill – definitely on the north side of Newton. There are several areas on the south side that are lower income as well. That’s not a selling point for anything or any candidate.
Sorry for the misspelling of Ruthanne.
I am leaning Lennon, but I am currently deciding between Lennon and Sangiolo. I feel that Fuller is out of the question, as she supports the charter initiative, does not have firsthand experience with the NPS, voted for the childish call on congress to impeach Trump, and simply does not seem like she is genuinely concerned with the issues she speaks of. Out of them all, Eli Katzoff seems like the most down-to-Earth; however, I cannot support his ideals on communal housing as I believe that they would be harmful to Newton’s residents by causing housing prices to go on a downward spiral and making our population skyrocket without a corresponding rise in tax revenues. None of the candidates are perfect for me; Lennon supports the charter while Sangiolo voted for the call to impeach in July. However, Lennon seems like he really cares about the issues he speaks of and will work hard to implement them, and Sangiolo has strong debating skills and seems to be most likely to get things done. I am not sure who I will end up voting for, but I know it will be either Scott or Amy and not Ruthanne.
Mike Striar asks:
For anyone having a sense of deja vu, Ruthanne has previously answered questions from Joanne on V14 regarding her family’s education choices.
I’ll be voting for Ruthanne Fuller–in fact I am co-chair of Ruthanne’s campaign!
I’ve been volunteering on Ruthanne’s campaign for months and work closely with Ruthanne on a daily basis. As the former PTO president at Burr Elementary School and having just finished my tenure as PTO president at FA Day Middle School, I can assure you that there is no single issue more important to this voter than our public schools. Ruthanne Fuller is fiercely committed to making sure that we have the best schools in the state, that we attract and retain the highest caliber teachers and principals, and that every student in every neighborhood of Newton has what they need to succeed in the classroom. Ruthanne is our only city councilor who has served on all three school modernization committees for Angier, Zervas, and Cabot schools. Her job on those committees was to 1) make sure parents were listened to 2) advocate for student and teacher needs and 3) ensure projects got done right. The city of Newton needs strong leadership to have strong schools.
Last spring Ruthanne spent countless afternoons at elementary school dismissals and school community events, meeting NPS parents and asking them about their experiences at their individual schools. She has knocked doors in every ward and precinct in the city. Her vision for NPS is directly informed by the people of Newton and what she hears from all of us. My kids will both be at Newton North this fall and I know that it takes a listening ear, a strong financial outlook, and a deep commitment to academic excellence to keep our schools on top.
I encourage anyone who wants strong schools in Newton to vote for Ruthanne Fuller.
Adam, I know she has legitimate reasons for sending her kids to schools that best serve their needs. Belmont Hill School has small class sizes and a great teacher to student ratio but does not have a program for children with special needs, such as severe dyslexia.
It is concerning that Ruthanne has no direct knowledge of NPS and that as mayor sending her kids to a private school doesn’t speak well of her faith in Newton schools
PS: Still don’t like the up and down votes. 2 down votes for apologizing for a misspelling. Really?
Good morning,
As a former colleague of the three councilors running for mayor, I first want to say that I am not supporting any candidate during this preliminary process. However as an educator and former union member I completely support the public school system…it is part of what makes America the country it is. Having said that, I do not know why Ruthanne and her husband chose to send their children to a private school. I think we can all agree that public school is not for every child, for many different reasons, and many in Newton send their children to private school. So before making assumptions that it is a bad thing that her children went to what has been described as a “pricey” private school, I ask that you wait to hear from Ruthanne herself.
@Marti. I gave you an up for that. I’d hate to have to apologize for all the times I’ve left out words or jumbled sentences. If someone catches you on it, at least they have read it.
It’s interesting that Ruthanne refers to private school as “independent school.” The term “independent school” seems so politically contrived. But if I’m following her story correctly, [Adam was kind enough to provide a link above], Ruthanne and her husband lived in Brookline when they had a child with special needs. So she was well within her rights as a parent to choose [in her words] an “independent school” for that child. I can also understand why Ruthanne sent that child’s twin sibling to the same school.
I assume this all took place when her children were very young. And I’m led to believe [from Ruthanne’s V-14 post] that her choice was between private school or Brookline public school. If she had made the decision to send her children to Belmont Hill instead on Newton public schools, I would think that would be hugely problematic for her as a candidate. It would also explain why the Teacher’s union endorsed her opponent.
I would really appreciate if someone could clarify this issue for me. How many children does Ruthanne have? Did they all go to “independent school”? Did she choose Belmont Hill over Newton public schools, or did all this happen when she lived in Brookline?
Mike, Belmont Hill School is a member of the Associated Independent Schools. https://www.aisne.org/member-schools/member-directory
I don’t know if that relates to Ruthanne’s use of “independent school” in her comment since few readers would understand the reference.
The Bottom line is that every parent should do what is best for their children. If my child had Dyslexia and I had unlimited funds – I would be sending them to the Landmark School or the Carroll School – Not Belmont Hill.
And unless she is using Everyday Math – It just doesn’t add up. Belmont Hill starts in 7th grade. She has lived in Newton for 25 years. She would have moved to Newton in 1992 and her website states she raised her sons in Newton. And unless the Family photo she posts is outdated -her sons dont look like they would have graduated from HS 20 years ago.
My issue with Fuller is she is not Honest. Just say – We were financially able to send our kids to Private Schools and pay for private tutors because Belmont Hill is NOT a Private school that deals with SPED issues/dyslexia and I wanted all my kids to go to the same school. Don’t twist it so that people think that Belmont Hill is the place to send your child if he has Dyslexia. And if she cannot be honest about this than how can we trust what she says and trust her with our City and Our Children who do go to the NPS.
Hello everyone,
My name is David, I’m a rising junior at Newton South High School, and I’m proud to say that I’m supporting Amy in the upcoming mayoral elections.
I decided to get involved with the election cycle by attending forums and meet and greets, and I’ve personally spoke to 6 out of the 7 candidates – unfortunately wasn’t able to meet Richard Saunders. I developed an general idea of the candidates’ vision and philosophies, and later researched each candidate in detail.
In my opinion, the key issues regarding Newton in the near future are the new Charter reform, and education. I also believe integrity, engagement with the community, and the ability to generate ideas are important skills for a mayor to have.
Personally, I am not against the reduction from 24 to 12 councilors. Although each particular member may have more responsibilities, there are enough benefits, such as less decisions for voters to make on Election Day, that make up for it. However, the removal of the Ward specific councilors are highly concerning. The YES on Charter campaign attempts to blur at-large councilors and ward councilors as one; on their website, they suggest ward residency for the at-large councilors. Unfortunately, there are two main downsides with no ward councilors. One, your personal representative could be absolutely hated within your ward, have no interest in governing, and still get elected by the rest of he city. Next, it is FAR more difficult for a grassroots candidate to run for an at-large position. In 2016, an average at-large city council candidate spent 30 thousand. An average ward councilor? Between 5 to 10 thousand, depending on the ward. We do not want our elected officials to be the ones with the largest bank accounts. Between Amy, Scott, and Ruthanne, Amy is the only person who is against the Charter reform, and my support tilts towards her.
With Newton’s current budget for education, staff cuts and enlargement of classes are the norm. Last year my math class had 29 students; I had many friends with classes of over 30 students. I want a mayor that makes education, the reason so many immigrants are attracted to Newton in the first place, a top priority. At a Ruthanne meet and greet I attended, Ruthanne claims that she would be able “to get better teachers and decrease class sizes with a smaller budget”. I proceeded to ask how that was possible, and received a 7 minute lecture on Ruthanne’s strong finance background, with no mention of potential solutions.
As mentioned by numerous viewers in this thread, none of Ruthanne’s children enrolled in the Newton Public Schools. As Dana Hanson mentioned, Ruthanne is dedicated towards making NPS “have the best schools in the state, that we attract and retain the highest caliber teachers and principals, and that every student in every neighborhood of Newton has what they need to succeed in the classroom”. I totally agree that this vision should be adapted by our politicians. Unfortunately, I cannot get past the fact that even with our strong school system, you saw ZERO value within our educational system. Even with our “high caliber teachers and principals”, you felt like Newton wasn’t good enough for you, and private school was the way to go. I acknowledge special circumstances might come into play and should be considered, but I can’t help but think that your children could have benefited from public education. Your reluctance to even test the waters of public services that the overwhelming majority of the city utilize casts doubts in my mind about your agendas as mayor. Are you REALLY going to reform our educational system, or is it just a campaign tactic to faciliate your election?
In this regard, I think both Amy and Scott are fantastic candidates. Scott is an NPS grad, and seems to be truly dedicated to the city. Amy has been incredibly active with the schools, by broadening the courses we offer at our courses and by ensuring no kid is left out of activities they enjoy. Proactive engagement with the community is essential for a mayor, and those qualities prevail in Amy.
I’ve canvassed for Amy over the summer, after debating which candidate to support for over a month. When talking to her, I find that Amy’s dedication to the city is unparalleled. Her vision on education, the Charter reform, and other key issues such as housing, traffic congestion, and environmental issues match mine. Her genuine love for the city shines through, and she’s incredibly transparent with her perception of Newton’s future. For those reasons, I couldn’t be more thrilled to support Amy in the mayoral election.
So, is being a parent a prerequisite for being mayor? Is someone with no children, and therefore no firsthand experience with NPS, unqualified for the job? Setti Warren had no children in NPS when he was elected. I know he went through NPS as a student, but I’m not sure that’s relevant firsthand experience.
Of course being a parent is not a prerequisite, but I think it’s hard to position yourself as a champion for public schools while opting not to use them for your own. (If you have them)
What Mary Said
Where do David Fleishman’s kids attend school?
My #1 priority is schools and I’m the one who can get the schools what they need. Those 26.6 positions that were eliminated for the school year starting on Tuesday are a canary in the coalmine.
I raised my family here. I love this city.
And there are many people who live here with many different lives–and I’m the one who will champion for EVERYONE in this city–certainly most will have kids in NPS, but I’m the Mayor who will serve kids who attend schools out of district via NPS due to special educational needs, are homeschooled, or who opt to have one or more child in their household attend an independent school.
In fact, it’s my experience with my own children that makes me even more deeply committed to making public education as accessible and excellent for all kinds of learners.
Joe and I lived in Brookline when my boys were born. My two older sons are identical twins. (They are 29 now!) I realized when they were very young that one had a learning disability: he was way behind his brother. Turns out it was severe dyslexia.
When they were ready for Kindergarten, we had a lot of discussions with caring educators in the Brookline Public Schools. Together, we came to the conclusion that it wasn’t the right fit for my son.
We made the difficult decision to keep our twins together. We wanted them to stay best friends, grow up together and go to the same school. (All three boys went to the same K-12 schools and the same college.) Thus, we decided on the independent school route. We were so fortunate that we could afford to do so.
I also stopped working for a while to help my son. I patched together speech therapists and programs including Orton Gillingham and Lindamood Bell– driving him during the weekday from school to specialists and then back to school.
As a City Councilor, one of the reasons I have been completely dedicated to the Newton Public Schools is so that every child, regardless of his or her parents’ income, could have the right education for their learning style.
My goal as Mayor is to make sure the breadth and depth and quality of the educational program here in Newton is so wide and deep and strong that as many children with as many varied needs receives an excellent education right here in the Newton Public Schools.
As Mayor, I will be the strongest advocate for Newton’s public schools, for our teachers, and excellence for all our children and helping all students reach their full potential.
Of all the candidates, Amy Sangiolo is the one who has proven over the years to be the strongest advocate for education in Newton. In her 16 years as a parent of kids in the Newton Public Schools, she has been both a generous volunteer and an outstanding advocate for our students on key issues.
In her 20 years on the City Council, Amy has been a strong supporter of our schools and students — more than any other Mayoral candidate. She has been a key advocate for more resources for our schools. She has opposed cuts to music and arts programs essential for educating the whole child, as well as fees that increase inequity and serve as barriers to education. She has advocated and won reductions in the family cap on fees. She has been a tireless advocate for using debt exclusions to pay for elementary-school capital projects.
Late in the summer maybe 10 years ago, when I was a Zervas PTO officer, it was Amy who called me, out of the blue, to ask if the crosswalks in our neighborhood had been repainted in preparation for the new school year. That particular need had not occurred to me – and apparently not to anyone else. (I checked and reported to her that they indeed needed repainting, and soon after that, they were.)
Over the last two decades, in so many areas – education, neighborhoods/villages, finances, the arts, and environmental protection – Amy has been a perceptive, active advocate with bold, effective solutions and real results. Yes, I support Amy Sangiolo for Mayor.
Bruce Henderson just hit a 10 strike because he focused in on one of Amy’s major attributes that I was fiddling for the words to fully articulate in an earlier post. When Amy asks you to identify a major problem within the City or for your your advice and opinion on any major policy question, you can rest assured she is asking you this not for effect, but for substance. She really wants to know not just the opinion you hold, but things you have observed and experienced that helped you formulate that opinion. That’s my definition of treating people with real respect and its another factor that will make her a great leader for this City. People who do business the way she does are not likely to become isolated from those they serve.
@Ruthanne Fuller– To date, I’ve been very impressed with your candidacy. You’ve given me every reason to think you’d be a fine mayor. I still feel that way. And I have no doubt you’re a wonderful parent, who put her child’s special educational needs first.
BUT… I can’t help feeling misled by the way you’ve presented the decisions you made about public vs. private school. Even the term you use, “independent school” seems designed to obfuscate the fact that you and your husband made a conscious decision to not send any of your children to Newton public schools. You were well within your rights to do that. But to now declare in Trump-like fashion that you are “the one who will champion for EVERYONE in this city,” seems like pure hyperbole to me.
A long time ago I also ran for mayor of this city. At that time, all three of my children attended Newton public schools. My youngest daughter also struggled with dyslexia. She’s now a senior on the Dean’s List at Indiana University. I could not have been more impressed with the special needs attention she received while a student in Newton’s public schools.
As September 12th approaches, it’s important for Ruthanne Fuller to clarify her work history and donations to Republican causes. Why are there glaring discrepancies between her campaign messages and her submission to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) ?
For example, her campaign touts 30 years of management experience. Yet, in her FEC filing (link below), she reports her occupation as “homemaker” from 1999 to 2009 – the year she became City Councilor. Is there any actual post-1990’s era work experience and financial expertise that our City would benefit from? If not, why pretend that there is?
In addition, Ruthanne’s FEC filing details more than $27,000 in personal contributions to Republican causes like MCCAIN-PALIN and the MA REPUBLICAN PARTY. These donations far exceed what she has given to Democrats. These discrepancies, along with others I’ve seen, trouble me and appear self-serving.
As the campaign winds-down, voters need to better understand which version of Ruthanne Fuller to believe.
Here’s the link to Ruthanne Fuller’s Federal Election Commission submission: http://classic.fec.gov/finance/disclosure/advindsea.shtml
For whatever their choices were twenty plus years ago, I am fine with the Fullers sending their children to private school. My brother in NYC has twins who will be eleven in October. One attends NYC public schools while the other goes to a private school since last year, and I it is a great fit for her! It works for their family.
My concern is two-fold. When Fuller says “I can get the schools what they need”, and then refers to the 26.2 positions which were eliminated due to budget cuts, I wonder where the money is coming from to address this loss. Is there a creative solution she is not telling us? Of our $395M annual budget, 80% is for manpower. Is getting the schools what they need code for “property tax override”? Hmmm?
Secondly, both Ruthanne and her husband, in addition to their three children, attended only privately-paid-for academic institutions. Knowing the candidate has a frame of reference from personal experiences carries much weight to me. I want to see a mayor sitting on the School Committee with the irreplaceable perspective of a former student or current (or recent) parent at Newton Public Schools (or any public schools) .
@DRossB, Thanks for digging that stuff up. It made me curious so I did some more searching. Ruthanne Fuller’s LinkedIn has her education and her City Councilor position, but nothing else. Being a SAHM is great, but it seems like she’s being disingenuous about her 30 years of experience.
Her website also says: ” When she lived in Brookline, Ruthanne co-chaired the town’s Financial Planning Advisory Committee from 1993-1994, as well as served on the town’s Finance Committee and chaired its Strategic Planning Sub-Committee. ” I thought she has been saying that she lived in Newton for 25 years – I don’t think it’s 2019 yet!
Maybe I’m being nitpicky, but voting for someone for mayor is a big deal.
Lastly, I don’t understand why she was donating to McCain/Palin and Bush/Cheney. It doesn’t seem to line up with the platform she’s running on. In all fairness, she did also donate to Democratic politicians, but why both – some during the same election cycle?
What Mary Said – I too dont like Fuller’s Fuzzy Math either and her $ 27,000.00 contributions to Republicans. And if she cannot be honest about this and her children’s Education then I think we would have real issues with her honesty in running the City of Newton.
I find it very troubling that commenters on V14 have the nerve to judge someone based on where they send/sent their children to school. To assume anything about the situation surrounding someone’s kids is frankly offensive. Different children have different needs, and as a parent, I have and I will always put my kids first. I would expect the same from any other parent, grandparent, guardian or individual running to represent me as mayor.
If there’s a vote or a policy position that is applicable, let’s have at it! In the meantime, let’s steer clear of personal attacks based on people’s children. We’re better than that.
The issue relates to experience with public education, not where candidates sent their kids to school or whether they have kids in the system. There’s no reason to make this personal, but a candidate’s experience with public education is legitimate to question.
I’m a proud Democrat and I’ve been active in Democratic politics and supporting progressive candidates for many years. I believe deeply in the principles and values of the Democratic Party.
I’ve been an active contributor to Democratic candidates and have hosted events at my home for many Democratic elected officials and Democrats running for office, including Senator Elizabeth Warren, Senator Ed Markey, Governor Deval Patrick, Congressman Barney Frank, and many others. I’m particularly proud to have for a number of years hosted the annual brunch for the Newton Democratic City Committee at my home. And as you probably know former Democratic State Treasurer and past DNC and State Democratic Party Chair Steve Grossman serves as one of my co-chairs along with progressive community activist Dana Hanson. From Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton to Ruth Balser, Cindy Creem, Kay Khan, and Setti Warren, I’ve contributed to Democrats more than 50 times in the past decade and volunteered countless hours on Democratic campaigns.
More than a decade ago, I made contributions to three Republican candidates, including Mitt Romney, a long-time family friend. Many people know that I grew up in Detroit and that both my Mom and Dad are Republicans. They were deeply involved in the community, so much so that when the Mayor of Detroit annually gives out the community service award, it is named after my Dad: the Alan E. Schwartz award.
Their political involvement was always linked to making Detroit a better city. I distinctly remember being at a meeting after the Detroit riots in 1967 when I was 10 years old with my Dad, the Mayor of Detroit, and Gov. George Romney (Mitt’s Dad) when they came together to help rebuild the community. While Mitt Romney and I disagree on many political issues, the Romneys are family friends and have been so since I was a child.
I also contributed to John McCain (before Sarah Palin) whom I personally admire as an American hero, yet also differ with politically, and once to George Bush. I vehemently disagree with the Republican party and Donald Trump. I am unequivocally and thoroughly committed to the principles of the Democratic Party on the national, state, and local level here in Newton.
In Newton, I’m proud to have been a progressive leader – deeply involved right from the start in crafting the strong and clear Welcoming City ordinance as well as vocally supporting and voting in favor of the resolution that urged the impeachment investigation of Donald Trump. (I was one of only two mayoral candidates to support this.)
While the Newton City Council and Newton Mayor are non-partisan offices, let me be clear: I am a proud Democrat, and I support and will continue to use my leadership role to support progressive causes.
After hearing Lennon, Fuller and Sangiolo for the first time last week, my mind is made up and I will vote for Amy. She was articulate, informed and never dodged any question. I like that she is focused on the environment and her stance on scaled development and increasing affordable housing.
It is apparent that her 20 years on the City Council has made her an expert in all things Newton, and from what I hear she is very approachable and committed to being transparent.
She’s no rose (sorry Scott, that joke about you being the “thorn” between two roses- having been seated between Ruthanne and Amy – was just a tad too sexist for me) in the sense that she comes across as prickly and tough enough to lead our city.
Lennon made a joke about being between two female candidates in a political forum?
Seriously?
In 2017?
Can anyone else confirm?
Ruthanne says – “I’m a proud Democrat and I’ve been active in Democratic politics and supporting progressive candidates for many years. ” So are those MANY YEARS since you decided to run for Political Office in Newton and changed from Republican to a Democrat? Even though you say Newton is Non Partisan!
And $27,000.00 is ALOT of money to be giving to Republicans when you are a supposed Progressive Democrat.
Your math with the Schools and your math with this unfortunately doesn’t add up. The only thing that is adding up is the amount of money you and your family donate to Republicans.
This thread seems a little strange to me. It was supposed to be a thread about who folks were voting for and why, but it has devolved into a Ruthanne criticism fest.
For the record, I’m trying to decide between Lennon and Ruthanne.
As someone who has children with different skill sets, I understand Ruthanne’s decision. If I thought private school was the best thing for my kids and could afford it, I’d have done it too.
Frankly, I don’t like litmus tests for my community leaders. I think they are basically made for this crazy new world we live in, with instant criticism on the immediate stirred up controvesy.
Ruthanne gave her take on why it was best for her family. It was also a decision first made over two decades ago.. Should city councilors be required to send their kids to public school? School committee members have all of their kids in public schools? A lot of these decisions are incredibly personal.
And as for the independent vs private word choice, to be honest I hear that a lot. I didn’t even think to focus on it until other posters brought it up.
I’ll note that I’m guessing some of these anti-Lennon and anti-Ruthanne posters are very likely very invested in another candidate. That’s fine, but I’ll also take their positions as zealous advocacy.
And Mike, I gotta say, while I’m glad your daughter did well in the Newton schools, that’s a really unfair statement to include. As someone who know about dyslexia, surely you know that there is a spectrum of severity. We may not want to acknowledge it, but public school is not the best fit for every student. Just because it worked for your daughter and you ran for mayor doesn’t mean it would have worked for Ruthanne’s child. I just think the comparison is unfair unless you also knew Ruthanne’s kids.
I’ve never met Ruthanne to my knowledge, and while I’ve met Scott and Amy once or twice, I’ve never had a serious conversation with any of them. But personally I’m making my decision based on the various public forums and advice from my neighbors. It is a tough choice just to narrow it to two for me.
We would be we’ll served by Amy, Ruthanne, or Scott.
Credit to Ruthanne for her grace in responding to the pointed criticism here in the comments.
As a parent of children who have been in public and independent schools, I see no reason to doubt Ruthanne’s commitment to NPS.
Independent schools are just that. Independent. Funding and governance is independent of any other government or non-government entity. Parochial schools, for instance are private, but not typically independent. Some religious schools are independent, like Newton’s Solomon Schechter.
Saying independent instead of private is, at worst, hyper-technical.
I’m voting for Scott Lennon in the primary. I think my vision for Newton is most aligned with his. We’ll see who’s standing after the primary.
@fignewtonville– You feel I’m being “unfair” because I mentioned my daughter’s experience with dyslexia while she was a student in NPS? Did you feel Ruthanne was being unfair when she mentioned her son’s experience with dyslexia at “independent school”? Because if you follow the progression of this thread, along with the link Adam provided to a previous V-14 thread, you’ll see that Ruthanne raised the issue of her child’s special needs well before I did.
Ruthanne had every right to do whatever she and her husband felt was in the best interest of their child. I’m not being critical of that. What bothers me is the way Ruthanne, as a mayoral candidate, presented this information to the public. She clearly did not want to use the common term “private school,” opting instead for the more creative phrase, “independent school.” Why do you think she did that, fig?
The term “independent school” is not the only problem I’m having with Ruthanne’s story. She mentions the learning issue was spotted early on when she lived in Brookline and her twins were in kindergarten, framing the decision as a choice between a private school or Brookline public schools. But years later she and her husband made another decision to send their three children to Belmont Hill, a private school for boys, which has no more apparent resources for dealing with dyslexia than Newton public schools.
Now, I don’t know about you fig, but it’s been my observation that a candidate who plays fast and loose with the facts, usually does the same thing if they’re elected.
.
I have been considering voting for Fuller, however some of the comments here are giving me pause. I had not looked at the OCPF data for the candidates. When I read DRossB’s comment that “her campaign touts 30 years of management experience. Yet, in her FEC filing (link below), she reports her occupation as “homemaker” from 1999 to 2009 – the year she became City Councilor. Is there any actual post-1990’s era work experience and financial expertise that our City would benefit from? ,” and Mary’s observation that Fuller’s LinkedIn profile only includes her education and City Council experience, I am concerned that Fuller may be inflating her experience. Her campaign site also states “Fuller also has over two decades of experience as a Strategic Planner for non-profit organizations and businesses, and spent eight years at WGBH, including creating its first strategic master plan.”
In light of the discrepancies between Fuller’s OCPF references to ‘homemaker’ as her profession, the lack of details in her LinkedIn profile about her professional background before joining the City Council, and the lack of specifics on her campaign website about specific work as a Strategic Planner, I would like to request Councilor Fuller post her resume on her campaign website to clear up these discrepancies. If employees inflate their resumes when employed in most jobs, they could be fired. When a candidate emphasizes their professional experience as greater than the competition, voters have a right to know the specifics of the experience to which they are referring, especially if there are inconsistencies among sources the candidate submitted (campaign contributions, LinkedIn profile, and campaign materials for the mayoral race.)
Thank you in advance for clarifying this for us.
Mike:
I’m just saying that your comment to me read like a comparison on the issue: namely, my child had dyslexia and went to public school, and Ruthanne’s didn’t, therefore Ruthanne could have per your example followed your lead and made that same choice. But the children, and hence the choice, are different, and the decision is at its heart personal.
As for the private school vs. independent school, I can see why you think that, but I’ve always though private included religious school and independent schools were not religious. I really didn’t pick up on any wordsmithing, but perhaps I’m missing something you are picking up on. I’m sure the most accurate thing would have been to say an independent private school or just name the school.
As for the Belmont Hill choice, again, you make an assumption regarding resources that I think personally is inaccurate. I love our public schools and send my kids to them. But I admit that private is better for certain kids, with one huge benefit being smaller class size and more individualized instruction. Also, it could be that the “fit” was better due the kids having many school friends from younger grades that graduated to that particular private school. Certainly the ability to have that choice is a privledge of the wealthy, but I don’t think any politician owes us that level of explanation.
And let me also say this: I don’t agree at all that you can’t be a strong supporter of the Newton schools if you sent your kids to private school. Do we want to exclude from political discourse anyone who made a choice we disagree with regarding his/her children 20 years ago? Her kids are in their late 20s. At some point, I just don’t care about that life choice from 15 years ago.
Finally, if you want me to call out Ruthanne on playing fast and loose with the facts, you’ve got to come with something more than the difference between “independent” vs. “private” and a very personal and detailed description of a schooling decision for their kids that didn’t meet with your personal approval as being full disclosure. Should we judge the other candidates by the same standard of wordplay.?
Having observed Scott and Amy for the past few years, do you think they are NOT politicians who engage in wordplay at times? Of the three, I’ve always thought Scott was the most “political” with his union endorsements and political cautiousness, with Amy being the blunt outsider (with the support of those who dislike the status quo such as the NVA) and Ruthanne the technocrat. But in terms of honesty and clarity of speech, I’d say none of the three are a beacon of light and truth.
Look, I’m not sold on any candidate yet. My neighbors like Ruthanne and Scott and have talked my ears off about the two of them. I’ll probably vote for one of them. But for me, this particular set of facts regarding Ruthanne’s kids school choice will have zero bearing on that decision.
I will say Ruthanne and Scott have both sent a LOT of mailers to my house. Amy, none.
Finally, if you want me to call out Ruthanne on playing fast and loose with the facts, you’ve got to come with something more than the difference between “independent” vs. “private”
@ Fig
I’ve really been impressed with Fuller’s presence/energy in the campaign, but I’ve similarly come to the conclusion that she’s not being full candid and has me concerned about what she’ll do in office.
She’s a strong progressive Democrat, who financially supported the campaigns of Bush, McCain and Romney?
???
PS What’s your reasoning for not supporting Sangiolo? Because you don’t like who else is supporting her?
If you have any interest in what the candidates would do for the city’s trees, and how they would handle issues that have come up recently (trees & solar panels, trees & sidewalks, developer requests to cut city trees to widen/move driveways for teardowns, ability to enforce the Tree Preservation Ordinance, and more) check out how five of the candidates answered the Newton Tree Conservancy’s first ever mayoral tree questionnaire. Al, Amy, Ruthanne, Scott, and Geoffrey all responded. We’ve posted their completed questionnaires on newtontreeconservancy.org and also question-by-question comparisons. Even if trees are not your particular area of interest, you may be interested to compare how the candidates answered some very specific questions.
I am voting for Ruthanne. Her decision to send her children to private schools is a personal one and I respect her for doing what’s best for her family. Her work on the reconstruction of Angier, Zervas and Cabot show her understanding of and commitment to our schools. She is intelligent and analytical, and can get to the heart of an issue by knowing the right questions to ask and listening carefully to the answers. I am proud to support her.
@Chris, I second your request that Ruthanne Fuller post her resume on her campaign website to clear-up these employment discrepancies. And yes, the resume should contain the names of the companies that she worked for; employment start and end dates; titles and responsibilities – just like you’d expect from any candidate seeking a job. It all should add up to “over 30 years of experience in the private, non-profit, and public sector…” which, as of tonight, is the second sentence of Ruthanne’s campaign website.
Fuller wont post it because her numbers dont add up. As for her children’s Schooling – She as a parent had every right to send them to Belmont Hill and then to Harvard. Just dont blame Dyslexia for the reason. Belmont Hill is NOT the school for a kid with Dyslexia – the Carroll School or Landmark is the school that is best for that. And the Large amount of Money that she and her family has given to Republicans is over the top for someone who claims to be a progressive Democrat.
Seriously, I want someone who is HONEST as Mayor. Fuller’s Fuzzy Math disqualifies her in my book.
If she cannot be honest about her years in Newton, why she really put her kids in Private schools, the years she worked and her Republican Donations – what else has she not been honest about????
I’m glad we’re getting to the bottom of all this!
While we’re talking about past employment, I have some follow up questions about what Scott Lennon actually does.
In his campaign literature and in the TAB, he talks about how “he oversees a $70 million budget.” Last time I checked, either the COO or Budget Director would be able to make that claim.
But at the same time, Scott describes himself as a “senior budget executive”, but doesn’t specify his job title.
And then on recent state campaign finance records, he’s listed as “Asst Budget Director”. How many Assistant Budget Directors are there at the Middlesex County Jail?
Does Middlesex County Sheriff’s Department have a COO? Do they have a Budget Director? Is Scott doing actual management work, or is he assisting with accounting while a COO or budget director calls the shots?
Looking forward to clarification!
@Tim… At least Scott has a job! And a verifiable work history.
Ruthanne can’t say the same. She’s been caught falsifying her credentials. Her claim of “over 30 years of experience in the private, non-profit, and public sector…” contradicts what she self-reported to the Federal Election Commission and what she included on her own LinkedIn profile. You can see see it for yourself.
On the paperwork she submitted to the Federal Election Commission, she reports her occupation as “homemaker” from 1999 to 2009 – the year she became City Councilor.
On her LinkedIn Profile, she lists City Councilor as her only work experience.
If Ruthanne really has 30-years of work history – great, the city of Newton could use a mayor with strong management experience. She’d probably win more votes by providing details about her employment history, such as: the companies she worked for; employment start/end dates; titles and responsibilities, etc… By posting her resume, Ruthanne could put this whole controversy to rest.
But she won’t. Because she doesn’t have 30-years experience. She got caught. And she knows it.
@DRossB It’s a little odd that you are so offended about Ruthann, but you don’t
find it troubling that Scott could be embellishing his resume/financial experience/job title. I would find it very troubling if he is claiming to manage a $70 million budget, if he’s just one of many accountants in the office.
If we’re going to get clarification on one candidate, let’s get it on everyone!
DRossB. My real name is Jeffrey Pontiff. I have never seen you post until now. Your effort looks like a sleazy smear. If you are not embarrassed by your actions, please stop being a coward and tell everyone your real name.
Ruthanne is incredibly talented and hardworking. Newton would be lucky to have someone like her as mayor. As the debates demonstrate, she understands the city’s finances better than all the other candidates combined. Our financial issues are crucial. I hope we don’t get sidetracked by pusillanimity.
Jeffrey, thanks for your comment. I was wishing all this stuff about Fuller and Lennon would end or that I could end it. You restored my faith in commenters. They obviously plan to vote for one of the other candidates. As you said Fuller is quite financially adept and Lennon has lead the city council well.
But it isn’t like DRossB is making stuff up. A smear campaign, by definition, would be if he/she was spreading false information. The FEC stuff is public info. Ruthanne’s professional background hasn’t been made public and what has been made public has been vague. So, I think people have a right to ask for more in-depth information. As for the public/private school conversation, it’s just that – a conversation. We should be having conversations leading up to a mayoral race.
I am leaning toward Ruthanne Fuller, having watched the debates and read her responses to the various questionnaires. She does seem to have an excellent command of all the city’s issues. I think it’s ok that people want to know more about her (and others’) professional experience, but in my opinion, the most important piece of their resume is the time they spent in the city council.
I don’t know the motivation of some of the commenters here, but they are correct about her LinkedIn profile. It is a lot thinner than one would expect from listening to her during the campaign. Same with the website (it does list 8 years at WGBH, although I had a hard time finding additional information). I hope she can clarify her work history. I her defense, the other candidates are equally vague on their own websites.
The FEC link above suggests a roughly equal amount in donations to both parties. This is quite unusual in today’s political climate and I consider that a point in her favor. I do find a bit strange that the occupation in all records is either “homemaker” or “alderman”, but I don’t consider FEC records a reliable indicator of professional experience.
I’m not interested in voting for someone because they and their family have lived in Newton for generations and gone to the NPS for generations. I’m voting for the candidate who I think will make the best mayor.
Ruthanne Fuller has proven herself knowledgeable, beginning with her time on the Blue Ribbon Commission looking into Newton’s financial problems, AND she has proven herself willing to do the boring, necessary work to run a city well with her work in water and sewers.
When we moved to Newton 18 years ago infrastructure was not being repaired (roads, schools, fire stations, etc.) and the budget was out of control. Does anyone else remember the annual cry fest in front of the School Committee with parents pleading to spare their child’s programs from budget cuts – that was not the way to decide a budget.
Newton has improved vastly since then. I’m voting for Ruthanne because I think she’ll do the best to keep it on the right track while dealing with difficult issues, like negotiating with the unions on health care and pension reforms, plus taking care of boring infrastructure issues that greatly impact us.
That said, I think Scott and Amy are intelligent, good candidates. I’ve been very impressed by how hard all 3 are working for votes. As others have said before, we are lucky to have 3 good choices.
I think all three of the top-tier candidates are qualified for the job. I don’t dispute any of their resumes…
From my own experience, I know the value of being an engaged parent of three children who received their K-12 education in NPS. Many of the things that drove me to become a mayoral candidate in 2005–like later high school start times– were the result of my experience as an active parent of public school children…
In my opinion, Amy and Scott have a significant advantage over Ruthanne, since they have a parent’s perspective of our public school system. That’s not to say Ruthanne can’t learn about our schools, and I believe she has tried to do that…
What troubles me though, is the way Ruthanne has presented her experience as a private school parent. First, using the term “independent school” instead of the more common term, private school. And just to set the record straight, so-called “independent schools” are in fact private schools. The word “independent” has more to do with their internal governance and funding mechanism than any educational distinction…
I’m also troubled by Ruthanne’s explanation of why she felt Newton public schools were inadequate to address the educational needs of her children. I am not the type of person to criticize anyone else’s parenting decisions. And I respect the fact that Ruthanne made a decision that she felt was in the best interest of her own kids. But Ruthanne is running for Mayor, and the Fuller campaign has made her ability to manage our public schools a point of emphasis. So it’s fair game to question why Ruthanne chose Belmont Hill over our public schools. And it’s certainly fair to question whether her lack of experience as a public school parent would put her at a disadvantage.
It’s at times like this when I really feel the lack of serious local news reporting. Significant questions have been raised here in the final few days before a preliminary election that will cut to two our choices for mayor. If Ruthanne Fuller has given $27,ooo(!) to three of the last four Republican presidential candidates, then, no, she is not the committed lifelong Democrat she claimed to be before a sizable and largely supportive crowd at an NDCC Labor Day event on Monday. Those Democratic activists are very likely to be among the fraction of Newton residents who show up to vote on Tuesday, most of whom will do so without this information, or much information at all, really, beyond what the candidates provide, unvetted, about themselves. I find this disturbing.
The way to end this issue is for each candidate to post a resume that includes names of the places of employment, titles and responsibilities, and employment start and end dates. In addition, a resume for elected officials should include their length of service, committee positions, and leadership positions on committees. In this day and age when councilors often champion particular important causes and do a significant amount of work for the betterment of the community, this work should be included and highlighted as well.
The resumes should/could include civic contributions in the schools, on boards or commissions, and advocacy groups (private or public) that enhance the life of the city and any volunteer experiences.
This business of attacking the integrity of people who run for public office is out of place in a civil discussion of candidates for mayor of the city. As Amanda pointed out, the situation isn’t helped when the funding for the local paper has been decimated in the last 5-7 years.
Just a heads up — I just noticed that “No on Charter” just got an endorsement from the “Massachusetts Progressive Party” along with a nonsensical assortment of candidates. Consider the limited number 12 facebook likes on the page, the 4 week old domain name registered to an abandoned Texas house by “blackscorpionholdings”, etc, and steer clear. This seems like very poorly disguised fake news. I’d recommend not giving them any oxygen through hyperlinks, likes, or page visits, or by allowing it to distract from election choices coming next week.
@Jack — I had a few conversations with the person who runs that account to try to clarify, because people seem to be confused with Progressive Newton / Progressive Massachusetts. The person who runs the account confirmed that it is one 17 year old boy from Newton who runs the organization and made the endorsement decisions.
I applaud him for his interest in local democracy, but I think it’s important to be clear about where endorsements are coming from.
Hi Councilor Fuller,
I know you’re busy, so you may not have seen my posting here Tues night. I had mentioned I had been considering voting for you, but I wanted to be clear on the nature of your 30 years of experience in strategic planning, since there are not many details about it on your campaign website, or in your LinkedIn profile. I also learned that in your OCPF contribution records you described your profession as homemaker prior to 2010, and then as alderman after that. On the Newton website I found your bio from when you were on the Blue Ribbon Commission prior to being elected aldermen. Here you described yourself as citizen activist.
http://www.newtonma.gov/gov/aldermen/special/bluerib/members.asp
I think we, as voters should have an opportunity to understand the nature of your 30 years of strategic planning experience, especially since you emphasize that in all your campaign materials and interviews. Your endorsers also emphasize it.
If you are elected mayor you would oversee all city departments, including human resources. I’m sure if you were in charge of ensuring Newton hires the best resources, you would want to be assured their backgrounds and the experience they bring to their positions would be clear. I am asking that you be as clear with voters by posting your resume on your campaign website. Certainly you must have one available. If you would prefer not to, is there another way you could summarize your experience with more specifics than you have included on your website?
Your silence on this issue is very concerning. Surely members of your campaign must see questions here, and can let you know you should reply, if you are not reading V14 yourself.
Thank you for your consideration.
@Jack – I am friends with the person that founded the organization and am one of its members/staff. I am also the one that runs the Facebook account and the one that registered the domain name. I did this with an already existing account, and it had not come into mind that I may have old information on it. If you wish to know, the address in Texas was the result of random zooming on google maps. I didn’t want to use a real address as I knew this information would be public. Black Scorpion Holdings was a name I made for the project because of which I created the account in the first place. Now that I look back at it, I cringe a little. If you want to know what the project was, one of the websites I created is still up. Go to http://www.ryanforwisconsin.com and you will get the idea. I understand that it is easy to think something is fake news in this day and age, especially with what little information you had available. Sorry for the confusion.
@Bryan Barash – We are run by more than simply one chairman. I’m not sure if I made it clear in the conversation, but you were speaking to me, not him.
I am not going to vote for Ruthanne, but I wanted to chime in on the whole discussion on homemaker vs. “real” experience.
There is a perception that when women do volunteer work, they do not hone skills and cannot be effective leaders, which I find appalling. Ruthanne has enough years of experience in Newton politics to be a good leader. If she was inflating her CV, it’s likely due to the fact that people do look down on non-paid work, and not because she is trying to pretend to have certain skills and experience.
If she has volunteer experience that would be useful in a mayoral position, then why wouldn’t she be promoting that? If she were applying for a job with specific qualifications, she would be expected to include that on her resume in order to be interviewed or hired instead of having a bare LinkedIn profile and a vague resume. It’s becoming more and more obvious to me that she’s inflating her experience. If she has relevant volunteer experience, I think voters would want to hear about it. For myself, I’m proud of my volunteer experience and include it on my resume and LinkedIn profile. And I’ve been a stay-at-home mom but I’m not going to pretend that my SAHM skills translate to different careers.
@Mary & @DRoss – I’m still not sure who I’ll be voting for here, but I’m going to defend Ruthanne here because I don’t think that line of attack is fair. Ruthanne has been an outstanding city councilor and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with being a stay at home mom or dad. However, in 2002 she donated to Democrat James Segel and listed herself as a Strategic Planner and again in 2011 in a donation to Steve Grossman listed herself the same way. If you’re going to use her profession from her donation history, lets tell the full story.
@Jonathan – I have no doubt that you are a legitimate fledgling organization who wants to become a political designation and organize around issues you care about. I think I agree with you on a number of them! But you were very clear that the endorsements made by the party were decided by one person, and one person alone: your chairman, a 17 year old boy. That is important context for people to have.
You’re putting words in my mouth, Bryan. Not once did I say that there was something wrong with being a SAHP. I said that I’ve been one. The issue is that she hasn’t been upfront with her professional history. Nor has she been upfront with her claim that she’s a lifelong Democrat. A lifelong Democrat doesn’t donate frequently to GOP candidates. I don’t care that Romney is a personal friend. I have family friends that I disagree with politically and I couldn’t in good conscience support their campaigns if I didn’t support their beliefs. And I guess McCain and Romney are more moderate Republicans, but Bush was NOT. I think people are right to question her integrity.
Bryan, my really good friend – that comment was out of line. No one has ever said that being a SAHP was a negative or bad thing. That’s something you introduced and it had no place in this discussion.
@Johnathon — Thank God — I thought you were an anonymous untraceable person/group claiming to be something your not and using a fake name with nothing to indicate who you are, where you are from, or what your agenda is. Oh right, that’s still the case….
but then again, 30 of the posts above yours mostly fit the same profile, so I guess you are fine if you just stick to V14.
@Jack Prior – No offense taken; I understand why we might seem suspicious; but:
1) We are not pretending to be something we are not.
2) Jonathon is not a fake name. In fact, it should be listed in the same place where you found the information about the Texas location.
3) If you don’t believe that we all live in Newton, you can get the IP address of my computer from our Facebook page and trace it yourself.
4) Our full agenda will be online once we finish our website. However, in short, our main goals are preservation of our environment (moving towards 100% clean energy), achieving single payer healthcare, removing tuition for public colleges and universities, raising taxes on those that make over a million dollars a year, getting money out of politics, and cutting mandatory minimum sentences as well as providing more rehabilitation services to those convicted of drug use/possession. We have positions on numerous other issues that will all be up in a little while.
We understand where your distrust stems from, and are considering cutting social media use until we become a designation so that there will be a way to verify who we are.
@ Chris – Do you really think Fuller with her Fuzzy Math is going to respond?
Has V14 become the rag of disgruntled assumptive surrogates??
Hello Councilor Fuller and/or campaign chairs Dana Hanson and Steve Grossman or endorsers, who have been mentioned in Councilor Fuller’s campaign statement or other postings here. (Please let Councilor Fuller know about this question if she is not reading V14 herself.)
I am still waiting for a reply from you about the details of your 30 years of strategic planning experience. I’ve seen this referenced in multiple places on your campaign website, campaign materials, interviews, endorsers’ statements, and comments you’ve made on this blog. This is the third time I am requesting more detailed information about your experience in the form of a resume posted on your campaign website which you can refer voters to for more information.
I think most would agree, serving on non-profit boards as a volunteer is a valid professional experience, so including details of those experiences in addition to your work for the city would help us understand more about your background.
As mayor you would interview department heads applying for positions with the city. How would you learn more about their experience? Would you refer to their resumes and LinkedIn profiles for tangible details of their experience, rather than simply accepting statements that they have a certain number of years of experience without providing many specifics?
Since you have emphasized your willingness to listen and answer questions as well as your 30 years of strategic planning experience throughout your campaign, the public deserves more details about your 30 years of experience. I would think you would want to share this information for the benefit of everyone.
I hope the TAB will consider asking you some of these questions, since I’m sure people beyond this blog would want to know more. They may also be more likely to receive a response from you.
Thank you in advance for your reply.
@Chris –
Instead of asking her on this forum, which she might not check anymore given the somewhat hostile posts, why not contact her directly with your concerns? http://ruthannefuller.com/contact/
She has the right to not publicly respond to these posts, but I think it would behoove her to answer the questions here since it seems like there are a lot of people interesting in knowing more about her background.
Obviously the Person that keeps Deleting my posts about Fullers Fuzzy Math and her Fuzzy answers that dont add up is a Fuller Supporter.
Good Afternoon Councilor Fuller and/or campaign chairs Dana Hanson and Steve Grossman, campaign volunteers and endorsers,
I want to continue to be as polite, but direct as possible. The Fuller campaign needs to clarify the details of Councilor Fuller’s 30 years of experience as a strategic planner. I am posting this question for the fourth time on V14, rather than sending Councilor Fuller a personal email because it is important that she provide more specifics about her experience apart from Newton’s Blue Ribbon Commission, Citizen’s Advisory Group, and the City Council to the public.
I’m making an earnest appeal to Councilor Fuller to answer these questions by posting her resume on her campaign website. The fact that neither she, nor anyone affiliated with her campaign are responding to these questions in any way is only generating more questions for voters.
I am also making an appeal to journalists, including students, bloggers, the TAB, the Globe, and concerned citizens to investigate this issue by asking Councilor Fuller to inform the public about the nature of her 30 years of strategic planning experience. As someone campaigning to be elected to the highest office in Newton, she should want to serve as a role model for the community, and should welcome questions about her work history.
Thank you in advance for your help.
I just noticed that the public median of Commonwealth Avenue is now flooded with Richard Saunders signs. I imagine this is illegal?
I’m not sure I’ve ever seen someone call on a candidate for mayor to post their professional resume on their website. I can’t imagine why that would be necessary.
@Jack Prior saw the same thing on land near Route 95 exits to Grove Street. I’ll be reporting this to 311.
@ Bryan – it wouldn’t be necessary if the Math added up.
Interesting. All these questions about Ruthanne’s resume made me curious about Amy’s background. So I went to her website and found a definite lack of specificity. I know that she is an environmental attorney. Has she ever worked as one? Does she now? Amy, please post your complete resume.
Chris, we get it. You are a supporter of another candidate and you want more information on Ruthanne’s resume. But you’ve now posted this about 6 or 7 times across multiple threads. At some point, you actually are counterproductive. I honestly think you’ve reached that point. You want to tack it onto comments that make additional points, I’m good with that (you know, the old “and I note that Ruthanne still hasn’t responded to my posts about her resume….”)
I did like your initial “I was considering voting for Fuller” in your initial post. I took you at your word. And then you posted your issue on blast over multiple threads, cutting and pasting the same language…which no one would do, unless they were a sock puppet for another campaign. Or REALLY REALLY passionate about the mayor’s race in a completely non-partisian way, but only focusing on one candidates negatives, as an anonymous blog poster.
I’m curious, absent the politics, does anyone think this strategy actually works?
And my take on your often repeated point is that all three major candidates have talked about their work experience, but what they really are in my mind is city councilors. That is the relevent experience, and there is a ton of votes, speeches, and matters large and small upon which to judge them.
Anyway, for the first time I think in my life, I’m on the fence about who to vote for. My spouse has a favorite, my neighbors have favorites, and I’m not really excited about anyone yet. Except for Eli’s music video. That was actually pretty great. Maybe I’ll vote for him. Why not?
@NativeNewtonian – if you go to Amy Sangiolo’s LinkedIn page you will find details of her work experience.
Peter, I don’t intend to sign up for linked in to get a candidate’s resume. It’s either public or not!
Further, I was really just playing devils advocate when I asked for her resume. You see, I plan on judging who to vote for by what I have seen in their service as a councilor. None of the 3 leading candidates are newbies: if you’ve been paying attention, you know who these three fine public servants are and what they stand for. They are all hard working, diligent, and put their heart and souls into Newton. As Bryan said, it is rare to ask for professional resumes. Look at their long records of service and judge for yourself; but please….if you can’t agree that each of them have the best interests of our City at the forefront of their campaign, you simply haven’t been paying attention, or perhaps have a hidden agenda. Thank you, Scott, Amy, and Ruthanne for giving this City so much as councilors. Best of luck to you all. And to everyone else: no matter who you vote for, please vote on Tuesday!
More illegal Richard Saunders signs sighted this morning. At least a dozen on public land along Grove Street from Rt 128 interchange to Auburn St. For someone running for Mayor, seems to not know much about Newton election laws.
Until today I felt as if any of the current councilors running for mayor would make an excellent mayor, but planned to cast my vote for Ruthanne Fuller. I now have reservations. I don’t think a personal decision about where she sent her children to school is relevant. I have no doubt she would be a strong advocate for Newton Public schools, as her work as councilor has proven, and as she herself commits to doing in her campaign materials. I do not think it is mutually exclusive to be a strong supporter of public schools, yet decide that is not the right environment for your child’s specific education needs. No problem. I get it.
However, I am disturbed by the pattern of contributions to Republican causes as outlined by her FEC filings, and wonder what that means about her priorities. OK, I understand she and Mitt Romney are long-time family friends, and can overlook that. Again, wouldn’t disqualify her from getting my vote. And I too respect Senator McCain as an individual. But why donate $3100 to his campaign (even if it was prior to Palin), and only $500 to Obama’s campaign. And why $10,000 to Massachusetts Republican Party (in 2005)? And why $5,000 to The Commonwealth PAC, Romney’s PAC to help local, state and federal Republican Candidates in 2006? I understand she now is “active in Democratic politics” and states she has been “supporting progressive candidates for many years (and that she believes) deeply in the principles and values of the Democratic Party.” But if she made those donations out of her friendship with Mitt, why not offset them with donations to progressive causes at the time? Supporting Republican candidates in the 2008 election cycle is not a “youthful indiscretion” in my mind but relevant to what priorities are near to the candidates heart. I find the election fillings troubling and hope Ruthanne can speak more fully to the issue, since I have been very impressed by her campaign to date.
I also just came across her $10,000 contribution to the Republican State Committee of Massachusetts in 2006. She can’t continue to position herself as a progressive when there’s documentation of large sums of money donated to Republican organizations and candidates. Yes, she donated money to Democrats but some during the same election cycle as when she donated larger amounts to Republicans! What is the motivation? And $10,000 to the Republican State Committee is A LOT of money. I don’t trust her and I don’t understand why anyone else would. And this isn’t even taking into account that she’s been vague with her professional history. This conversation needs to be had in the time before the November election.
I googled Ruthanne Schwartz Fuller and found the following video of her talking about how she used her HBS MBA class of 1983 in her career. She says she started in the private sector, did a few years in non profit, and then took off to be a mom. Based on her kids ages, it seems she left the work force in the early to mid 1990s. Her next part time job was Alderman. She certainly did a lot of volunteer work, not sure why she hasn’t been clear about that. Certainly there has not been 30 years of strategic planning experience. I agree I’d like to get more specifics. I also googled Scott Lennon and found the announcement when the New Sheriff announced his new Senior Leadership team, and Scott was on that memo. It also provided a summary of his professional background. Google is a good thing.
https://www.alumni.hbs.edu/campaign/making-a-difference/Pages/individual-spotlights.aspx?num=4633