The four neighborhood Area Councils are jointly hosting Zoom based debates this weekend for all contested seats in the upcoming November Newton elections. Sign up here.
Here’s the schedule:
Saturday, Oct. 16:
City Council At Large Ward 5 (1 to 1:45 p.m.)
- Deborah J. Crossley
- Andreae Downs
- Rena L. Getz
City Council Ward Councilor Ward 5 (1:50 to 2:20 p.m.)
- Debra Waller
- Bill Humphrey
School Committee At Large (2:25 to 2:55 p.m.)
- Shawn Fitzgibbons
- Paul Levy
City Council Ward Councilor Ward 6 (3:05 to 3:35 p.m.)
- Barry Bergman
- Brenda Noel
City Council At Large Ward 6 (3:40 to 4:25 p.m.)
- Alicia G. Bowman
- Victoria Danberg
- Lisa Gordon
Sunday, Oct. 17:
City Council Ward Councilor Ward 1 (1 to 1:30 p.m.)
- Maria Scribelli Greenberg
- Kevin Riffe
City Council At Large Ward 1 (1:35 to 2:20 p.m.)
- Allan J. Ciccone
- Allison Leary
- John Oliver
School Committee At Large (2:25 to 2:55 p.m.)
- Valerie Pontiff
- Kathleen Burdette Shields
City Council Ward Councilor Ward 3 (3:00 to 3:30 p.m.)
- James R. Cote
- Julia Malakie
City Council At Large Ward 3 (3:35 to 4:20 p.m.)
- Andrea Kelley
- Meryl Kessler
- Pamela A. Wright
Mayor (4:25 to 5:25 p.m.)
- Ruthanne Fuller
- Amy Mah Sangiolo
Jerry, your post has them both for Sunday 10/17. The first batch is Sat 10/16
I’m interested in the Levy vs. Fitzgibbons debate. I’m certainly put off by Levy’s scandal, but my gut tells me that his interests strongly lie with the public schools. Fitzgibbons strikes me as a “climber” i.e. he’s using this as a stepping stone to bigger and better roles. But I do take NTA’s endorsement seriously. So the debate is of particular interest to me.
@MaryLee – Oops. Fixed. Thanks
@MMCQ: Fitzgibbons has kids in NPS, so shouldn’t you also say that “his interests strongly lie with the public schools?”
Even if he is a “climber” or using the School Committee as a stepping stone to gain experience and run for another office later on, I’m not sure why that is so bad. Most competent people eventually search for roles with more responsibility. In order to get that promotion or new job, you know what you have to do? Focus and succeed at the first job and prove that you can do the work and are good at it. If and when Fitzgibbons decides to run for something else, he has to run on the record of what he accomplished and pushed for while on the SC. Doesn’t his desire for “bigger and better roles” lead one to think that he would work even harder to accomplish things on the SC?
Maybe, maybe not. I’ve seen situations both at work and things like nonprofit boards and committees where I’ve served where “climbers” have their eyes on their next move so they can’t fully focus on what they should be doing. Or they focus on campaigning for something else that they check out of their current role.. which I think happened a little with Setti Warren. Of course there’s nothing wrong with running for another office later on – as long as I can trust that they can give it their all to what they were elected to do. I’m not convinced with Shawn.
@MMQC: I can understand those concerns, definitely. I know that when Congressman Auchincloss was running in the MA-04 primary, he missed many City Council meetings. Of course, one could argue that the benefits of him being our congressman now outweigh the costs of him not being present then, but that is entirely dependent on whether one supports him.
May I ask why you said that Levy’s interests lie with the public schools, but you didn’t say that about Fitzgibbons? After all, both have/had children in NPS. Both are residents of Newton. I don’t really understand why the potential for him to run for another office means his interests don’t lie with NPS. One can care about both their personal career and their responsibilities as an elected/appointed/hired official. I fail to see a distinguishing factor in that regard – but I always like hearing what you have to say and am certainly interested in your view.
I suppose what I mean is that I get the impression that Paul’s political interests start and end with the SC. I think he will be fully devoted. Plus he isn’t part of any political clique. Yet his scandal makes me a little squeamish.
@MMQC “A little squeamish”? Yikes! What an understatement.
This is someone who should not be near the Newton school system period.
“Levy was fined $50,000 in May by the hospital board for “a serious lapse in judgment” regarding his “personal relationship with a former employee” that “created an improper appearance and became a distraction within the hospital.”
https://www.bostonherald.com/2011/01/08/paul-levys-exit-cheered-by-womens-groups/
Do we really want him representing the fate of our children. Can we trust him?
… for Gender Bias. What are we going to say to our daughters, friends, wives and mothers?
https://www.boston.com/culture/health/2013/02/06/doctor-gets-7m-in-gender-bias-suit/
Perhaps I am missing something but I would like to hear from one of his supporters how they justify turning a blind eye these lawsuits.
@Concerned. I’m not a supporter of either candidate but I read through your links and there is nothing there that is a big deal. The article in the Enquirer I mean Herald is about giving special favors to his future wife and the other one talks about a dispute between a surgeon and an anesthesiologist.
I would say to me daughter, wife, mother and friend that this a good example of someone enlarging a story to more than it was, and trying to take attention away from the issues.
Call me undecided.
MMQC,
Shawn Fitzgibbons has had a full-time position at MGH for a number of years and is committed to that position. Recently retired CEO of MGH has spoken about Shawn’s commitment to this position, his ability to work collaboratively with a wide range of people, and his high ethical standards. Shawn has never expressed an interest in any political position other than this school committee seat. All of his volunteer positions have been on nonprofit boards that serve Newton children, none of which lead to higher positions (All Newton Music School, FamilyACCESS, the Mason-Rice School Council).
Paul Levy has been a CEO. While being a CEO is an admirable achievement, it provides no experience for working on a committee where he will be one of 8 equals. He will have one vote on every issue, just like every other member. He will have an equal voice as other members of the committee do during discussions.
In this position, he will not be the Decider. What experiences has he had to prepare for this very different experience? While I understand he is unhappy with how the current NPS leadership handled the pandemic and appears to be running his campaign on that issue, he has been unable to provide a clear vision for the school system as we move forward.
The lawsuit involving the doctor resulted in a $7million settlement. No small potatoes.
Newton voters deserve to know if Mr. Levy has been able to reflect on his past behavior toward women in the workplace, and as a result, evolved in his thinking. The fact that public education is a predominantly female profession adds to the concern.
Public educators have a right to feel safe in reporting untoward behavior and/or harassment in their workplace. That means the leadership – all leaders – must be willing to address issues of gender discrimination as they arise in the workplace.
Most Democrats want America to be a Socialist nation according to Gallup Polls. . Big mommy government restrictions, censorship, and high taxes. https://news.gallup.com/poll/240725/democrats-positive-socialism-capitalism.aspx
Jane – I think being a CEO is pretty valuable experience, but if it makes you feel better Paul has also been Chair of the MA Department of Public Utilities and served on the Board of ISO-New England which is our regional electric grid, so those are two very prominent board positions for organizations a lot larger and more complicated than the Newton Public School Department. His work now is literally flying all over the world to advise CEOs. I think we are fortunate to have someone of his calibre and experience even want to do this job. So he fell in love with someone at work, and now he’s married to her and they have a son together. Whatever. I’m way less interested in his personal life, and much more interested in having a school system run by people who put my kids first, and that’s why I’m supporting Paul. Oh and by the way, you’re one of the first people to complain when things got negative in the special election for Ranalli and Barash yet you lead the way in negativity when it suits you. That’s called “hypocrisy”. Given what we just experienced during the pandemic with our schools committee failing our kids, let’s cut through all the BS and get the best leaders for our kids.
@jeanleavitt.
So you are ok with Paul abusing his power as a CEO?
https://www.bostonmagazine.com/2010/11/30/the-getaway/
Did you forget about all the women?
I agree with Jean re Paul. Newton will be fortunate to have someone of his caliber on the SC.
Interesting conversation going on at Facebook, Newton Civic Action.
Councilor Danberg accepted two $1000 donations from an Architect & Developer who are about to appear before land use. Is this ethical. I certainly think not?
Jean –
I’m not vaguely concerned about Paul’s personal life. His private life is his business and his alone. I’d never make a judgment about anyone’s life journey. At this point in my life, I’ve seen just about every version of coupling, decoupling, recoupling imaginable. I never brought up his personal life – that one was on you.
None of the very admirable positions Paul has held relate to a school committee position or local government. They are regional and state level positions and a school committee is a position that requires a thorough knowledge of the local school system. That knowledge is gained through grassroots connections to the schools over time. All of the other candidates have been involved with the school system for many years before running for the school committee.
In addition, a school committee member needs a deep understanding of the school system beyond the pandemic. The system has initiatives in the works that need attention, as well as knowledge and understanding of, and commitment to these initiatives and issues.
I believe that Paul has skills that could be extremely valuable to the city in another arena. The school committee is simply not the best fit for his skill set.
Jane – the NTA, which you’re highly active in, spent the entire 2020-2021 school year lambasting the current School Committee and the general state of NPS governance. Many parents agreed with some of the points your organization made. Paul Levy and Valerie Pontiff represent change from the status quo, and your consideration of their ideas for NPS would much appreciated. You may like what you learn, and so may many of your members.
Are these debates posted anywhere? Tried to find today’s no luck.
Jane,
When Paul took over the MWRA and the Boston Harbor clean-up, he had never run a water and sewer agency or a multi-billion dollar construction program, but he produced exemplary results. When he took over BIDMC, he had never run a hospital. but he saved the hospital and worked with the doctors and nurses and others to achieve new levels of patient care. You really think that the level of complexity of one city’s school department would be harder to learn than these massively difficult jobs?
I am disappointed by the comments in this thread and I don’t plan to engage beyond this post. Yes, of course(!) a person’s conduct and character matter and the school committee should be comprised of people with excellent character and sound judgment. Mr. Levy’s history reflects neither. Though people are focused on status and power in Newton, being a former CEO doesn’t make him (automatically) the more desirable candidate. We don’t need a “messiah” — we need a dedicated and grounded team player who knows NPS and the wider community inside and out. That would be Shawn. There has never been any indication that he is an aspiring politician, and I believe he stepped into this race to give voters another choice for the open SC Ward 6 seat. I’m so grateful he did.
I completely agree with Paul and Valery’s assessment of the NPS governance during the pandemic and so does Shawn. I’ve listened to all the candidates in contested races speak numerous times, read their websites, and I just don’t hear Paul or Valerie talking about specific educational issues. I call that a campaign strategy, but not one that will provide for a school committee that has a robust understanding of the educational issues facing NPS in the future.
Half the school committee will be new members beginning in January. Three members will walk on without a contested race and only one of those three has had significant involvement in the school system. That’s a concern. Educators want leadership that knows what’s going on in their schools, programs, their classrooms. Every new member has a learning curve when joining the city council or school committee. The question is how much of a learning curve for the school committee as a whole is too much? At what point does the situation become unwieldy?
What Jean said. I’m over the moon that Paul Levy is even willing to run for – and serve on -our School Committee, and Newton —and our students—will be much better off for it.
Jean –
Working at the local level on a committee of equals is a completely different animal. His supporters seem to think he’s going to be running the school committee. It’s not how it works. I’d be more interested in hearing about experiences he’s had where he had no more decision-making power in a group than any other member, but we keep hearing the CEO thing. There’s no CEO on the school committee.
Night all.
The School Committee has (3) primary roles:
“The School Committee in each city and town and each regional school district shall have the power to select and to terminate the Superintendent; shall review and approve budgets for public education in the district, and shall establish educational goals and policies for the schools in the district, consistent with the requirements of law and state-wide goals and standards established by the Board of Education.”
Jane has asserted her concern that Paul (as well as Shawn and Valerie) lacks the experience in the area of educational goals, and his more than fair. I would argue though, that it would be difficult to find one (let anyone two) candidates that would serve all three roles at equal levels. An argument can even be made that some of these roles have inherent conflicts of interest as lofty educational goals are what every community wants for their districts, yet budgets and resources are finite. I assume that is why there is a committee where some members are stronger in some than others – a committee of checks and balances if you will – and not a single school czar.
In the Ward 6 race, beyond the impressive caliber of credentials Paul Levy brings to the dance, I like him for this simple fact…
It has been argued by parents and teachers, that this Superintendent has operated in impunity during his tenure, especially in the early days of the pandemic, without fear of recourse or the pressure of accountability in the slow return to in person learning as compared to peer districts.
This is where I like Paul, and look no further than Shawn’s history and endorsements for contrast. From 2021 to 2020 Shawn chaired the Newton Democratic City Committee. His endorsements DIRECTLY MIRROR those of Mayor Fuller’s right down to every contested city council and school committee seat. Shawn is endorsed by Newton’s gun safety group. The same group where his wife is a founder; the same group that did not endorse Mayor Fuller citing her lack of early disclosure of the proposed gun store’s application for a license, then endorsing her anyway.
Paul is not affiliated with the Newton political social club and in fulfilling the roles of the School Committee, that is a very good thing; less swayed by local politics, and laser focused on advocating for the students and parents of NPS.
The School Committee has been incompetently ruled by the same person(s) behind the scenes for a long time now. Shawn Fitzgibbons is their candidate. Enough said.
Matt – I don’t see Paul, Valerie, and Shawn in the same category in terms of their knowledge of the school system. I referred to the three of them having similar positions on leadership problems during the pandemic year. Shawn worked remotely and oversaw the education of his children at the same time, so he understands the stress parents and students went through in a very personal way.
I’m afraid you misread the responsibilities of the school committee as laid out in the Ed Reform Act of 1993. It refers to the responsibilities of the committee as a whole. The committee as a whole reviews the budget, hires/fires the superintendent, reviews the budget, develops policy. No one member is tasked with any of these responsibilities.
His supporters think he can do any of this on his own and he can’t. For perhaps the first time in decades, he’s going to have to work as an equal among peers. He will be one of eight votes. When I hear him speak, he talks about what he did as the Decider and that’s not the position he’s running for.
Paul is associated with another political faction in the city that could very well sway his votes. In that regard, he’s no different than any other candidate.
So let me get this straight. The Newton teachers union mouth piece, Jane Frantz, is out on social media throwing a school committee candidate under the bus? The one candidate who actually wrote a book on Negotiating with unions?
Sounds like NTA is worried that parents might just get a candidate on school committee who will be skilled in union negotiations.
Jane, as you clearly have a conflict of interest here, maybe you should give it a rest…
Jane – I understand that Paul’s opponent’s campaign is running with a narrative that Paul’s having been a CEO is somehow a negative to his candidacy. Voters can decide that for themselves, just as you’ve done. I assure you, knowing Cove, Valerie, Chris, and Paul firsthand, that the difficulties experienced by NPS parents last year are quite personal to them also (as they are to me). Paul’s supporters do not think he can run the SC himself, I have not heard anyone, including Paul, ever say that. He has recently told leadership anecdotes in candidate forums about serving on Boards and, as a CEO, being evaluated by a Board. Maybe that’s getting perceived as assuming being on the SC is like being a CEO. I agree with you, it’s not. However, I do believe someone familiar with Board dynamics and willing to take some personal initiative to break institutional intertia can be a positive for NPS.
Regarding factions, it’s true Paul does not have some of his opponent’s organizational advantages, for example having union custodians standing out with signs in Newton Centre the other day. Paul’s supporters likely feel the need to compensate for that with a coordinated grassroots effort, perhaps you perceive this as another iteration of Newton’s “two-party” system. That’s not the intent, Paul has supporters across the spectrum, and speaking for myself my only loyalty is to my children, not politicians, I don’t care what side of Newton politics a candidate comes from. I’m interested in their ideas.
@Jane – the CEO of a hospital is not a “decider.” This CEO has to come up with a strategic vision and then build consensus at the board level and within his/her organization. The board votes to approves major plans and can also fire the CEO when it sees fit. I invite you to look at the membership of boards of major organizations like hospitals. It’s a who’s who of major business and non-profit leaders – in other words, no pushovers. Being able to successfully manage such a group is in and of itself a remarkable qualification for the job of school committee. I agree with those who say that we’re lucky to have someone of Paul’s experience running for SC. And talk about “aligned incentives” – the man has a son in kindergarten, and presumably has a vested interest in the strong performance of NPS for at least the next 12 years.
I am also very skeptical of how important this “inside baseball” knowledge of school politics matters. The current School Committee has performed very poorly. NPS schools opened later than peer districts; families are leaving the public system in very high numbers; and test scores continue to drop both in absolute and relative terms. We need a change of leadership at the top to right the ship. Status quo is not OK.
The $7 million gender-bias lawsuit settled against BIDMC and Paul Levy, which you and I all paid for through our health insurance premiums and copayments, was unprecedented and according to experts could only have been justified if there had been clear evidence of wrongdoing at the CEO level.
Dr. Warfield, the female plaintiff, says that she complained to Paul Levy about her mistreatment at the hands of a male doctor and LEVY DID NOTHING, then he defended the male doctor and demoted Dr. Warfield via email.
Again, the settlement was valued at $7 million but it also included a number of huge, unprecedented concessions including the naming of a clinic in the plaintiff’s honor.
Common sense dictates that this type of settlement is not something to which an innocent institution would have agreed.
It makes me sick to my stomach think that anyone, especially a woman, could write something like “I’m over the moon that Paul Levy is even willing to run.”
Emily Norton and other Paul Levy supporters, did you read the complaint? Did you read any of the press coverage? The actions attributed to Paul Levy in the settled lawsuit were INDEFENSIBLE.
People who are willing to turn the other way for their friends are the reason this crap is allowed to occur, time after time in Boston. Far too many people in power suffers from a complete lack of decency and moral leadership. Shameful.
https://www.boston.com/culture/health/2013/02/06/doctor-gets-7m-in-gender-bias-suit/
https://www.casemine.com/judgement/us/59146994add7b049342da966
Thank you Tim for your statement. Paul has also volunteered with Newton soccer programs for a very long time and has been an important advocate for safe and useable fields for our kids to play on. Yes, we need new voices on the School Committee and voices that will actually question how things are managed and not just rubber stamp our administrators. We need support for our kids and our teachers and right now most of the support has been reserved for our administrators.
I will be looking forward to watching these debates in recording. On the subject of Paul vs. Shawn, I think both candidates are well qualified. I listened to the LWV debate and to the SEPAC forum. I felt that if I thought about the issues that both candidates find important, I related better to Paul. At the SEPAC forum, Paul seemed to be the one better versed on some of the specific issues that we, sped parents, have on our minds. Like Kathy Shields mentioned at the forum, it’s a steep learning curve. I hope both candidates are spending a lot of time learning about SPED at NPS.
For the Kathy/Valerie race, I agree with some of the things that Valerie said and disagreed with others, and same can be said for Kathy. I am leaning Kathy, even if I am not 100% with her on everything. Valerie’s stance on covid measures is a strong area of disagreement for me, and it’s an important one.
Rereading this thread, it’s clear that very few Newtonians, including elected officials, have taken any time to educate themselves about Paul Levy’s past (and V14 has certainly done its part to bury the accusations as well).
The “personal life” element that people profess to be uninterested in because heck, he married the woman at the end of the day – is a small component of only ONE of these cases, i.e., the one that ultimately ended his career.
In terms of true despicableness, though, the case that people should be focused on is the gender bias lawsuit. If that settlement were to have occurred five years after it did, Levy would be ashamed to show his face in public. But thankfully for Levy, it predated MeToo, received little media coverage, and allowed Levy to avoid ever talking about it because the hospital board agreed to an out-of-court settlement.
If anyone can actually read the complaint and the details of the settlement in the $7 million gender bias suit – which went far beyond a “dispute between a surgeon and an anesthesiologist” to include allegations of misconduct at the CEO level that were credible and evidently provable based on the size and terms of the settlement – and still believe that Paul Levy deserves to be elected to any public office at the level of dogcatcher or above, then shame on you. Again, you are the reason that people in power have gotten away with this crap decade after decade in Boston.
https://www.boston.com/culture/health/2013/02/06/doctor-gets-7m-in-gender-bias-suit/
https://www.casemine.com/judgement/us/59146994add7b049342da966
“Adam B.”,
Nice try. Paul Levy was a DEFENDANT in the case – in which Dr. Warfield accused the institution of subjecting her to years of sexist treatment which she said Paul Levy did nothing to address (instead choosing to actually demote her). And as experts have opined, the only reason that BIDMC ever would have agreed to an unprecedented $7 million settlement, and the renaming of a pain clinic in the plaintiff’s honor, was if there had been clear evidence of wrongdoing by Paul Levy as alleged in the complaint.
And as I’m sure you’re aware, Newton voters can’t really decide for themselves because so many people in this town are complicit in making sure that this topic is never discussed. I’ve tried posting about this topic on V14 multiple times over the last several months, but my comments have either been deleted or queued for days so that nobody would ever read them. And the local press (so far) has refused to touch this topic.
As evidenced by this thread, even most of Paul’s critics have no real idea of the gravity of the accusations in the suit that BIDMC settled. People conflate different cases and seem to believe that the worst allegations involve Paul’s extramarital activities, when in fact those are the allegations that nobody really cares about, as Eileen McNamara said in her Boston Magazine piece.
I would love to know how the long list of individuals in this blog and in Newton government protecting Paul Levy from scrutiny would react if they ever found their daughters subjected to the treatment by the Paul Levys of the world that was described by Dr. Warfield in her complaint.
Since no one has commented on the Mayor’s race:
I cannot vote for Mayor Fuller. It’s nothing personal, but her priorities, in my opinion, are not about people, but more oriented toward business.
No one is perfect, of course, but out of a high school student population of 4000, Mayor Fuller has turned her back on 80 students who, every year since 2012, have attempted suicide, 400 who purposefully harmed themselves and 800 who suffer from clinical depression. When given an opportunity to do something about it, on the two occasions where I and others were involved, the Mayor has vigorously declined to do so. She won’t speak publicly about it or take significant action about the Youth Behavior Risk Survey results that remain unchanged since 2012.
https://www.newtonma.gov/…/sho…/27771/637261762816370000 Full report
https://www.newtonma.gov/…/sho…/27769/637261762810270000
Summary
““Suicide: The percentage of students who reported considering and attempting suicide in the 12 months prior to the survey are as follows: seriously considered (8% middle, 9% high), actually attempted (1% middle, 2% high). Similar to reported rates of self-harm and depression, rates of suicidal ideation and behavior among Newton high school students have been largely consistent since 2008: seriously considered (MS – 7% 2008, 5%, 5%, 5%, 6%, 8% 2018; HS – 9%, 7%, 9%, 8%, 8%, 9%), actually attempted (MS – 1%, <1%, 1%, <1%, <1%, 1%; HS – 3%, 2%, 4%, 2%, 2%, 2%). Rates of these behaviors among high school students are lower in Newton than in Massachusetts: seriously considered (9% Newton, 12% MA), attempted (2% Newton, 5% MA. 0"
I know there are many, including some of my friends, who support the Mayor, but I’d ask them to question the Mayor about what specific steps she has taken to bring down those shameful statistics that affect actual people, both students and parents.
I've noticed when it comes to development she's very action-oriented but when it comes to people, she hardballs school nurses and teachers.
In May, 2019, “After more than 80 percent of the educators at Newton South signed a petition asking Mayor Ruthanne Fuller not to attend graduation on June 6, due to what they called “perpetually failing contract negotiations.” When it came to school nurses, they had to picket city hall for fair wages.
https://newton.wickedlocal.com/…/newton-south-teachers… . https://www.change.org/…/residents-of-newton-ma-pay…
And when it comes to social-emotional learning (SEL), despite promises before her election where she said the right words, the Mayor has given SEL short shrift in the budget and even during this pandemic, there is no full-time Director of Social Emotional Learning in NPS, as many school districts already have. The person listed on the NPS page as Director no longer holds that position. I find that shocking.
I cannot support a person who seems to cares about the business development of Newton, but shows little desire to address the personal health issues of our children.
For a lot of years we have had plenty of people run for school committee on the primary platform that they are an NPS parent, and very involved in the PTO. I used to think of the PTO as the stepping stone to the SC. That’s not the model I personally want to see for what is essentially the Board of Directors overseeing a very large entity which is precisely what NPS is. The SC doesn’t run the schools contrary to what some believe. They don’t choose books or set curriculum. And as Matt correctly pointed out, the role is defined by statute. There’s simply no comparison on talent and experience between Paul Levy and Shawn. Paul by far the superior choice given the depth and breadth of his leadership and managerial experience. And he too has all the bona fides of NPS parent.
As for the litigation, I’d suggest not speculating so much on matters involving a candidate’s former employer. The claim was compromised into a settlement. Both sides (hospital and employee) gave up claims and importantly defenses. You don’t know whether Levy agreed to compromise the claim, whether his assent was needed or whether the hospital acted on its own. But one thing I have noticed- few successful people get to the top without making enemies and getting sued. It’s a fact of litigious American life. A little perspective please and enough of the smear tactics which I first heard from Shawn’s campaign.
@Michael,
I see you are continuing your crusade against Paul Levy from the comforts of (checks notes) Needham. Well, please note that a complaint is the document where one side sets forth their allegations (claims, charges). The document you linked to was a decision on a motion to dismiss. The standard for deciding that is for purposes of making a ruling the judge must accept all well pled facts as true – but again – SOLELY for the purpose of deciding whether the case states a cognizable legal claim. Very few cases are dismissed at this stage. This proves nothing about the truth of the facts asserted.
Thanks for taking the time to state the obvious, Lisa.
The point, which you and a handful of others are trying to obfuscate, is that Dr. Warfield’s case was settled by Beth Israel for SEVEN MILLION DOLLARS plus the renaming of the Beth Israel pain clinic in Dr. Warfield’s honor, plus an annual seminar, etc. Common sense dictates that an innocent institution would never have agreed to those terms.
So, given the terms of the settlement and the credibility of the plaintiff, I choose to believe Dr. Warfield in her accusations that she was subjected to misogyny at BIDMC and that when she complained to then-CEO Paul Levy, he refused to remedy the situation, choosing instead to defend the alleged misogynist and to demote Dr. Warfield.
A family member was involved in an employment (nothing discrimination or sexual harassment related) lawsuit. They and their new employer were sued by my relative’s former employer. Their new company covered legal costs. Even though the relative had their own lawyer who felt comfortable given time he would win the lawsuit, the new company pressured my relative to accept a settlement. They just did not want to drag it out any longer and wanted to move forward, The lesson I learned from the up close experience is that in a lawsuit settlement you cannot always reach a conclusion as to what the truth is.
I personally feel that Paul can gave real impact. He has been listening this past year to parents with students of all ages. CEOs have to have the ability to analyze complicated information from multiple sources. I think both he and Chris Brezski will not hesitate to ask questions and probe NPS leaders. Just because you ask tough questions doesn’t mean you aren’t working together. In fact asking educated questions often leads to a better end result. We need more accountability from Fleishman. The thought process has been so flawed in the last year and a half including on non Covid related issues. When you come up with a plan it’s important to acknowledge and address the potential flaws and roadblocks to success. Along with having a meaningful way to evaluate a plan’s success and failure. I do not want to hear everything is rosy when it is not, We need to have the best possible outcomes for our kids and that means being willing to acknowledge failure and/or change course if needed. The thought process has been so flawed this past year. Ex one Fleishman’s hybrid plan to start the 2020-21 school year. It wasn’t an implementable plan. The teacher piece was an afterthought. Why didn’t they start out by trying to provide information showing the buildings were safe, it just seems like common sense that you would address this issue (of course months later they actually decide to review the HVACs).
Lisa – Shawn never mentioned involvement in the PTO,
That is your opinion. Others see a different skill set as leading to excellent school committee members. Paul has been a CEO but I see nothing in his resume where he’s functioned as a member of a committee of equals. He repeats over and over, “I’ve done this or that…” but he wouldn’t be able to do that on a school committee. He’d have one vote. One.
He is not running to be a CEO of anything. Even the mayor doesn’t function as a CEO. That’s simply not how the public sector works. Past school committee members who walk in with “their” agenda as to how the committee should function have battled their way through 6-8 years of making everyone miserable and getting very little done.
For all the hub-bun leading up to the debates, the recoded videos were hard to find last night. Thank goodness for friends.
Saturday
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGHlGwiOggI
Sunday
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1hF8Weo7h4
And Jane, Paul has never said he’s going to come in and take over and be a committee of one. That’s you projecting your bias onto him.
And gee – is Shawn not a PTO parent? My error for giving him more credit than he has earned I guess. In any event, Paul’s credentials and experience are so far superior there’s simply NO comparison between the two.
Lisa – All candidates are expected to disclose information about their background – that’s been the case forever and Paul knew it when he got into this. At this point, his problems have as much to do with his supporters who deny he had difficulty dealing appropriately with women in the workplace as his original problems.
IMHO, Paul received poor political advice at the beginning of his campaign and as a result, issues from the past continue to dog him.
Jane bless your dear heart- you’ve clearly never been involved in contentious litigation that was settled short of trial. When that happens you see, no one admits fault and ordinarily a confidentiality agreement seals the deal. So absent a verdict by ones peers after a trial, there’s been no adjudication of facts and no admission of blame. (Hint: That’s one of the reasons large corporations like to resolve cases.) So everyone walks away with their reputation intact because of the lack of resolution, the lack of an airing and testing in the crucible of the courtroom. Nobody gets to say “I proved my case and the jury agreed with me.” That didn’t happen. Instead they came up with a number everyone could live with, likely a severance package for the plaintiff, and put the matter to rest. End of story until a decade plus years later when this gets dragged out as part of a Trumpian smear campaign. Ignore every other good thing a man has done in his career and focus on this garbage. Is this who we have become? Truly? Don’t bother to answer Jane – I’ve truly lost all my will to engage in these petty grievances here.
What Lisa said.
To repeat Jean: “Paul has also been Chair of the MA Department of Public Utilities and served on the Board of ISO-New England which is our regional electric grid, so those are two very prominent board positions for organizations a lot larger and more complicated than the Newton Public School Department.” So I’m not sure why Jane keeps saying Paul hasn’t served on Boards when he has served on these and more.
All the parents I know are voting based on who they think is best for their kids, period. Many people moved to Newton precisely because of our schools. The line that sticks out to me from their debate is when Paul asked Shawn why he did nothing last year to try to get our kids back into the building when it was clear so many of them were suffering, some with very serious mental health issues, due to the isolation of remote instruction. Shawn said he was too busy dealing with his own kids and working. Well plenty of parents stepped up to advocate for a return to in-person instruction, for better HVAC, for a medical advisory board, in spite of having their own jobs and kids to deal with. In contrast to Shawn’s inaction, Paul organized 300+ doctors to sign a letter to DESE urging a return to in-person instruction, and soon after receiving that letter DESE voted to do just that. One candidate has already shown himself willing to put our kids first.
Jane – Could you clarify your relationship with the Newton Teachers Association? Someone told me that you were the social media person. If this is true and if the NTA is supporting Shawn, it should be stated.
As you know, I’m a strong supporter of Paul Levy. He has a strong knowledge of Newton’s financials from his work on the Blue Ribbon Commission, which I observed for the LWVN. Since I’ve lived in Newton the school budget has grown from 1/2 to almost 2/3’s of Newton’s budget. School spending is crowding out spending on park maintenance, roads, etc. This is a big issue, I believe Paul is better able to work on it.
And I can’t help but wonder – did you vote for Ted Kennedy or Bill Clinton?
My big concern with Shawn is that he said he was too busy dealing with his own kids and working to be active last year. If that’s the case, how is he going to find the time to give the School Committee the amount of time required to do the job properly?
I like Paul a lot. There is a lot of reasons to vote for him. I applaud Paul for his ability to organize 300 plus doctors to sign the letter. That’s amazing. It’s a reason to vote for him for sure.
But I think this line of argument sparked by the Shawn’s debate answer is gross. It was an honest answer. It would have been my answer as well. You have no idea how the pandemic effected his family or his job. The fact that he focused on those during a time of sudden change doesn’t make him deficient, it makes him human. Entirely possible he didn’t have the bandwidth at that point to do anything more than take care of his family, and now, with more time and planning he has more to give.
Frankly, I find this entire school committee race to be gross. Between this criticism of Shawn as somehow unworthy because he focused on his family during the pandemic, and the criticism of Paul as being somehow tainted for life because of the events at the hospital a decade ago, I’m just done with all of this crap.
I would have gladly voted for both of them if they were running in opposite districts. They both bring something to the table. It is basically a volunteer position. Both of them want to help our kids, neither is evil or selfish. This race is somehow the ugliest I’ve seen in years in Newton, and it is for freaking school committee.
I am familiar with the letter signed by 300 doctors. However, I never heard that Paul was the main organizer of this effort prior to him saying so. Is there some objective evidence that he really was the main driver if this letter?
Bruce – the backstory is detailed here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/13xcRj23g64RGrrm_600S0-osbBfVMJ3l4mYmzZcwuR0/
Skip to the back pages for the Medical Advisory Committee and DESE engagement history.
I personally witnessed much of the grassroots zoom-by-zoom stitching together of that network that Chris Brezksi and Paul worked on, and can vouch for the events.
Adam B.
A narrative by Paul is hardly objective. Now I’m not saying he had nothing to do with it. The way I hear it described is that with him, this letter would never have been sent to DESE. It just seems that hai role is perhaps a bit exaggerated. Perhaps any signatories to the letter that read this blog could comment on the extent of his role.
Bruce we cannot prove out a hypothetical, it’s an unknown what course the world would have taken absent Paul’s involvement. Given all the intelligent motivated physicians involved yes it’s likely someone else would have made the connection to DESE at some point. I can share that just as momentum was starting in Feb to move state and local governments towards in-person school, the CDC came out with their Feb 12 Operational Guidance that was severely strict in its curtailment of school. Many physicians, especially, pediatric groups, publicly disagreed with CDC. Keep in mind nowadays every politician trips over themselves to trumpet commitment to in-person learning, but at the time it was a risky position, and many accused you of not caring about public health. During this period Paul helped connect physicians to DESE which contributed to their March 5 vote to allow in-person school. Timing is everything.
Bruce C. –
You are right in one respect that the true heroes of this story are the many physicians who stood up for what is right for our kids. However, it is also fair to say that letter would have never gone to DESE without Paul, and that letter went a long way towards restoring in-person learning in the Commonwealth.
After organizing the Newton physicians and effectively forcing a medical advisory committee into place (despite resistance from the School Committee and Mayor Fuller), we thought that was a major victory. But honestly, I still can’t say the action would have been quick enough to restore in-person learning in Newton last year.
Paul did take that group and expand it, and went to advocate at the state level. It was something that I’m not sure we had the capacity to pull off as a parent group; but having run state agencies, Paul certainly knew a lot more folks than we did.
So yes, while physicians pleaded their case to deaf ears, it took organization to make their case a political reality. That didn’t happen without Paul.
I had a front row seat to the efforts Paul went through. He has many connections to health care workers from running a hospital and being a dean at Harvard Medical School. It was extraordinary.
@fig – you wrote “The fact that [Shawn] focused on those during a time of sudden change doesn’t make him deficient, it makes him human. Entirely possible he didn’t have the bandwidth at that point to do anything more than take care of his family, and now, with more time and planning he has more to give.”
I’ve never said nor meant to imply that Shawn’s deficient. I spent years as a single parent while working and have a great deal of sympathy for what parents have gone through during this pandemic. I’m also a medical researcher and am not convinced that we aren’t going to have further high-stress periods with kids spending time at home or otherwise very needy over the next couple of years. Shawn may be a great School Committee member when his job and kids don’t need as much of his time. I just don’t think it’s a given that he will during the upcoming School Committee term. I want him to tell me why I shouldn’t worry about that, given what he said.
Meredith: Fair enough. Ask Shawn if he is now able to devote the necessary time to the job. I’m guessing he will say he is, because why run if you can’t? There is a big difference between the beginning of the pandemic and now.
The rhetoric for this campaign is still some of the worst I’ve seen during my time in Newton.
@Fig – as I wrote, I’m not willing to bet that things won’t get worse again. They may not, they may get better, but I’m just not willing to count on it. I don’t hold it against anyone if they were too overwhelmed to do anything but try to manage last year – I wasn’t exactly productive, even without a kid at home, and I know that was true of a lot of people. However, having seen how last year affected me, right now I’m not signing up for anything that might overtax me should conditions change again this year. Similarly, if someone wasn’t able to handle anything extra last year, I don’t want to expect that they’ll be able to over this coming year. Things are too uncertain.
I agree with you about the rhetoric.
I honestly think that the worst of the rhetoric in this campaign is due to Shawn’s wife, Kate. Her interactions with people about the elections range from condescending to rude to just plain obnoxious. What a horrible surrogate for Shawn’s campaign. Frankly I’m embarrassed on his behalf.
As one of the doctors who signed the letter to DESE and followed the reopening issue closely, I can tell you that Paul was the person who provided us with the advice on how to engage with state officials most effectively. It was because of his personal efforts that the letter from 300 doctors was sent in a timely fashion to DESE and the education commissioner. He created the trusted bridge between us and the decision makers.
That letter formed the basis for the state’s decision to reopen the schools. Absent that, the Newton schools were likely to have stayed in the hybrid model the rest of the year. I was impressed with his leadership, knowledge, and support as we worked to have the science lead for Newton.
I’m one of the doctors who signed the letter. There were many groups of physicians from Newton (and other cities and towns) who have expertise related to COVID-19, and have offered on multiple occasions to assist the city and NPS with their pandemic response. Many of us have, who have consulted to other entities, have written letters and emails and organized around different issues, and we all communicated with each other (being colleagues as well). In those efforts in Newton we faced mostly tepid responses at best, and lack of interest in engaging knowledgeable and experienced stake holders in the process of keeping our children and schools safe based on evolving scientific data (the current physician advisory group in Newton was created very late during the pandemic response in Newton). I can definitely attest that Paul Levy was one of the few who very early on in the pandemic became engaged and interested in listening to us, helping, learning from science, and engaging physicians who are city residents / parents in learning about pandemic response. We often didn’t hear back from many of the current school committee member we have reached out to, or from city and school officials. With regards to the letter to DESE Paul provided us excellent advice and assistance in engaging with state officials, and helped with reaching the education commissioner before an important deadline. Moreover, for more than a year now he has been consistently interested in hearing our voice, and learning the science behind recommendations around school safety. Keeping schools open, and doing so safely, is not a simple task. However, Newton had all it needed to do so, yet was often guided by fear rather than scientific data and reason.
Personally, the last two years have made me acutely aware of how important our school committee is in governing, and how critical to our schools and kids’ education is its response in times of crisis. These are key factors I will be considering when I vote in the next local elections.
The reason Paul Levy became so “engaged” on this issue was to put the teachers’ union in its place (at the behest of another union-hater in town, of course).
If you’re one of those Newtonians who loves to sock it to the little guy, then Paul’s your man.
https://www.amazon.com/Blog-Held-Powerful-Union-America/dp/1482730774
Lisa says, “Jane bless your dear heart”. This is the perfect example of the demeaning, belittling comments that Newton educators hear every day from a part of our community who see themselves as smarter, better educated, more knowledgeable than public school teachers. Greg seems to think this demeaning language is okay as well. Sorry, but it’s not. Newton educators deserve to be treated with respect – even by lawyers, Lisa. And even the head of the Newton/Needham Chamber of Commerce. Thankfully, Newton parents most often work in partnership with educators and we’re eternally grateful for their support.
I realize that there has always been an anti-union sentiment on V14, but I continue in my 13th year here posting my personal opinions. When I post, I do not represent anyone other than myself. However, to all of you who disparage teachers’ unions, this is my message: in my first year teaching, with a Master’s degree, I qualified for food stamps. Over the years, the local teachers’ unions in the two communities I’ve worked in fought to provide public educators with a living wage. No teacher could ever think of being able to buy a home in Newton on a teacher’s salary, but many are able to purchase homes in another community. That is huge.
Every contract negotiation has been hard fought, involved too many hours of educators’ time attending meetings, taking actions, and listening to members of the community who suddenly turn on us when we ask for a raise. This, by the way, is the reason why NTA does not support Paul Levy – he has been very clear that he isn’t committed to maintaining Newton’s position among the 10 “comparable communities” in terms of compensation. The only way to attract and retain the top candidates for positions in this system is to be among that group (B’line, Belmont, Lexington, Weston, Needham, and 5 others). If having “good enough” teachers is fine with you, then say it and accept it, because that will be our reality if we’re not competitive with the comparable communities.
Lucia – No I am not the Social Media person in NTA – that’s absurd. I can barely use Google Images. Nor am I the Community Relations person – someone made an error on the NTA website and it caused quite a hoopla with the anti-union folks.
I am the chair of the legislative committee – a committee of one – me. This is what I do: I keep my ear to the ground in search of people who are considering running for elected office. I then hunt around for an email address for these potential candidates and contact them to see if they would like to apply for an NTA endorsement. If they would like to, I forward their contact information to Mike Zilles who sends them a questionnaire. I also watch school committee meetings and report back relevant information to the Executive Board and the Representative Assembly, which is comprised of educators from every school in the city. As you can imagine, it’s a really high-level, powerful position (sarcasm alert).
What I am is a very outspoken woman who’s not afraid to express my opinion – even to lawyers! Sorry, guys and lawyers – that’s not going to change. My opinions are frequently at odds with just about every demographic in the city at some point or other. But typically, I get along very well with people with whom I don’t share similar political opinions. Matt Lai and I have become fast friends; Jim Cote’s always been a pal. I’m having coffee next Wednesday with someone I had an online battle with this week and I expect him to become a friend.
My complaint about V14 is that it takes itself way too seriously. When I disappear for a while, it’s because you’re all just plain too serious (read boring) for me. Anyone who knows me will tell you I like to laugh. Unfortunately, that doesn’t come out on social media. That’s okay. Carry on.
What Jane said.
@Jane
Can I highlight that you said you are a committee of one. I’m guessing that there are plenty of teachers that don’t agree with your opinion too.
I’m not ready to agree with your premise that teachers will get paid a lot more if Shawn is elected.
Maybe you know a lot more about these two than anyone else?
@ Dr. Yawetz – Thank you for playing a key part in getting our schools open. And thank you for not giving up even when NPS, the SC and the mayor did not listen to your expert advice.
I would love to hear any SC members’ (any of the 9) perspectives on why they did not engage with this group of experts.
@Jane-
Well there you go twisting my response to campaign smear tactics (which you have since carried on in another thread) into a completely different topic here. What a way to spin it. And frankly Jane, the “teachers are so disrespected” screed is getting rather old. You receive the responses you engender based on what YOU write, not what you DO. My response to you has absolutely nothing to do with whether you were or still are a teacher and I wouldn’t know either way. It has everything solely to do with the content of your post here on the topic of smearing an extremely qualified candidate with half truths, innuendo, and massive assumptions and it’s plain as day you just don’t know what the hell you’re talking about. So please… this isn’t about you or your sense and sensibilities. But if you want to roll in the mud expect to get dirty. And if you want to play on my turf, we don’t wear helmets or knee pads and we don’t cry when it hurts
Your response was very disrespectful. In the future, don’t speak to me like I am a child. (“bless your dear heart”).
Jackson Joe – “you said you are a committee of one” It was a joke. My role in the union is to find candidates who are thinking of running for office. I don’t find this particularly controversial, but whatever…
As for watching school committee meetings, members would definitely disagree that they should be watching them! As close to 100% as possible would disagree on that one! (sarcasm alert).
When asked if it was important for NPS compensation to be within range of comparable communities, Paul Levy refused to answer the question. If we want to recruit and retain the best candidates/teachers, compensation has to be somewhere in the range of those 10-12 school districts. We fell out of the range of these districts for a number of years and the last contract put us back in the middle of the pack – a solid place for the district to be. We’re never going to be in the top 5, but being in that group is important.
Jane – as a future SC member, it would be irresponsible for Paul put forth a specific negotiating position regarding compensation prior to consulting the other SC members. I thought he answered it appropriately, saying he understands competitive comp is important, without getting over his skis by citing a threshold. Shows some experience answering tough questions and having to defend those answers down the road.
Philosophical question (as it’s opening week for the NBA and watching lots of basketball tonight)….
One of the primary remits if the School Committe is to negotiate with the Unions.
In the context of sports… the most successful management/players relations are ones where the two group are neither enemies nor bear friends. By nature, this relationships are respectfully and expectedly adversarial.
If Shawn is so beloved and supported by teachers and the NTA, can he effectively negotiate on the behalf of the city and parents of Newton? Didn’t Tom Brady take less salary so management can surround him with better players?
It just feels like Paul is better suited for this role.
Adam B – Until recent years, Newton has ALWAYS been in the pack of comparable communities. it wasn’t until the last two contracts before the most recent one that Newton dropped out of that group for the first time since at least the early 80’s. I don’t have information about the years before that.
Being among the group of comparable communities was a given until recent years. If we drop out again, we don’t attract top candidates. If that’s okay with the community, then so be it.
You guys can really stick with it. I’m done for the night.
“And if you want to play on my turf, we don’t wear helmets or knee pads and we don’t cry when it hurts.”
I don’t get it – this must be a reference to some over-the-top film dialog? I googled it and couldn’t find anything. Maybe a high school comedy from the 1990s – was it Stiffler in American Pie?
@Jane Since I live with a current teacher for over 10 years, I have some insight into what is important and what is not so important to many teachers.
Yes compensation is important and good teachers are grossly underpaid in my opinion. There are many other factors that are lowering morale of teachers and you are doing these educators a disservice by strictly focusing on compensation. It makes it look like teachers are mainly interested in working a short work day, getting 3 months vacation per year and gaining maximum compensation which I know is not how the overwhelming majority look at their profession
.
Matt is correct that negotiating salaries as part of a campaign is a very unsound strategy (probably for both sides). I would suggest that you have tunnel vision focused on an incident that happened almost 25 years ago and didn’t result in any criminal charges.
Is that the way we should be looking at all of our candidates?
@Dan, since I have lived with a woman for many years, I have some insight into what is important and not so important to them. And they almost universally express disdain for charlatan “leaders” who disrespect women.
@Michael et al. I’ve been a union supporter all my life, and would like to see well represented, well compensated, happy, thriving teachers and school employees in Newton. I think that would serve us all well. In this quest, I was sad and disappointed to witness the discourse during the first year of the pandemic focus on fear, and divert from science. None of us wanted to see anyone hurt by COVID and we all wanted to keep all school employees and students safe. But the discussions at the open meetings were overwhelmed by emotion rather than reason. Those of us involved in responses of other organizations (healthcare, private sector, higher ed) to the pandemic witnessed very different discussions elsewhere. And believe me, everyone was afraid. We all want to see a city like Newton be a leader on utilizing evolving scientific data to adequately and transparently respond to this crisis. We all wanted to see the different arms of our governing bodies working together to promote such discussions. I think the pandemic is an extreme crisis, but it was a good opportunity to witness how our leadership responded to a crisis. I’m not blind to the fact that everyone running for office would like to win. I think Newton has good candidates all around but when I look at candidate now, I look at them not only through the lens of what they say they will do, but also by what they already did. At this point our COVID response has gotten to where we want it to be, even though it was a painful and too long and tortuous of a road to get here. But this is not the first crisis our schools will be facing, and when voting this time, and when reviewing all good, and well-intended candidates, this time I’m trying to decide who I would want to see involved in our next crisis response.
This is heartbreaking. If I were someone on the “observer corps” of Village 14 (where I try to stay and will retreat to – and fast), I would wonder why Paul Levy’s supporters have felt comfortable showing so much contempt for Jane Frantz and NPS educators. The ongoing dialogue around NPS’s re-opening is disheartening. Remote learning was devastating and detrimental, yet undertaken (pre-vaccine) by an extremely wide range of K-12 schools, colleges, and universities nationwide. And how many of us returned to even small office settings prior to spring of 2021? We were in a tough place, and everyone suffered –and yet there were no easy solutions during the early phase of an unprecedented crisis.
The anger and comments on V14 and on social media could drive our exceptional educators away, and I don’t know what it would take to fix that. Our educators deserve our support and respect and I’m proud to join the NTA in backing Shawn Fitzgibbons for School Committee.
I’m wondering if the above commenter is in the Civic Action group on FB. The toxicity of Shawn’s supporters is reaching Trump supporter levels. There are some obnoxious Levy supporters, too, but nothing like Shawn’s. I don’t even know how I’m voting in that race, but the ugliness is really something else.
MMQC:
Honestly, I’m at a loss to explain the attention to that race. It is as if the entire pandemic’s frustrations have been boiled down to one political contest.
Having watched other reform minded school committee members (anyone remember Geoff Epstein? Matt Miller? (clearly different voices, not comparing them, just pointing out they had strong independent voices), ), I think folks overestimate what one member of the SC can actually DO.
You know what IS super important and is just one person? The MAYOR race. Which is getting very little attention in the final stretch.
Maybe because so many Amy supporters are also Paul supporters it basically doesn’t matter, but I’m at a loss to explain how the school committee race can so dominate the political climate in town, and not just online.
On the plus side, this is all over in less than 10 days!
@Mary Mary Quite Contrary, also in the Newton Community group and the other group. I just noticed his wife posted her Cartoon in both groups again.
MMCQ – I hope you can understand that Shawn’s supporters feel the exact same way.