Candidate Profile: Geoffrey Coram, Reading School Committee

READING, MA — Geoffrey Coram is one of three candidates running for two seats on the School Committee April 6. There are contested races for Select Board, School Committee, Municipal Light Board and Board of Library Trustees in the 2021 Town Election.

Reading Patch asked candidates to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles over the coming weeks.

Coram is a current Town Meeting member and formerly served on the School Committee in an interim capacity. He faces the incumbent, Shawn Brandt, and challenger Sarah McLaughlin.

Coram has been a staff CAD engineer for more than 20 years.

Are you running for office in Reading? Contact Alex Newman at alex.newman@patch.com for information on being featured in a candidate profile and submitting campaign announcements to Reading Patch.

Geoffrey Coram

Age (as of Election Day)

49

Position Sought

School Committee

Family

wife Susan Coram; two daughters: one attending college remotely, one a senior at RMHS

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

No

Education

undergraduate degree from Rice University; PhD from MIT in electrical engineering

Occupation

Staff CAD Engineer, 20+ years

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

Interim School Committee member 2019; Town Meeting member since 2016

Campaign website

www.CoramForSC.com

Why are you seeking elective office?

The Reading Public Schools have done an excellent job of educating my daughters, and I would like to help ensure that same excellence for all current and future students.

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

The single most pressing issue facing all districts in Massachusetts and the country is the pandemic. The Massachusetts Education Commissioner has said districts need to get elementary students back in the district starting April 5, the day before the election, with middle and high school starting later in the month. I hope I can be helpful in that process, though it is an operational issue, and thus outside the purview of the School Committee. But if there are budget adjustments (cost center transfers) that are necessary to make this work, then I would be glad to approve them. I also think we should be prepared to continue pooled testing to catch any asymptomatic infections. Further, social/emotional and mental health repercussions of COVID may affect our school community for some time so it will be important to have adequate resources to support students with those needs.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

The main difference is that I have experienced, as a parent, all levels of the Reading Public Schools, as my younger daughter will graduate from RMHS this spring. I have also worked with two RMHS principals as PTO treasurer, which will be valuable to the School Committee as it votes to approve the hiring of the new RMHS principal in April. My experience as a PTO Treasurer and as a budget parent would also be valuable to the new principal and the new superintendent as they transition in to the district.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)?

I don't feel I'm a challenger because there are two seats open on the School Committee. Shawn Brandt has been in office one year, starting just before the coronavirus forced us into remote learning, and I applaud all the work that he and the current School Committee members for doing the best they can under the challenging circumstances of this past year.

How do you think local officials performed in responding to the coronavirus? What if anything would you have done differently?

I think our local town officials did reasonably well, given the events that were unprecedented in our lifetimes, and that many decisions were out of their hands, decided at the state or national level. I especially applaud the efforts of so many volunteers in local government, not only School Committee but also Select Board and Board of Health.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I was PTO treasurer for 12 years, at Birch Meadow, Coolidge, and RMHS; a budget parent 4 times; treasurer for two "Yes for Reading" override campaigns; and a Town Meeting Member since 2016. Additionally, I was on School Committee once already, as an interim member in 2019. All of these roles required an attention to detail, an ability to understand the complex needs of the organizations or committees I worked with, and for me to be a team player. These skills are critical to the School Committee role, and my previous volunteer roles and have prepared me well.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

Join Town Meeting. After a year or two of being a Budget Parent, communicating budget information between School Committee and the PTOs at the schools where my children were attending, someone pointed out that I should really join Town Meeting, where the actual vote on the School Committee budget occurs. It’s important to have residents at Town Meeting who can speak up to support the budget during debates – I spoke up in 2017 to oppose a $100,000 cut to the School Department budget that was proposed during Town Meeting. Also, much as I dislike the late nights of Town Meeting, it is an important part of our town government and a way to hear from residents with different concerns and priorities.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I am really committed to the idea of ensuring excellent education for all our students, and to working with the new superintendent to bring his vision of the district to life.