Issues

Budget/Finance

Ray recognizes the importance of sound fiscal policy when addressing the needs of the school system and its students.  But he is also mindful of the Town’s overall financial constraints and concerns about slowing economic growth and the sustainability of annual budget increases.  A veteran of six budget seasons as a member of the School Committee, Ray has a profound appreciation for the challenges involved in striking the appropriate balance between providing essential services and maintaining commitments to taxpayers.  Ray believes that our Commonwealth needs to be held accountable for underfunded mandates such as special education, vital services to be sure, but the ever-increasing costs continue to force painful cuts in both educators and curriculum and hinders the implementation of new initiatives for our children.  The increasing frequency of unfunded mandates also takes its toll both economically and operationally.  Ray looks forward to continuing to leverage his strong ties to our state legislators to address this growing concern.  All of these factors come into play as Ray renews his commitment to ensuring that all children in Hingham receive the best quality education to which they are entitled.

Facilities 

As the appointed Chairman of the School Building Committee since May 2011, Ray  worked with his fellow committee members to ensure the successful execution and completion of the new Middle School, which opened to students and faculty in September 2014, on time and nearly $4.5 million under the Town Meeting appropriation.  It was extremely gratifying to finally see facility and overcrowding conditions addressed in a long-term, affordable manner.  Having also played an instrumental role in the development and construction of the High School Fields Project, including bringing artificial turf and field lights to Hingham, Ray was honored to help make those much-needed improvements a reality.

Personnel

Hingham must continue to attract the most talented and dedicated teachers and administrators possible in order to maintain the high quality of education we have come to expect.  Through continued benchmarking with similarly situated towns, and a fair but prudent approach to contract negotiation, Hingham can afford the best and brightest for our children.  Ray played an integral role in the successful negotiation of new contracts with all six unions twice during his tenure and looks forward to that challenge yet again in the coming year.

Quality of Services 

While the quality of education we deliver remains high, we must continue to strive for more.  Changes in curriculum and high stakes standardized testing and the incorporation of the newest technologies into our classrooms are just a sampling of the many challenges that lie ahead.  We owe it to our children to give them every possible opportunity to succeed.  Ray is eager to continue this challenging but rewarding work!