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Merrimack selects new school board member

By Hannah LaClaire - Staff Writer | Jun 21, 2018

MERRIMACK- Brandi Nunez, a communications consultant and parent of three sons in the Merrimack school district, will serve on the Merrimack school board for the remainder of former board member Michael Thompson’s term, after a Wednesday vote by the board.

She was sworn in immediately after the meeting and will join the rest of the board at its next meeting, July 16.

Nunez was the third candidate to be interviewed, following Jason Brodsky and Nicole LaPorte. All three candidates, the board agreed, would have brought a valuable skill set to the group.

However, having served on the budget committee last year gave Nunez an advantage, board member Cinda Guagliumi said, adding that she did the same before her term on the board and it was immensely helpful.

Nunez said during her interview that being able to help children is her “true genuine passion.”

One of the issues Nunez said she feels most strongly about is school safety, she told the board.

“No child should walk into a school and be afraid,” she said, adding that in order for children to get a quality education, they first need to feel safe.

That “quality of education” she continued, is going to be different for every child, but is ultimately when a teacher can reach a child and “reinforce whatever needs to be taught in a way they can understand it.”

One answer that seemed to set Nunez apart from the other candidates was that when she was asked how she would respond to a parent or constituent who had a concern, she did not say she would immediately bring it to the board.

Instead, Nunez said that if the issue were more an administrative or school issue, she would try to direct them to the appropriate person instead of involving the board in a non-board issue.

Nunez recognizes that everyone has an agenda, opinion and desire to improve the schools, and that while they might differ in their ideas on how to approach that, “communication is essential” and they should be “kind and friendly in our approach.”

The most difficult part of the job, she said, would be the initial learning curve and “trying to absorb as much as I can as fast as I can.”

Now that she is sworn in, she will be able to begin a new board member orientation.

Hannah LaClaire can be reached at 594-1243 or hlaclaire@nashuatelegraph.com.

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