Seven write-in candidates are throwing their hats in the ring in hopes of serving on the Pioneer Valley Regional School District School Committee.
Although most of the candidates in Northfield, Leyden and Bernardston are incumbents who currently hold positions on the board, they all must run in the Nov. 3 election as write-ins as a result of school district filing errors with the Secretary of State’s Office. The district, Pioneer Superintendent Patricia Kinsella explained earlier this month, is looking to correct historical election errors that date back to 2020 with this election.
Northfield
Incumbent Reina Dastous is being challenged by Anna Bassett. However, while only one seat will officially be on the ballot, another position representing Northfield will be appointed by the town moderator. Both Dastous and Bassett said they would pursue appointment by the moderator if not elected.
Dastous, 56, has been on the School Committee since 2020. If she is able to continue serving on the board, she wants to carry on the work the committee and administration have been doing to increase the district’s academic rigor.
“I’ve been on the Policy Subcommittee, and working on updating some existing policies and working on new policies. … I feel like that’s important work to continue,” Dastous said. “And continuing to meet the needs of the district.”
She added that the School Committee is planning to build a new pavilion at Pioneer Valley Regional School, which she would like to continue supporting.
Dastous said that over the past six years, she has developed experience and understanding of the committee’s role and how to be an effective member. She added that she still has the energy and enthusiasm for the work.
“It takes a while to get to know the role and be effective as a School Committee member,” she said, “and I haven’t been on so long that I’m burnt out.”
She added that she has a good working relationship with the superintendent and her fellow committee members, and she wants to continue working to make the district the best it can be to support students.
“Our schools are where the leaders of tomorrow are trained,” Dastous said.
Bassett, 45, has lived in Northfield for eight years and grew up in the neighboring town of Bernardston. She said she wants to bring a fresh perspective and her experience as an educator to the committee, and assist in navigating developing technologies and what roles they should play in education.
“Education has such a negative tone to it right now, but being on a school committee, we need to be cognizant of those changes,” Bassett said. “The old ways may not work.”
Bassett has worked in education for more than 20 years and described her current role as an academic counselor providing support for interventionists and teachers working with students in preschool through fifth grade.
If elected, she said she would bring this experience to the district and support the schools in meeting students of all needs, from over-achievers to those who require extra support and intervention.
“I wanna see the school district continue to improve,” Bassett said. “At a small school district like Pioneer, there are so many possibilities.”
Bassett added that she would also want to be cognizant of the cost of programs and initiatives, noting that Pioneer’s faculty and staff are great educators who can likely lead trainings themselves without needing to rely on outside consultants.
“I bring in a fresh perspective,” Bassett said. “Improving doesn’t necessarily mean increased cost. … You have all this expertise in the building.”
Leyden
Similarly to Northfield, Leyden will see two seats on the ballot and one position that will be filled by an appointment by the moderator. All three current Leyden representatives — Michele Giarusso, Stephanie Arroyo and Sharon Fontaine — are seeking reelection.
Giarusso, 70, has been on the School Committee since 2020, when she was appointed to fill a vacancy. She was then elected in November 2020 and reelected in November 2024. If she secures a seat on the board moving forward, she said she would continue advocating for the expansion of electives and extracurriculars, as well as fiscal responsibility.
“I have a lot of concern about what’s going on due to the finances of the district,” said Giarusso, who also serves as town coordinator in Leyden. “I will speak up for the children and make sure they are receiving the electives we should be providing for them, and I will be speaking up about what’s affordable for the taxpayers.”
Giarusso said she believes every generation should work to improve the lives of the next, adding that she received a great public education and she wants to ensure Pioneer students also have great opportunities.
She said she would like to see the district develop a five-year budget plan. Currently, the district budgets annually; Giarusso said she would advocate for more long-term financial planning.
“I think we’re doing ourselves a disservice by not having a plan,” Giarusso said.
She hopes voters will elect her to continue the work they elected her to do in 2024. If she is not elected through write-in votes, Giarusso said she would pursue an appointment by the moderator to fill the third available Leyden seat.
Arroyo, 53, was elected to the committee in 2024, having run as a write-in candidate.
She said she hopes voters will agree to allow her to continue her work on the committee, particularly in balancing the needs of the school district with those of the towns.
“I was on the Budget Subcommittee and that was a great committee to be on,” Arroyo said.
Outside of her work with the School Committee, Arroyo runs a market garden and microbakery farmstand, which she said gives her a lot of opportunity to engage with the community. She said residents, particularly following the proposal to regionalize, have expressed feeling protective of their schools and optimistic about their future.
If she is chosen to continue serving on the board, Arroyo said she plans to support continued exploration of the options Pioneer has to maintain a vibrant, independent local school system and provide opportunities for students.
Arroyo noted she had first been appointed to the committee before being elected, and she isn’t sure whether she would pursue appointment again. She said she wants to see how the election plays out and who voters choose to represent them.
“It’s such an interesting time because so many things are coming to fruition. … I think there’s a lot of great people doing amazing work,” Arroyo said. “I think we’re headed somewhere wonderful.”
Fontaine, who declined to provide her age, had served on the School Committee for about 16 years in the early 2000s and stepped down in 2020 for personal reasons. She then returned to the committee in 2022 and is seeking another term.
She said that over her years of service, she has seen the district evolve and develop great programs to support all students, and she would support the continuation of existing efforts if chosen by voters.
“The Pioneer Valley School itself is just wonderful,” Fontaine said. “One of the biggest things I saw was the implementation of the heterogeneous grouping method. I think Pioneer was one of the first to do that.”
The heterogeneous grouping method is an educational technique where students with a diverse range of abilities and skill levels are all placed in the same classroom.
“I want to continue supporting the educational process they have now,” she added.
Fontaine added that she is proud of the district’s recent initiative to limit screen time in classrooms and said that, if she elected to continue serving, she would push to expand it.
“Right now it’s in pre-K through third grade. Hopefully, it’ll expand into the full K-12 in the next five years,” she said.
If she is not elected as a write-in candidate, Fontaine said she would consider seeking the moderator’s appointment to the committee.
Bernardston
Bernardston will have two seats on the ballot, and two incumbents have announced they are running as write-in candidates: Melissa Gerry and Gretchen Kelton. The moderator will also fill a third seat by appointment.
Kelton, 54, has been on the committee for four years. If she is chosen by voters, she said she plans to continue supporting efforts to make the district the best it can be for students, which include her grandchildren.
“Two of my grandkids go to school in this district and I want to effect change where I can,” Kelton said.
During her time on the committee, she has served on the Collective Bargaining & Personnel Subcommittee. She works in healthcare administration at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital and said she believes that experience serves her well on the committee.
“I joined the School Committee because I really want to make a difference to benefit my community,” Kelton said. “We’re all just trying to help people, whether it’s patients or students.”
Gerry, 44, was first appointed to the School Committee by the moderator to fill a vacancy, then elected to her own term in 2022. She is seeking her second elected term.
She said she is proud of the committee’s recent work on the district’s strategic plan, and if chosen by voters, she would like to continue the board’s work of overseeing the implementation of the plan and promoting an engaging, rigorous program for students.
“The goal is to continue to provide strong academics and extracurriculars to all the students in the district,” she said. “We are looking to build upon the areas we are strong.”
Gerry, who serves as chair of the School Committee, said the experience has provided her with a chance to foster stronger relationships with town officials and residents.
“I’ve been the chair for the past year, which has allowed me to really build relationships with people in the community,” Gerry said.
Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Northfield residents can cast their ballots at Town Hall, 69 Main St.; Leyden residents will vote at the Town Offices, 7 Brattleboro Road; and Bernardston residents can submit their ballots at Town Hall, 38 Church St.
