Dear Editor:

I hope you will join me in congratulating Mary Giuffra on her election to the Bronxville Board of Education.

I want to take a moment to thank all of the community members who supported my write-in candidacy for the Bronxville Board of Education. As a lifelong member of the Bronxville community, there is little more important to me than the education provided by The Bronxville School.

Since my husband and I moved to Bronxville in 1992, I have been extensively and consistently involved with the school. I have volunteered in a myriad of positions and have worked closely with both administrators and teachers in all three schools. Three of my four children recently graduated from The Bronxville School, with the fourth entering high school in the fall. I believe in providing the best possible education for the whole child, which includes academics, the arts, and athletics.

I would like to clarify statements that were made in phone calls and emails about my position on the Chambers field lights and about my integrity as a write-in candidate.

I supported the feasibility study on field lights because, as a community, we should be willing to investigate all viable options available to our school to solve the field space issue. I am neither for nor against field lights. I am, however, in favor of investigating options, discussing them with community members in open forums, and then drawing conclusions once the facts and analysis are complete and the options have been examined objectively.

With regard to the Bronxville Non-Partisan Committee (NPC), I served as a member for a three-year term, and when I agreed to run for the school board as a write-in candidate, I contacted both the NPC and the PTA. I have been encouraged frequently to consider running for the school board, but it was not until this spring that I felt I could give the time commitment it required.

Over the next five years, our community will be facing many important issues for our school, including management of a significant construction project, increasing student enrollment, implementation of the new Core Curriculum, and budgeting issues.

I believe that I have the knowledge, skills, and background necessary to evaluate these issues and make the best decisions for our entire school and community, which is why I chose to run.

Thank you again for your support.

All the best,

Mariellen Sullivan Carpenter
Bronxville, New York
May 21, 2014

Editor's note: MyhometownBronxville does not fact-check statements in letters to the editor, and the opinions do not necessarily reflect the thinking of its staff. Its objective in publishing letters to the editor is to give air to diverse thoughts and opinions of residents in the community.