Greenwich Free Press (https://greenwichfreepress.com/tag/karen-hirsh/)
On Monday a complaint landed in superior court in Stamford with First Selectman Fred Camillo and the Town of Greenwich listed as plaintiffs and the Board of Education and its four Democratic members – Karen Hirsh, Laura Kostin, Sophie Koven and Kathleen Stowe – listed individually as defendants. Republican Jen Behette is described in the complaint as “purported BOE member (via an unlawful appointment),” and is also named as a defendant. Continue Reading →
During a Board of Selectmen special meeting, the 3-person board voted 2-1 in favor of seeking a temporary restraining order challenging the legality of the Board of Education’s meetings since Oct 21, 2024. In response the BOE chair pushed back, saying, “We are the Board of Ed, not the Board of Fred, and were elected to work for the children, parents, and residents of this school district, not the First Selectman.” Continue Reading →
Newly elected BOE officers are: Karen Hirsh as Board Chair, Jen Behette as Vice Chair and Laura Kostin as Secretary. Continue Reading →
During public comment GEA president Lil Perrone said she was very disappointed with recent events. “I’m personally tired of hearing about ‘the will of the people.’…At our town hall your actions, words and the decisions you are making are hurting our students and our staff. Staff morale is down. This is part of it. You need to get your house in order and start making decisions that are best. Let our Board of Education do their job. Let our teachers who are educators do their job. People who know nothing about education need to stay in their lane.” Continue Reading →
“The rationale for ratifying this vote is there has been some confusion from the public in the past days. We followed all board procedure and this is the policy of the board. And this is also the legal obligation of the board that this is how we fill the vacancy.” – Sophie Koven Continue Reading →
On Monday the BOE voted 4-1 to fill their Republican vacancy with Jen Behette. At Tuesday’s special meeting of the Selectmen, Town attorney Schellenberg said the Selectmen could appoint a qualified person to fill a vacancy on any town board of commission if that vacancy hasn’t been filled in 30 days, pursuant to CGS section 7-107. Democratic Selectperson Stone McGuigan said the BOE was a state body, not a town board of commission. Continue Reading →
“I know you have the votes because there’s four of you and three of us, but in a small town, bi-partisan system like us, this is not how it’s supposed to work. This is a level of parliamentarian moves worthy of Mitch McConnell. Just because you can do it doesn’t mean you should.” – Dr. Michael-Joseph Mercanti-Anthony Continue Reading →
“It doesn’t feel right to go and scrap an expensive geothermal system…It feels morally wrong to throw away a geothermal system.” – Board of Education member Kathleen Stowe Continue Reading →
“Is all that lost school community, all those extra cars on the road, all those students who can’t meet with teachers, really worth an extra two minutes of class time?” – Hadrian Nobay, GHS class of 2026 Continue Reading →
At Thursday’s meeting, the BOE voted 5-1 to approve a 2% raise for Schools Chief Jones. Acting chair Hirsh discussed next steps in filling the vacancy on the board. Dr. Jones said there were strong community concerns about traffic given the upcoming 18-month North St Bridge replacement project. Continue Reading →