Letter: Dwyer is Out of Line

To the editor:

The City of Marlborough and Marlborough Public Schools have handled
the very contentious situation with Superintendent Dr. Anthony Pope
with the utmost class and respect over the past several months. There
has been quite a bit of pressure from both sides for a decision to be
made, and the School Committee has not made any drastic impulsive
decisions without gathering all of the facts beforehand. However, the
actions of one member of the Marlborough School Committee has
certainly raised some questions about a conflict of interest and
professionalism.

Margaret Dwyer, a dedicated veteran member of the school committee,
reportedly sent an email to parents on April 22 with a letter attached
addressing Mayor Arthur Vigeant, City Council President Patricia Pope,
the City Council and the School Committee in support of Dr. Pope. She
urged the parents to copy and paste the letter and pass it around in
support of Pope for the "good things he has done for the school
district". Dwyer was also part of the school committee delegation that
initially selected Dr. Pope to lead the school system. It appears that
she has a lot to gain by spreading propaganda. One has to question,
with all the angst towards Dr. Pope in light of the recent
controversy, if this were an election year, where would Dwyer stand?
Would she stand with Dr. Pope or the voters?

As a taxpayer, voter and a former Marlborough High School student, I
have to call into question Dwyer's motivations and conflict of
interest. She is a voting member of the school committee, but she has
sidestepped her colleagues to publicly lobby for Dr. Pope. In the
letter she calls herself a part of the silent majority with no
evidence to back that up. I have seen no such comment or letter from
any other member of the committee. All other members have been
particularly quiet when it comes to the sensitive details of the Pope
controversy as they are still in the midst of investigating it.

I have a suggestion for Margaret Dwyer. Let's find out if you really
are a part of the "silent majority". There is going to be a vote at
some point on Dr. Pope's fate and employment with the City of
Marlborough; let's allow our elected officials decide.

Even if Dwyer and the rest of the School Committee show that the
majority supports Pope, there are still a lot of legal matters to be
dealt with that may or may not force the school committee to relieve
Dr. Pope of his duties as Superintendent whether they would like to or
not. While we live in a democracy and while the majority may be
impressed by Pope's accolades, does the fact that 51 percent overrides 49 percent really mean that the people are being served? Should a minority just be ignored in favor of the majority no matter what? It is a question
that we should ponder moving forward.

Dwyer is out of line, and if she wants to serve the people, all 100 percent
of us, she will recuse herself when it comes time to make a decision
on Dr Pope's fate and allow her colleagues who have been objective
throughout the whole process to make the decision. I don't expect her
to because it's her right to exercise freedom of speech, but let's
allow the school committee to make a decision before sending out
propaganda-filled letters.

Michael McGuire
Marlborough