Editor's note: This letter has been corrected from the print version and is now attributed correctly.
———
In the coming weeks, we will be choosing several seats on the Windham Southeast School District board of directors. One of my choices will be to re-elect Tim Maciel.
I was lucky to serve with Tim during my tenure on the board and I found him to be a fully-engaged citizen, devoted to the future of every child in the district. In particular, he's made it his personal mission to get the voices of students represented directly at the board level. Tim's genuine commitment to civic life is rare. Equally rare is his open-minded approach to new topics. When most of us are set in our opinions and reflexively fight to defend them, Tim is flexible and not dogmatic. This isn't to say that he isn't opinionated or guided by strong beliefs. He is. But he's always been a listener and a collaborator. He never loses the perspective that people elected to office are public servants and that they are to be held to a high standard. All these traits are, again, rare.
His resume is also impressive, with master's and doctoral degrees from Harvard Graduate School of Education, work with the Peace Corps, and extensive experience in higher education.
The position of School Director is an increasingly thankless job. We're lucky to have Tim willing to do it.
Thomas Nolan
Dummerston
This letter to the editor was submitted to The Commons.