To the editor:

We all have served as former trustees on the Pelham Board of Education and know that the Pelham schools are the heart of our community. They serve an integral role in the development of our children and are one of the key reasons families move to Pelham. The increasing success of our schools is a direct result of the work this community has put into them over the years. In our experience it takes thoughtful, community-minded leaders who can bring their talent and experience to maintain and improve our Pelham schools. Theresa Mohan has repeatedly proved that she has what it takes to be that kind of leader.

Theresa, along with her husband Peter Moskowitz and their four daughters, has been a member of our community for more than 20 years. She has served in leadership roles in our schools from co-PTA president at Hutchinson Elementary School, to PTA Council, to site based council at Colonial Elementary School. Theresa’s involvement in our community does not stop with our schools. She served two terms as a trustee in the Village of Pelham, where she honed her ability to listen and solve challenging issues facing community members by building consensus and coalition. Theresa also served for many years in the role of coordinator of the Our Lady of Perpetual Help-St. Catherine’s CYO basketball program, in addition to coaching both recreation and travel sports teams.

As a candidate for the Pelham Board of Education, three things set Theresa apart:

First, her professional experience. Theresa is an attorney, advancing to lead attorney for several companies, where she also served as the secretary of the board. In addition to being general counsel, she also served as the chief of human resources. This combination of legal acumen and human-resources leadership will be enormously beneficial as Pelham gears up to address the looming challenge posed by the reality that in the next five years more than 50% of the district’s teachers are eligible to retire.

Second, Theresa has continuously had children in our schools since 2001. Her older daughters, Maggie and Katie, attended Hutchinson and Pelham Middle School, graduating from Pelham Memorial High School in 2012 and 2014, while her youngest daughters, Jamie and Erin, having attended Colonial and PMS, are currently freshman at PMHS. This decades-long experience in the Pelham schools, marked by experience with four of our six schools, gives Theresa a perspective unique among the candidates.

Third, Theresa has demonstrated collaborative leadership in our community all ready, from her service as village trustee, to her coordination of the OLPH-St. Catherine’s CYO Basketball program to her numerous volunteer roles in our schools. She has experience on public boards and in so many community roles that she is singularly prepared to hit the ground running as a board of education trustee.

Theresa is a strong candidate who will serve our community well. Please come out and vote on May 17, and please support Theresa Mohan for school board member. Thank you.

Lisa Kiernan

645 Esplanade

along with:

William Cavanagh

Martha Arden

Danton Chin

Robert Eicher

Peggy Nicholson