Gonzalez appointed to BOSC

MANCHESTER, N.H. – On Tuesday, the Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen (BMA) appointed Carlos Gonzalez to fill the remainder of Kelly Thomas’ term as Ward 12 representative on the Manchester Board of School Committee (BOSC).

The appointment had been delayed after another candidate, Ken Roy, submitted his resume for consideration to the position.

Traditionally, the recommended candidate of the sitting Alderman in the ward of the departing BOSC member has been accepted, although there have been exceptions, such as earlier this year when the appointment of Julie Turner to fill the BOSC vacancy in Ward 1 was delayed. That delay came from Alderman At-Large Joseph Kelly Levasseur, who requested that the BMA wait one meeting before finalizing the appointment to ensure anyone interested in submitting a resume had gotten a chance to do so, noting his view that he did not break with the prerogative of the sitting ward Alderman in that he was co-equal with all specific ward Aldermen as an Alderman At-Large.

Ward 12 Alderman Keith Hirschmann praised the bi-lingual Gonzalez for his work in the New Hampshire House of Representatives as well as his education-related volunteer efforts, particularly in regard to helping integrate the Spanish-speaking community of Manchester into the greater community as a whole.

Others on the BMA praised Gonzalez, in particular his ability to bring greater ethnic diversity to the board that would better reflect the city’s demographics. Levasseur also said that the board did not need another “edu-crat,” referring to the BOSC’s current abundance of members with direct experience as educators.

Ward 1 Alderman Kevin Cavanaugh, who nominated Turner and asked for the delay after Roy’s resume had been submitted, noted that Roy’s experience as an educator and the need for the BOSC to oppose school vouchers.

Gonzalez was confirmed by a vote of 7-5. Levasseur and Hirschmann joined Will Stewart (Ward 2), Jim Roy (Ward 4), Sebastian Sharonov (Ward 6), Ross Terrio (Ward 7) and Barbara Shaw (Ward 9) for Gonzalez. Cavanaugh was joined by Pat Long (Ward 3), Tony Sapienza (Ward 5), Dan O’Neil (At-Large), and Normand Gamache (Ward 11) in support of Roy. Bill Barry (Ward 10) was absent.

Gonzalez and Roy will face off in November’s municipal election to fill the next full-term for the seat, set to begin in January.