LONGMEADOW – Melanie Rothstein said she wants to channel her 20 years of experience as a mother of children in the Longmeadow school district as the basis for her campaign to win a seat on the School Committee.

She explained to Reminder Publications the youngest of her three children is currently at Longmeadow High School.

“I have witnessed and participated in many issues pertaining to Longmeadow schools for the past 21 years. From renovating/building four of our six schools to redistricting (twice), from issues of override to budget questions concerning our teachers and students,” she said.

Rothstein earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing and a paralegal certificate, both from the University of Cincinnati. She has worked in both medical and medical-legal settings.

“As the mother of young children,” she stated, “I made the decision to stop working outside of the home, and instead to focus on enriching the lives of not only my own children, but also those of other children in the town.”

Rothstein was part of the effort to place a ballot question opposing the Common Core curriculum for the November 2016 election. If the question had been placed on the ballot and passed, it would have compelled the state to remove  Common Core from the state’s curriculum framework and revert to the previous one.

In July 2016, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court found the question had been improperly certified.

Rothstein said that she is still interested in the Common Core issue and will be “watching Common Core in the background.”

She added, “Regarding national policy and more specifically, Common Core standards, I am aware that there has been a ‘revision’ of the current standards and that the revisions are currently under review.  I am interested in seeing how these revisions compare to both our pre- Common Core and current Common Core standards.”

She noted that Longmeadow had voted to stay with the Massachusetts Comprehensive Academic Survey (MCAS) but will now be administering the MCAS II test which is said is “90 percent PARCC” (Partnership for Assessment of readiness for Colleges and Careers),  the test associated with the Common Core curriculum.

She said Longmeadow residents will need to determine how to prioritize the capital projects facing the town. A new Department of Public Works complex as well as a new Senior Center have both been discussed.

The third project would be a new middle school. Rothstein noted the School Committee has sent a Statement of Interest (SOI) in seeking funding to build  a new middle school to the Massachusetts School Building Authority.

“My position is that I am in support of the submission of the statement of interest and getting the ball rolling on this project as it may take many years before a SOI is approve and an additional four to six years to complete,” she said.

She said that her role of the School Committee, if elected, would be to “keep her eyes on the children and make recommendations to the town.”

She added a new middle school is “really up to the town.”

Rothstein has attended a presentation about the current school’s condition and why a new school should be pursued, but she has reserved her opinion until she can undertake additional research. “I have to look at what’s good for the kids,” she said.

She added, “As the parent of both a daughter in high school and two college graduates I have a unique perspective on issues relating to school children of all ages which offers the insight to reflect on past actions as I make decisions to move our children forward. I have studied, researched, testified and advocated for many school issues over the years, and I now seek to put that experience into action by gaining a seat on the School Committee.”