I am pleased to support Jeff Thielman for state representative. Jeff and I served together on the Arlington School Committee, and I came to admire his hard work, careful research, willingness to listen to all sides on each issue we faced, and ability to build coalitions with people of different perspectives. Although we have not always agreed on every issue and we have different styles, we always worked together in a positive way and I came to appreciate and value what Jeff’s style brought to the public arena. Having to represent people in the public domain is very difficult, requires passion, fortitude and a willingness to come back to the very people who so vehemently disagree with you — Jeff has that.

Jeff took on many difficult tasks on the School Committee. He served on the team that negotiated contracts with the teachers union and other collective bargaining units, he led the School Committee during a difficult budget crisis, managed the passage of a budget that put more resources into programs that helped students, and played a pivotal role in securing funding for the five-year fiscal stability plan, which prevented catastrophic cuts to school and town programs.

The work Jeff has done around the country starting schools for low-income children and his experience as a volunteer working with street children in Peru for three years will give him a broad perspective on the issues and challenges faced by the Massachusetts Legislature. Further, his experience with the Cassin Foundation providing innovative and successful educational opportunities for inner-city youth shows his ability to think outside of the box and come up with interesting and effective solutions to difficult and long standing issues.

Jeff Thielman is well prepared to address the complexities of our state’s $27 billion budget and will be an effective advocate for our community. He is a hard worker and as an attorney with experience in public policy is uniquely qualified to attend to the needs of the people of Arlington and West Medford who turn to State Legislators for assistance.

I strongly urge my friends and neighbors to vote for Jeff Thielman on Tuesday, February 5.