March 29, 2024

Joel Monteiro seeks At Large School Committee Seat

Joel Monteiro to Seek School Committee-At-Large Seat “Passion for East Providence”

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Joel Monteiro, a 41 year old father of two, has announced that he is a candidate for the East Providence School Committee at-large seat being vacated by two term member Luisa Abatecola who will not seek re-election. In an interview with the ReporterToday.com, Monteiro said that he has a passion and concern for the kids of East Providence. “I have been meeting with people and discussing ways in which I can help,” said Monteiro. “My family is on board and I’m ready to give it my best.” Monteiro and his wife Marti reside on Intervale avenue with their two children; a 3rd grader at Kent Heights School and a 6th grader at Martin Middle School. "I am eager to meet voters throughout the city,” he said. Monteiro is a political novist although he has been active in several community groups. “At the end of every day my reputation is on the line. I will vote on matters that best meet the needs of our kids and taxpayers. I’m new to this and I’m not a big fan of politics as most people know it. I plan on being fair to everyone with only our student’s best interest at heart,” he said. “This open seat is a good opportunity for me to step up and help our city,” Monteiro added. “I plan on doing a lot of sit-downs with parents, teachers and anyone with a role in our schools. I want to understand everyone’s positions and also learn from the state budget commission role here. Hopefully we will soon get our city back on track and avoid the prior issues that put us in trouble. Fiscal responsibility is a must if we are to do this,” he said. Monteiro was asked about the low teacher morale noted in the city. “It must be addressed. We have to find a way to support our teachers and become fiscally responsible. It is vital to have a first class school system for us to move on,” he said. “There will be a mutually beneficial solution to these matters if all parties remain honest and work hard together,” Monteiro said.

Monteiro said that his number one priority will be to establish stable finances while boosting teacher morale and preparing our graduates for work and college. “I am part of a national sales team which has success by competing globally with job development. We fail our kids if we don’t prepare them well,” said Monteiro.

Monteiro is also prepared to continue the trend of consolidation of city and school administrative positions to save money. “Most of these consolidations can and are working well,” he said. “However, it is critical to make sure we are not watering down our efficiency anywhere. At the end of the day, our efforts to manage our schools well must be more than just a line item.” Monteiro said that he has gone to budget commission hearings and he has talked with commission chair Michael O’Keefe. “I suggested that we don’t let any short term cuts creep back and find another line item. Justified cuts must be real and must make some basic sense without critically weakening any efficiency of effort,” he said.

Monteiro, 41, works as a New England/New York manager for the country’s largest dental equipment maker and dental consumables producer. He is active in Little League and had been a youth football coach. He is a 1989 East Providence High graduate and a 1993 graduate of URI with a bachelor’s in Business. “I want to listen and learn and offer all that I can to do my part to help our city school system become the best.”

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