To the Editor:
On May 21, the Voorheesville Central School District will be holding its election for board of education. As someone who is running for one of the two seats which are up, and who has an unwavering commitment to public education, I am asking for your support.

My family has lived in Voorheesville for 12 years. My wife, Erika, is an occupational therapist and my daughters, Molly and Abby, are a senior and sophomore at Clayton A. Bouton High School. I am an attorney and work for New York State United Teachers.

In that position, I practice largely in the areas of education, labor, employment, administrative, and constitutional law. Before that, I was with a law firm in Syracuse, practicing in largely the same areas of law, but also including the representation of families and students in special-education matters.

I believe passionately in public education. That may seem like a hackneyed statement, but it carries a great deal for me. I am a proud product of public education, and my father was a public school teacher for over 20 years.

Education is without a doubt among the most important services taxpayers provide and it should be protected, preserved, and improved with all of our will and might. As a board member, that is exactly what I would fight to do.

My qualifications for the board extend beyond my passion and interest. Not only do I have knowledge of education law and policy, I also have significant experience working collaboratively on and with other boards and organizations, such as the Clinton Community College Foundation, which I chair, and as a trustee for a pension plan that manages approximately $414 million in assets.

As a Voorheesville School Board member, I would commit to being vigilant, deliberative, and curious, and always willing to listen and learn — particularly on matters in which others have more expertise than I do.

The coming years in education have the potential to be active and exciting. For example, our State Education Department’s Board of Regents recently created a Blue Ribbon Commission to examine and rethink our state’s graduation requirements.

In November 2023, that commission issued its recommendations and, in the coming months and years, the Board of Regents may be considering and implementing changes that will likely require school board cooperation and involvement. I believe I can be an asset in that process.

As a part of adulting, we are tasked with the solemn obligation of working every single day to leave our children a society they will feel safe in, can be proud of, and build upon.

In that same vein, and as so poignantly put by Marian Wright Edelman, “Education is for improving the lives of others and for leaving your community and world better than you found it.” And that is exactly what I want to be a part of as a voice for the Voorheesville community.

I look forward to meeting as many of you as I can between now and May 21, and to answering any questions you may have about my candidacy and ideas.  

Matt Bergeron, Candidate for Voorheesville School Board