The election is March 26.
LUDLOW – Two candidates seeking a single seat on the School Committee said at a forum on Monday that Ludlow schools need to improve student achievement.
For a three-year term on the School Committee, Deborah A. Stephenson is trying to unseat three-year incumbent Jacob Oliveira in the March 26 town election.
At a forum held Monday at Ludlow High School, Stephenson said the school district needs to improve student performance on state MCAS tests.
“We are below the state average in 13 of 17 test categories,” Stephenson said. She said Wilbraham, East Longmeadow and Belchertown all have higher test scores.
Oliveira said the school district in recent years has moved out of corrective action with the state. Students have moved from a level 4 to a level 2 in some areas, he said.
Oliveira said the school district must do more to foster student achievement at all levels.
He said that while 90 percent of Ludlow students go on to college, some require remedial education in math and English once they get to college.
“We need to better align our curriculum with college standards,” Oliveira said.
Oliveira said more needs to be done to give students college aspirations in eighth grade, before they get to high school.
Oliveira, 25, a fourth generation Ludlow resident, said he works as assistant executive officer to the state University Council of Presidents.
Stephenson, director of human resources at Country Bank in Ware, served on the committee which recommended the new superintendent.
The School Committee last week voted to offer Todd H. Gazda, principal of Gateway Regional Middle School in Huntington, the school superintendent post. Gazda has accepted the position.
Stephenson said she has experience as “a parent.”
“Let me be a voice for you on the School Committee,” she said.
“We need to reach out to parents and get parents involved,” she said.
Oliveira said a quality education is “a great equalizer.”
Stephenson said that if she is elected, she will “keep resources focused on the classroom.”
Oliveira said that if he is reelected, he will work to improve the school district’s four-year college acceptance rate.
The election will be held March 26.