My name is Kelly McGowan Ochoa, and I am a teacher at ORRHS. I was raised in Mattapoisett and have worked at ORR for the past 25 years. I am writing to you to express my concerns for
the children of the Tri-Town, based on the current races for School Committee in each of the
communities and the race for the ORR School Committee.
Some of the candidates in these races have been trained by an organization called the Massachusetts Family Institute. This organization’s mission is “ dedicated to strengthening the family and affirming the Judeo-Christian values upon which it is based”. While strengthening families and affirming Judeo-Christian values does not sound scary, there are a few beliefs stated on their website which do concern me.
One belief is that marriage should be between a man and a woman. I know for a fact that there
are several families in the Tri-Town for whom this is not their family structure. What will be the
message that these families receive from our School Committee?
Additionally, this group has accused schools of secretly transitioning children and not telling
families. We have many students at ORR who struggle with their identities. Teachers, guidance
counselors and social workers are available to work with the student and the family. We do not
secretly encourage kids to transition, most kids come to us already with the idea of
transitioning. They can find plenty of information about it on the Internet.
The role of the School Committee is to advise the administration of the schools and help to set
policy. If these candidates who have been trained and have the backing of the Massachusetts
Family Institute are elected, what will this mean for our students and their families? I do not
wish to find out. Please look at the websites of all of the candidates before you make your
decision. I urge you to consider the following candidates for the ORR School Committee: Frances-Feliz Kearns (Mattapoisett), James Obrien (Rochester) and Margaret McSweeny (Marion). And
for the local town school committees, please consider Carly Lavin (Mattapoisett), Mary
Beauregard (Marion) and Sydney Texeira and/or Kate Duggan (Rochester).
Sincerely,
Kelly Ochoa
Spanish teacher ORRHS