EASTHAMPTON — Four newcomers and two incumbents were elected to the School Committee’s six seats on Tuesday.

Incumbents Marissa L. Carrere and Cynthia L. Kwiecinski were elected for their second, two-year term and will be joined by newcomers Alexandra Lynn Dodge, Shannon M. Dunham, Laurie A. Garcia and Jonathan M. Schmidt.

Kwiecinski had the highest vote total with 3,250 votes, followed by Carrere with 3,138 votes, Garcia with 2,971 votes, Dunham with 2,486 votes, Schmidt with 2,227 and Dodge with 2,205 votes.

Rose J. Spurgin and Marin Goldstein were not elected. They were also the last two candidates listed on the ballot. Goldstein received 2,113 votes and Spurgin garnered 1,343 votes.

Carrere, 33, said there’s a lot of exciting work to be done on the School Committee and can’t wait to start working with the new members. The committee will deal with major issues such as plans to construct a new pre-K through grade 8 school building, a search for a new superintendent and carrying out goals and plans to address a critical report by the state attorney general’s office about bias-related incidents at Easthampton High School.

Carrere is one of several committee members who said they are excited to serve alongside mayor-elect Nicole M. LaChapelle, who will also have a seat on the School Committee.

“I think she is really going to be a big supporter of the school building vote,” Carrere said, adding that LaChapelle is also focused on diversity, special education and overall equal education at the schools.

Dodge, 40, operations manager for the software company Autodesk Inc., said she’s excited to play a role in managing the school district’s finances. Dodge said she was rooting for LaChapelle, and is also eager to work with the mayor-elect.

“It’s a happy night,” she said, from the Brass Cat on Cottage Street where LaChapelle gave a victory speech.

Dunham, 42, a UTC account representative at Aerospace Alloys Inc., said she is looking forward to working on school policies and procedures, especially those for special education. She said LaChapelle has shared visions for transparency and accountability in city government.

Garcia, 55, a Spanish teacher at West Springfield High School, said it’s important to have a pubic school teacher on the committee who can conceptualize how policies will affect the school.

Schmidt, 28, the youth services librarian at the Emily Williston Memorial Library, and Kwiecinski, 61, could not be reached after the polls closed Tuesday.

Caitlin Ashworth can be reached at cashworth@gazettenet.com.]]>