Rudden, 58, has served the Town of Mendon in numerous elected and
appointed positions during the past 28 years, and currently serves on the
Mendon Council on Aging’s Transportation Advisory Committee and as the town’s
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Coordinator. In addition, he is Finance Committee Chairman
for Community Partners
for Health, the state Department of Public Health’s designated Community Health
Network Area (CHNA) for the13 communities primarily served by the Milford
Regional Medical Center.
“I’m running because I am a strong supporter of education as well as a
fiscal conservative, and – as a disabled person living on a fixed income – I
understand that we need to balance every parent’s desire to give their children
the best education possible with the financial realities of our local, state
and federal government funding possibilities,” Rudden said.
“Over the years, I’ve been a vocal critic of previous school
administration’s financial policies, and I’ve realized that criticism isn’t
enough to change things. If you don’t
step forward and become part of ‘the solution,’ then you are really just part
of ‘the problem,’” the candidate said.
“I’m also approaching our local education from a different perspective
than someone with children in the Mendon-Upton School system. I have two sons who went through the system from
kindergarten through high school and are now in college. This gives me a perspective on how well the
local school system prepared them for college and for their careers
afterward. My third son attended the
Mendon-Upton system from kindergarten through eighth grade, and is now a junior
at Blackstone Valley Regional Vocational Technical High School. This gives me a
perspective on how our Mendon-Upton system compares to another local school system,”
the candidate added.
“Finally, am running because I appreciate the impact that certain
individual teachers have had on my children’s lives, and I want to make sure
that these types of positive relationships continue. In particular, former teachers Amy Hughes and
Henry Morel had deep and lasting impacts, respectively, on my son, Michael, and
my son, Timothy,” Rudden said. “I’d like to help to continue to foster an
atmosphere in which middle and high school students, in particular, are
positively mentored.”
The candidate recently helped Superintendent Joseph Marusczak apply for
one grant (albeit unsuccessfully) for a “best practices” study of the
Mendon-Upton system and also helped him explore the possibility of applying for
another in the area of substance abuse and bullying prevention. “I look forward
to helping the superintendent apply for as many grants as possible, whether or
not I am elected,” Rudden said.
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