Bridging communities together for a better Brookline

I am a near life-long resident of Brookline, current Chair of the School Commitee, and Town Meeting Member in Precinct 15. I live with my wife and 6 month old son as renters in South Brookline. A product of the Brookline Public Schools, I attended the John Pierce School for pre-school, the William H. Lincoln School for grades K-1, the Edward Devotion School for grades 2-8, and Brookline High School for grades 9-12 (Class of 2000).

I stayed local for my collegiate years, graduating from Brandeis University in 2004. I pursued my professional studies at Boston University, obtaining my Juris Doctorate in 2007.  I manage my own law practice in downtown Boston, specializing in child welfare law.

As a part of my child welfare practice, I handle child protection abuse and neglect cases, and advocate on behalf of primarily indigent parents and children in a broad spectrum of areas, including housing, substance use treatment, mental health and public education. I see firsthand what can happen to the most vulnerable members of our community when our institutions fail to adequately provide for them. I had excellent experiences growing up in Brookline, and I want our current and future generations to enjoy even better ones.

In local civic life, I was first elected to Town Meeting in 2013, where I continue to serve today. I was elected to School Committee in 2018 and then re-elected in 2021. After serving as Vice Chair for two years, my colleagues voted me into my current position as Chair of the School Committee in May of 2022. Over the last five years, I have served on many Town committees, including the Brookline Fiscal Advisory Committee, the Town-School Partnership Committee, the Land Bank Study Committee, the Naming Committee, and the Select Board Climate Action Committee, among others. 

In addition to chairing the School Committee, I have been Chair of the Policy subcommittee of the School Committee since April of 2019, and a member of the Policy subcommittee since 2018. I have also served on the Capital Improvements subcommittee (2018-2020, 2023), Finance subcommittee (2018-2023), two superintendent search subcommittees, and the Negotiations subcommittee (2022- ). During my time on the Negotiations subcommittee, we have successfully reached multiple collective-bargaining agreements with the Brookline Educators Union and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME).  

The School Department accounts for approximately 60% of our overall town budget. I have worked diligently to keep costs down while meeting the needs of our schools and our commitment to the environment.

In my spare time, I enjoy traveling with family, playing tennis, rollerblading, browsing through Booksmith, reading inspirational biographies, following the local sports teams, and walking through Lost Pond Sanctuary. 

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