Retired cop is mayor’s PICK TO fill vacancy
City Council to have say on fifth member of School Committee
WOONSOCKET — Citing heightened concerns about school security after a mass shooting at a Florida high school last month, Mayor Lisa Baldelli-Hunt has named a retired city policeman as her next choice to fill the last remaining vacancy on the School Committee.
Brian J. Kane is a 26-year veteran of the Woonsocket Police Department who retired as a detective sergeant in 2005. Kane is a lifelong city resident who also served on the search committee that led to the hiring of Police Chief Thomas F. Oates III in 2016.
A father of two children who attended public schools, Kane is also a former youth baseball coach and has been active in the Woonsocket High School Music Boosters organization. Though he’s retired from the WPD, Kane is currently employed as an agent in the Rhode Island Office of Child Support Services, according to the mayor.
“It is of paramount importance that we are able to bring his perspective to the School Committee,” Baldelli-Hunt said. “I want to do the very best I can to make sure our teachers and students are safe.”
The headlines have been dominated by stories about school security, gun control and the National Rifle Association after a troubled teenager armed
“It is of paramount importance that we are able to bring his perspective to the School Committee. I want to do the very best I can to make sure our teachers and students are safe.”
—Mayor Lisa Baldelli-Hunt on School Committee pick of Brian J. Kane
“I won’t say I won’t support the guy, but... I don’t know anything about this individual.”
—Council President Dan Gendron on Kane
with an AR-15 assault rifle went on a rampage at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., killing 17 students and teachers on Valentine’s Day.
If approved by the City Council – the proposed appointment is up for a vote on Monday – Kane would fill a seat on the five-member School Committee that’s been empty since mid-December.
But it would be surprising if the council confirms Kane. The only reason the committee seat has been open for so long is that the council has told Baldelli-Hunt it won’t consider anyone other than the person who last filled it – former Vice Chairman Donald Burke.
An educator with 40 years experience, Burke, 64, is an English teacher at Bridgewater-Raynham High School who gained a loyal following as a member of the committee during his first term. Teachers, fellow School Committee members and parents have been appearing at council meetings for more than a month to lobby on his behalf. A petition launched by one parent on the website
calling on the mayor to reappoint Burke, has garnered 120 signatures.
“He works with dedication and passion for the students and schools of the Woonsocket Education Department,” Brenda Galvin’s petition says. “Mr. Burke attends almost every school and local function, supporting our students in many ways. He has even been there to support the families of the students we have lost to tragedies. This gentleman truly cares about the well-being and educational needs of all the students of Woonsocket. These things are not in his school committee job description, but he goes above and beyond to ensure he is there on his own personal time to serve the needs of this community and our children. He is truly an asset to the students in the Woonsocket Education Department and it would be such a shame and a loss to the district if he were not appointed again to the Woonsocket School Committee.”
Despite the popular sup- port, the mayor has said she will not reappoint Burke. Councilors and some of Burke’s allies on the committee say the reason is that the mayor has had a falling out with Burke after a brouhaha over a lawsuit that might have enabled the city to sell Barry Field. But the mayor denies that, saying it’s her prerogative to appoint people with skill sets she believes are in particular demand as the need arises.
The council already rejected the mayor’s first choice for Burke’s successor, Joyce Conti, also a seasoned educator.
Until several weeks ago, there had been two vacancies on the committee, leaving just three members – Chairman Soren Seale, Valerie Gonzales and Paul Bourget – the minimum needed for a voting quorum. Amid concerns from parents and the existing members, the council appointed Steve Lima to lessen the likelihood that the committee might be unable to have a meeting due to an unexpected absence.
During a session of the School Committee this week, however, Lima was absent from what would have been his second regular meeting. One person who attended as a spectator was Burke.
Reached for comment about the mayor’s choice, members of the council stopped short of saying they wouldn’t confirm Kane. But they said they were surprised Baldelli-Hunt had not given them a resolution to reappoint Burke and expressed disappointment that she had not reached out to see whether Kane was someone they could support before committing his name to a resolution on the council docket.
“I won’t say I won’t support the guy, but I thought I made it clear I expected a resolution to reappoint Don Burke,” said Council President Dan Gendron. “I don’t know anything about this individual.”
Similarly, Councilman James Cournoyer said, “I think it’s incumbent on the mayor, before she puts somebody’s name out there in public, she might have some conversation and dialogue with the council to see whether there’s some support for that individual.”