Former RTM member to fill Fairfield school board vacancy

“There was grumbling that there may be a spot open on the board of ed. I heard about the resignation. After losing, people from both sides of the aisle — neighbors, friends, anyone — sent me texts saying ‘I hope this isn’t the end of your service to the town.’ ”

Crissy Kelly

FAIRFIELD — There’s a new face on the Board of Education after the Board of Selectmen appointed Crissy Kelly to fill a vacated position.

Crissy Kelly, a Republican and former Representative Town Meeting member from District 9, was appointed on Monday to fill the school board opening after member Trisha Pytko, also a Republican, resigned last week. Kelly was sworn in on Tuesday and will hold the seat until the next municipal election.

Kelly said she was encouraged by friends and colleagues to apply for the position after losing re-election for the RTM two weeks ago.

“There was grumbling that there may be a spot open on the board of ed,” she said Tuesday. “I heard about the resignation. After losing, people from both sides of the aisle — neighbors, friends, anyone — sent me texts saying ‘I hope this isn’t the end of your service to the town.’”

Kelly said she decided they were right, and filled out the application for the position. Now that she has been appointed, she said she is ready to get to work.

A former financial analyst, Kelly is a mother of four who works as a substitute in Fairfield’s schools.

In terms of experience, Kelly said she has spoken with the board in the past about a variety of issues, including the math academy and middle school recess.

“I feel like there’s different ways to address differentiation in math in elementary school,” Kelly said, noting she has a background in math.

Kelly said she is excited to look at issues of diversity, equity and inclusion and how they interact with student achievement.

“I’m hopeful that, while we are looking at that, we don’t miss the opportunity... to slice it also by gender,” she said, adding she’s passionate about not leaving girls behind in the fields of math and science. “That is not a problem that is unique to Fairfield, and it’s one that I have brought up on many occasions.”

Kelly said her first foray into the education world came in 2018 when she was one of the people leading the charge to get Fairfield middle schools to have recess or some form of free time. She said she still feels strongly about that issue — especially in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and the growing emphasis of social-emotional learning.

“That’s not what I’m going in there and pounding the table about on day one, but that’s just one of the first times I started to get involved in the process,” she said.

Kelly said one of the positive, unintended consequences of the pandemic was that more people have come to the table and gotten involved in their children’s education.

“You don’t know what you don’t know until you get involved,” she said.

Kelly, who spoke about the decision to pull one of her children out of FPS last year, said her problem was with the model in place for her child. She said it was not working for her son James, but had nothing to do with the teachers or staff in Fairfield’s schools.

“It was not a condemnation,” she said. “At the time, I had two daughters still at Ludlowe Middle School who were fine. It just didn’t work for James. We all do what we can do for our kids.”

Kelly said she is ready to “dive right in.” She hopes the board will be involved in off-ramping students from COVID-19 protocols — in an effort to get people back to normal as soon as possible.

She said she also feels a strong obligation to keep costs down, adding it is important to make sure money is being spent wisely.

“I’m excited to learn and to continue to try and serve in whatever way I can now that I’m not on the RTM anymore,” she said.