Simmons, wife to run for Stonington school board

Endorsement comes just days after announcing he won’t seek re-election as town’s first selectman

Stonington — It appears that Rob Simmons’ political career in town is not over.

Four days after announcing he will not seek re-election as first selectman, Simmons, a Republican, was endorsed Monday by his party to run for the Board of Education.

At last Thursday’s Republican Town Committee meeting, there were no candidates to run for the school board, so members met again Monday and endorsed Simmons, his wife, Heidi, and Emma Burnside to run for the school board. The com

mittee also endorsed Austin Clark as its third candidate to run for Board of Finance.

Asked why he was running Tuesday, Simmons said he and his wife, who is a teacher, had talked about serving on the school board for a long time.

Simmons pointed out that education spending makes up the largest portion of the town’s overall budget, the schools employ the largest number of municipal employees, the middle schools have just been consolidated and the two elementary school projects are not yet complete. In addition, school officials are expected to soon ask residents to bond about $4.2 million in building upgrades primarily at the high school and middle school.

“It’s a real challenge,” he said about the work facing the school board.

“There’s an element of management when you serve on the Board of Education,” he said, adding that he is highly qualified as a manager after overseeing the operation of the town the past four years.

The Democrats have nominated current school board members Craig Esposito and Farouk Rajab to run for the board.

Simmons also has served as a member of the Board of Selectmen and the Board of Police Commissioners in addition to three terms in the U.S. House of Representatives for the 2nd District.