Four new faces emerge in School Committee elections

The election year that started at a glacial pace is finally seeing some action, as four new candidates for Newton’s School Committee have emerged:

• Jenna Miara, an attorney and volunteer with two kids in Newton schools, is running for the Ward 5 seat (currently held by Vice Chair Emily Prenner);
• Mali Brodt, a school mental health counselor in Westwood who also has three kids in Newton schools, is running for the Ward 6 seat (currently held by Paul Levy);
• Bruce Hedison, a local business owner, who taught in Hudson public schools for 33 years, is running for the Ward 7 seat (recently filled by Alicia Piedalue via special election)
• And Jim Murphy, a retired teacher and administrator who served in Weston, Everett and Weymouth public schools, is running for the Ward 8 seat (held by Barry Greenstein).

And they’ve joined forces, so to speak, announcing their candidacies in a unified statement this week.

“Running for School Committee presents significant challenges for first-time candidates—including fundraising demands, complicated campaign finance rules, and city-wide campaigning. To overcome these hurdles, the candidates have formed an innovative partnership,” their joint press release reads. “Connected by their shared vision for a thriving school system that ensures educational excellence for all students, the four independent candidates will share ideas, pool resources, and work collaboratively to advocate for Newton Public Schools.”

The four are branding themselves as a collective solution to a problem in communication and understanding they say was laid bare by last year’s teacher strike.

“The candidates are not interested in relitigating the strike or assigning blame,” their joint press release reads. “Instead, they want to ensure the community never experiences that kind of division and hurt again. Their priority is to help adults work better together for the sake of Newton’s students.”

Last year’s strike not only broke records as the longest in state history, it also divided the community and eroded trust in Newton’s local government.

In fact, after the strike ended last year, Newton South teacher and Newton Teachers Association officer Ryan Normandin publicly warned the School Committee that people would be challenging them for their seats because they did not stand up against Mayor Ruthanne Fuller during contract negotiations.

“The conversation about the future of Newton schools has too often been dominated by discussions of how to do less with less,” the press release continues.

The announcement provides the 2025 local election with something the 2023 local election lacked—competitive School Committee races.