Kathy Ehlers resigns from Brockton School Committee. How will the Ward 1 seat be filled?

Christopher Butler, The Enterprise
·2 min read

BROCKTON - Ward 1 Brockton School Committee member and former committee Vice Chair Kathy Ehlers has resigned from her position on the board effective March 20. Ehlers was half way through her second term on the board, which was due to expire in 2025.

Ehlers’ chair was sitting empty at Tuesday night’s committee meeting where Brockton Mayor Robert Sullivan, who also serves as School Committee chair, announced Ehlers’ departure.

Ehlers told The Enterprise on Monday she’s starting a new job in Vermont, leading her to resign from her role on the board. She could not be reached for further comment on her resignation.

From left, Brockton School Committee member Claudio Gomes and Vice Chair Kathleen Ehlers at a School Committee meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2024
From left, Brockton School Committee member Claudio Gomes and Vice Chair Kathleen Ehlers at a School Committee meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2024

How long has Ehlers served?

In her third year on the board, Ehlers was reelected to her seat on the School Committee, running unopposed, in November. She joined the committee after running unopposed in 2021.

Brockton School Committee Vice-Chair Kathleen Ehlers at a meeting on Tuesday, May 16 at Brockton High School.
Brockton School Committee Vice-Chair Kathleen Ehlers at a meeting on Tuesday, May 16 at Brockton High School.

She served as the committee’s vice chair throughout 2023 following two tied 4-4 votes at last year’s organizational meeting.

Outside of the committee, Ehlers works as the vice president of enrollment management, financial services and marketing at Urban College of Boston and has a master's in education from Southern New Hampshire University, according to her LinkedIn profile.

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Who will take the Ward 1 seat?

According to Brockton City Clerk Timothy Cruise, the City Council and School Committee will meet for a "joint convention" to nominate and vote for Ehlers' replacement, who will serve throughout the remainder of the term. That meeting hasn't been planned yet but Cruise said it'll likely take place in the next two and a half weeks.

Brockton city Mayor and School Committee Chairman Robert Sullivan, along with fellow committee member Kathleen Ehlers, listen to the students of Brockton High School and their parents as they all weigh in on issues concerning the school such as dressing standards, cell phone use, and safety, at a meeting of the Brockton School Committee Open Forum held at the high school cafeteria on Tuesday, July 11, 2023.

Once City Council President Moises Rodrigues calls the meeting, the 18 total members of both boards will nominate any duly qualified voters residing in Ward 1, Cruise said. The first nominee to receive a majority of the votes, in this case 10 of the 18 electors, will take Ehlers' seat.

This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: Kathy Ehlers resigns from Brockton School Committee, takes Vermont job