Emily Figdor would make a terrific Portland Board of Public Education member for District 2.

Emily is a leader. She boldly goes forward, modestly does whatever grunt work is required and excels at performing high-level tasks such as research and analysis, all the while putting aside her ego in proactively bringing individuals together to work at their highest level.

I experienced Emily’s leadership firsthand while volunteering for Protect Our Neighborhood Schools when she was director. She was the first one to work, the last to stop, gave up her professional job to volunteer the hours of two full-time jobs, led a group of highly opinionated individuals, and facilitated and empowered our team to accomplish something amazing that will improve the lives of kids for decades.

Portland Public Schools are facing a potentially perilous financial future. Now more than ever, we need leaders like Emily Figdor on the school board.

John Thibodeau

Portland