PITTSFIELD — Carolyn Barry, a first-time candidate for Pittsfield School Committee, said she was motivated to run for office after years of frustration with what she sees as a lack of transparency and accountability in the school system.
During an interview with Shawn Serre on WTBR’s Morning Drive, Barry cited her long-standing concerns over declining enrollment and the city’s loss of millions in school choice funds. “For years I have been asking why so many students are opting out and where is the accountability of that,” Barry said. “The city is losing $5,000 a year per student. It keeps growing every year.”
Barry said she first raised these concerns more than a decade ago, asking school officials if exit interviews were being conducted and what happened with that data. “I never really got an idea of the gist of what was going on with it,” she said. “If it’s bullying, go with the bullying. If it’s class structure and discipline, that needs to be dealt with.”
She pointed to a lack of follow-through on the release of the investigation of staff misconduct at Pittsfield High School by Bulkley Richardson and Gelinas LLP as a turning point. “The straw that broke the camel’s back was when the school committee had said that the $150,000 for the report would be made public, and it wasn’t. So there goes the trust and the transparency.”
Barry supports efforts to consolidate and restructure Pittsfield’s schools, including the proposed reconfiguration of the city’s middle schools into a grades 5–6 and grades 7–8 model, as opposed to the current two 6–8 schools. “One of the good things for that is the schools won’t be competing against each other for funding,” she said. “As long as you’re creating a safe environment for the children, I think that’s the most important thing.”
On the issue of busing—a key hurdle in the school realignment—Barry supports re-evaluating the city’s current in-house bus operations. “I’m all for trying to look and find another company to run [busing], putting things out to bid,” she said. “Everything should be revisited because things change.”
She also expressed support for consolidating Crosby Elementary and Conte Community School into a shared-campus model, calling it “fiscally responsible,” but raised concerns about universal pre-K. “There are a lot of home businesses and businesses that could be put out of business by going into that field,” she warned.
Barry favors retaining Stearns Elementary, calling it an “overperforming school” that should not be consolidated with underperforming schools.
On leadership, Barry spoke favorably of interim superintendent Latifah Phillips, saying she was “delighted” by Phillips’ interview and open to keeping her in the role permanently if she continues to perform well.
Barry believes the perception of Pittsfield schools plays a significant role in declining enrollment. “Personally, I think the city has been voting with their feet for the past however many years, because the students are marching out of the system,” she said. “That needs to be changed.”
Editor’s Note: This article is based on the October 14, 2025 broadcast of WTBR’s “Morning Drive” and was written in part using ChatGPT. To view the entire program, visit https://pittsfieldtv.org/program/?id=54127. WTBR’s “Morning Drive” airs weekdays at 7:30 a.m. on 89.7 FM in Pittsfield and 88.1 in Lee; and is simulcast on Access Pittsfield channel 1301. The full interview is available to view through PCTV Select.
