Thank you for your support on Tuesday, Nov. 6. I am humbled by the outcome.

To Scarborough voters who turned out, we are all grateful you braved the weather and exercised your right to vote. You made a difference.

What can you expect from me over the next few years? My goal is to keep a balanced approach to all issues and to listen, listen, listen. Setting and achieving high educational goals is a top priority for me, to ensure our kids are well-prepared to embark on and undertake their own adult lives.

When my kids were young, as a parent, I, too, felt the need to ensure I received timely and accurate communication and that my kids got the support they deserved. To that goal, I shall strive to ensure you receive necessary support and enough meaningful information so you understand what is happening with our school system.

I feel that we need to ensure we are networking, team building and keeping enlightened with what is happening with academics, athletics, our capital investments and issues that arise over time. How we handle the consolidation law for our town and how we’ll address the immediate school needs seem to be on many folks minds. We want to keep our mission visible at all times, and where it makes sense, make adjustments and improvements.

I’m quite proud, as I am sure you are, that our residents do such a fine job at voting and doing the right thing when asked. We seem to be headed in the right direction in most areas. There are many tough issues and areas of improvement we need to address for our schools and town. It’s my hope we keep the scope manageable and our goals realistic.

Should you feel the need, you may reach me via e-mail at [email protected] or call my home at 883-6927. I am usually home after 8 p.m. I look forward to hearing from you and shall represent your views and feelings to ensure you are heard and, where possible, actions taken to remedy your needs.

For me, lifelong learning is a passion. I’m hoping to make a difference, and where possible, get kids, parents, teachers, coaches, administrators, empty nesters and retirees engaged and excited about education and our future. We have a lot of challenges facing us as a town, a state and country, and it all starts with baby steps. I am motivated to serve you.

So let’s get going.

John Cole

Scarborough