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A 2011 graduate of Arlington High School, who rose to national attention for asking officials to reinstate the Pledge of Allegiance at the school, has pulled out papers to run for a seat in the School Committee, the Town Clerk's Office confirmed Tuesday.
Sean Harrington, 18, spent much of his high school career gathering 700 signatures of support for his petition to have the Pledge of Allegiance recited daily at Arlington High School. Now, he is making a run to join the committee, one of the youngest candidates to ever do so.
"I’ve always wanted to give back to Arlington, give back to the school system," Harrington said in a phone interview. "Because I just graduated high school, I have a really useful perspective that would be needed in the School Committee."
The seats occupied by committee Chair Cindy Starks and member Jeff Thielman are up for reelection in 2012. Starks has already pulled out papers for reelection, Town Clerk Stephanie Lucarelli said Tuesday.
Harrington said he is "heavily considering" a race for the School Committee, though he may not run pending resolution of a couple of personal issues. If that doesn't work, he will run for Town Meeting, he added.
Harrington and the Arlington Public Schools were thrust into the national spotlight after the School Committee deadlocked on an impassioned plea from Harrington to reinstate the Pledge of Allegiance at Arlington High School.
Though the pledge had been recited at all elementary schools and at Ottoson Middle School, it stopped being recited daily at the high school decades ago.
In August 2010, the School Committee voted unanimously to approve a new policy for all of the Arlington Public Schools mandating a daily voluntary recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance.
On Tuesday, Harrington said one of his priorities as a School Committee member would be reconnecting the committee with the Arlington community.
"There are many people who told me they feel detached from the School Committee," he said. "I don’t think that should be the case."
Harrington added he would also work on reinstating the high school's Athletics Advisory Committee.
He added a final decision on his race for School Committee would come early January.
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Arlington High School
869 Massachusetts Ave, Arlington, MA -
Arlington Public School Administration
869 Massachusetts Ave, Arlington, MA -
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Bob Sprague
6:54 am on Wednesday, December 21, 2011
YourArlington first reported this story Dec 8 (http://www.yourarlington.com/town-election/4272-harrington-12811) and The Advocate has not yet reported it.
To be fair, Patch had the first report that Joe Curro would run for selectman.
Bob Sprague
Silas Trip
12:02 pm on Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Pedro,
Please delete Blog Sprague' access to this website. I am tired of reading his endless posts that point to his own BLOG.
It is like he is trying to compete with Patch, a true news source.
He is not a newsman. Rather, he is a poseur.
Bob Sprague
12:06 pm on Wednesday, December 21, 2011
"Silas": You say that I am not a newsman, and you call for censorship. What are your qualifications to who is and who is not a journalist? I have 41 years' experience in journalism. What is your experience? In fact, who are you?
Bob Sprague
Silas Trip
12:21 pm on Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Busy day at the newsdesk of your BLOG, Sprague? It doesn't take you long to use another website to promote your own agenda.
Stop trying to drive up hits to your BLOG via a true news site that people want to use to get a unbiased story.
I have no problem with you calling yourself a "journalist". You can call yourself the "Queen of England" for all I care.
My main complaint with you is that you use other's websites to point people to your completely BIASED BLOG.
Now, why don't you go back to "publishing" completely sensitive material that your buddies on the School Commitee give you?
(ala the CB emails and the SPED map)