PEA Students Attend Local Select Board Meeting

By ERIN HAN , BELLA JIN, and ROXANE PARK

When they can find time in the hectic schedule of classes, clubs, and sports, many Exonians take the short walk into town to grab dinner at Capital Thai or a smoothie from Me & Ollie’s. They may drop by Water Street Bookstore or browse the many local shops and boutiques. Although Exeter’s campus may seem like a private oasis of brick buildings and ID-entry doors, extensive collaboration between leadership at the Academy and in town is what makes these small excursions possible.

On Oct. 12, Principal Bill Rawson and Instructor in History William G. Jordan’s class participated in the town of Exeter’s Select Board Meeting, submitting questions for the Board to address and gaining a better understanding of the cooperation between the Academy and the town. The members of the Select Board, each serving for three-year terms, are elected annually in March and form the main governing body of the Town of Exeter, working with a variety of boards and committees to ensure that everything from traffic organization to energy conservation runs smoothly. Currently, the Board is composed of Niko Papakonstantis (Chair), Molly Cowan (Vice Chair), Julie D. Gilman (Clerk), Nancy Belanger, and Daniel Chartrand.

The meeting began with a reference to the traffic flow problem directed at improving pedestrian safety. After a brief promise to address the problem later on, Papakonstantis explained the difficulty of balancing townsfolk requests and technological difficulties. “One of the things I’ve learned since I’ve been on the board is, I thought you talk with folks around town, and they tell you that a crosswalk might be good here or a light might be good there, and it sounds good, but I’ve learned that sometimes these things that sound good even make it more dangerous,” he said.

Following a question on polarization, the Board agreed that it has improved significantly since the pandemic. During the pandemic, according to Cowan, Exeter, being one of the first towns in New Hampshire to issue a mask ordinance, faced pressure and isolation. Several members of the Board received threatening letters and nearly got their personal property confiscated. Gilman added that Zoom conferences made communication difficult and that even if they did face-to-face meetings, the representatives were spread so far out in an open space that it made any discussion difficult to comprehend. Gilman then concluded this discussion by saying that the spreading of misinformation via social media also added to the chaos during the pandemic.

The Board also confirmed several of the substantial projects that they expected to be on this year’s warrant. These included a plan to construct a second public safety building, several water and sewer improvements, and changes to the current police and fire stations. The stations were built nearly five decades ago, and the town has faced issues with catering to the old-fashioned facilities. For instance, the town has had to custom-order smaller-sized fire trucks to fit the current public safety building that was built in 1978. Cowan commented on the situation with a laugh, “It would be nice to stop having to special order these small trucks [and] would be an economic saving in the long run.”

Following this discussion, senior Luca Shakoori, a student in Jordan’s class, posed a question to the Board, asking what they saw as the best way to inform voters about important issues such as the safety complex and to make sure that they were well-informed of all of the various factors involved.

Cowan and Papakonstantis first spoke about the troubles they had faced in the past: organized walkthroughs, listening sessions, and other town-hosted events that were unsuccessful due to a lack of attendance and general interest. Cowan elaborated that “it can feel really frustrating…because oftentimes people are just looking at the huge price tag [attached to a project] and [naturally disregarding everything else.] ” She continued, “The Communications Advisory Committee has worked tirelessly to come up with new ways to communicate with voters and residents. We are on social media, send out newsletters, and we publicize meetings.” Papakonstantis and Cowan then shared some of the methods that had shown better results, including a 15-minute video organized by Cowan detailing the Board’s plans regarding the safety complex.

In addition, the Board members referenced sustainability projects they are exploring for the coming years. One such example is the replacement of sodium street lights with LED, which are considered to be more energy and cost efficient. Gilman described that the town’s Energy Committee has involved Exeter in the Community Power Coalition of New Hampshire, a non-profit group that purchases energy for multiple communities in bulk and distributes it at a lower cost, as well as allows the town to choose sustainable sources for the energy to be generated from.

“They might use gas-fired burners to create the electricity or biomass,” Gilman said. “With this program, you can ask for your energy to be coming from a place that uses 50% Renewable Power or 100% renewable power. You’re not going to see it divided up like that, but you want the company that we use to be able to provide the energy in different ways.”

The conversation then shifted to the expansion of store hours, a topic that many Exeter students have debated. Most retail shops in town close by 5 or 6 p.m. on weekdays. Restaurants close by 8 or 9, which students, who attend classes and sports practices until close to 6 or 7 everyday, claim do not give them enough time to visit the stores or eat dinner if they happen to miss dining hall hours.

In response, the Board members acknowledged the inconvenience for students, but also the difficulty for store owners to meet those demands. Chartrand, the owner of Water Street Bookstore himself, mentioned that although his store has been well staffed and can accommodate hours extending to 8:00 pm, many other business owners in Exeter are single-person proprietors, and staying open later might not be possible for them. Gilman added, “A couple of businesses closed during Covid either because they didn’t have help or they didn’t get enough customers because people were going out of town for food.”

Intriguingly, Chartrand shared that the presence of the Academy in Exeter is actually what historically originally limited store hours, as well as restaurants serving alcohol or having night events, in consideration of student safety and concentration.

Finally, a student asked the Board members for their perspective on the relationship between the Academy and the town. Papakonstantis answered that “before, PEA would come in periodically, but since the pandemic and since it’s ended, Principal Rawson has come in several times a year to give us an update, and we have conversations back and forth. Obviously, that’s something we’re interested in, and I know he’s interested in it as well.”

The Academy-centered portion of the meeting concluded with Principal Rawson giving a ten-minute briefing to the board on Academy updates, encompassing the school’s sustainability, construction, and event accomplishments.

Jordan’s students who attended the Select Board meeting reflected on the valuable experience of seeing a real-life example of what they were learning about in class. “In class, we’ve examined what polarization at a national level has done to local politics,” senior Andy Seals said. “We’ve [also] learned about topics including…the press and the evolution of the American political system into what it is today.”

Shakoori also detailed the atmosphere of the meeting: “The Select Board meeting felt very relaxed and friendly. I could tell each board member genuinely cared about the Town of Exeter…While the environment felt relaxing, the work they were dealing with was still important, and with every issue they approached, they ensured all their decisions would be supported by voters.” Shakoori elaborated that voters had a ballot input on the decision to apply for a grant to assist the town authorities in removing the Pickpocket Dam due to flooding concerns.

“The Select Board was very excited to have us listen in on their work and ask questions,” senior Abby Waritu said. “A lot of us didn’t get to see all that they discussed that night, since the meeting was hours long, but we were all there to listen to their answers to our questions…[those] answers showed how united and determined to help the town they were.”

“I was very impressed with how honest the Select Board members were,” Seals echoed. “They seemed to genuinely care about their constituents, and they wanted the best for the town itself.”

Papakonstantis shared a similar sentiment during the meeting. “I think if you ask each of the five of us, we’re here because we love our community,” he said. “When we walk through that doorway to come into these meetings, we are not our individual selves. We are Select Board members serving the best needs of the community and I’m very happy and proud to serve the community.”

The Board also expressed gratitude for the presence of volunteers in the town’s government. Cowan explained, “What I would say as somebody who, you know, works in politics is that New Hampshire is a state that is largely run by volunteers…New Hampshire would fall apart if it were not for volunteers.” Cowan detailed the presence of volunteers in elections, zoning and housing boards and other sectors, saying that “even the expertise of our water and sewer system is run ostensibly by a volunteer. There is such important work that happens with volunteers every day that keeps our state afloat.”

According to Rawson, he and the school’s administration are regularly involved with the Select Board’s decisions and meetings like the one on Oct. 12. “I appear before the Select Board periodically and typically consult with the Town Manager concerning what information the Select Board might like to hear,” Rawson shared. “We also have regular interactions with other town departments. Our Facilities Management team frequently communicates with the Town’s departments of public works, planning and building, tax/water/sewer, economic development, and parks and recreation. Campus Safety meets regularly with the Exeter Fire and Exeter Police Departments to discuss, among other topics, what events are taking place on campus and in the town and how the events might impact the school or town.”

Director of Facilities Management Mark Leighton commented on this frequent collaboration between the Academy and the town government’s various departments. “We communicate and collaborate frequently with [the] Department of Public Works, Parks and Recreation, and several other departments with normal operations,” Leighton said, “The majority of our major capital projects will involve some sort of permitting, so we work closely with the town’s planning and building department throughout this process so that the permitting is successful.”

In return, the Academy offers as much assistance as possible in town, including providing input for studies, supporting programs such as the Exeter Police Department’s (EPD) comfort dog program, and assisting the EPD with traffic control when they are short-staffed. Rawson acknowledged the interconnectedness of Exeter’s Academy and the town: “We are a large school community and a large physical presence in the town, so we naturally are affected by any important decisions regarding traffic or other infrastructure. That is why the town reaches out to the school for involvement, and why we try to be helpful.”

Students agree on the value of communication between the school and the town. “I’ve learned that Local Government is probably more important in the day-to-day lives of Exonians than the state or even federal government,” Seals reflected after the meeting.

Rawson also shared his hopes for Exeter students’ involvement with the town: “I want all students to take advantage of what the town has to offer and feel welcomed and appreciated by local businesses, just the way other local residents do,” he said. “It is always a plus when we participate in town events and activities – whether eating in local restaurants, attending a book signing or political event, or attending a festival, celebration, or rally in Swasey Park.”

He further advised students that “simply showing courtesy to town residents, such as by picking up our pace and waving when we cross the street, is always important.”

Students said the Oct. 12 Select Board meeting was a meaningful union between the students at the Academy and the town, providing Exonians with an opportunity to voice their questions and opinions for the community. In the coming months and years, students can expect to see the Select Board members tackle ambitious projects concerning sustainability, traffic, construction, and public safety that will continue to change and improve the Exeter experience.

“We are an important part of the town and I want everyone — students, adults and their families — to enjoy [what the town has to offer],” Rawson said.