Candidate profile: Jim Muse for Mattapoisett School Commitee

May 12, 2021

MATTAPOISETT — From raising his two sons in town to his nine years on the School Committee, Jim Muse has been involved with the Old Rochester Regional School District in some form for 30 years.

An incumbent and chairman, he’s running for another three-year term on the Mattapoisett School Committee.

Muse said he wants to be a “resource to the town.”

“And I mean the entire town,” he added.

Muse believes the schools impact the community at large

“The tentacles of the schools go far beyond just the schools,” he said.

Muse, also a member of the ORR School Committee, has been in public service for decades. He serves on the Board of Directors for YMCA Southcoast, and he was a trustee at the Southern New England School of Law, before it became part of UMass Dartmouth.

He was also a member of the committee which oversaw the renovation of Old Hammondtown and Center schools and a member of the Mattapoisett Special Education Parents Advocacy Council.

Muse said that now, and for the foreseeable future, the biggest issue affecting the School Committee is covid.

“We’re in a pandemic, and the pandemic doesn’t end until it’s controlled around the whole world,” he said.

Muse acted as chair of the committee in the fall, when Mattapoisett parents repeatedly called for a return to full in-person learning for the district’s youngest students.

The group — Mattapoisett Concerned — also put together a petition to get the signatures of parents in favor of the return.

During those discussions, Muse was an advocate for caution. At times, he was criticized by parents for his handling of those discussions. In a few cases, criticism devolved into personal attacks.

But Muse said his intention was always to prioritize the safety of all those in the school community.

“I can tell you, all the parents in Mattapoisett were concerned,” he said.