School Committee Draws a Candidate

Candidates for Milford town offices will begin taking out papers next week, but already, one person has announced his candidacy for the Milford School Committee.

Scott Harrison, 35, a senior vice president at , said he plans to run for a seat on the seven-member committee.

Incumbents whose seats expire in April are Loriann Baranauskas, now serving as chairwoman, Patrick Kennelly and Mike Walsh. Kennelly said Wednesday he does not plan to run again. Walsh indicated he will seek re-election. Baranauskas could not be reached to comment.

Harrison grew up in Milford and graduated from in 1995. He and his wife, Catherine (Davis) Harrison, live on Trinity Drive with their two children. Both children attend Milford Public Schools: his daughter at , his son at .

Harrison is running for public office for the first time. He said he had been thinking about it for some time, and felt this year was the right time.

The issues he is most interested in, he said, include communications between the school system and parents, impacts of demographic change on education and capital planning, including for new schools.

, for example, is "busting at the seams," he said.

"We put a lot of Band-Aid fixes in some of our schools."

Candidates for public office can begin taking out nomination papers on Jan. 3, according to the Milford Town Clerk's office. The municipal election is April 2.