Educate yourself before the election
To the Editor:
The League of Women Voters of Wayland has created a list of resources for voters with information about the ballot questions and candidates. We urge people to visit lwvwayland.org to learn more as they plan their votes in the November election. In particular, voters can visit Vote411.org to see the list of races and candidates on their ballots. For information about the nine ballot questions, voters can also find a link to a webinar produced by the Acton Area League of Women Voters with facts on each, including what a “yes” vote and a “no” vote mean in plain and clear language and who is funding each side of the questions. Voters can also find links to the information provided by the Secretary of State and to the Wayland Town Clerk, including a list of early voting hours.
Wayland voters, don’t forget to vote. Remember, democracy is not a spectator sport!
Mary Antes and Sue Flicop
League of Women Voters of Wayland
Fight big-money donations, join LWV
I believe the country I love is at a crossroads. Conduct once unimaginable among top elected officials has become commonplace, while billionaire donors have fueled corruption and tilted the political system against ordinary Americans.
Standing by is not an option. I do not want to look back 20 years from now and wonder why I failed to act. Yet I have never belonged to a political party, and no one person can solve every problem.
I chose to focus on two priorities: reducing influence of big-money donations and protecting voting rights. To address the first, I joined a nonpartisan organization (fightcorruption.us) supporting a Constitutional amendment to limit big money in politics. To address the second, I joined the League of Women Voters.
The League is well known for providing nonpartisan voter education, but its mission goes further. Although it never supports or opposes parties or candidates, it advocates based on the core principles of empowering voters and defending democracy.
In 2026, our advocacy included a lawsuit by the League and other voting-rights groups challenging President Trump’s March 31 executive order on mail-in voting. Our coalition prevailed in federal district court in Boston, on appeal, and before the Supreme Court.
Founded in 1920, the year the 19th Amendment granted women the right to vote, the League has spent more than a century advancing its core principles. I am proud to contribute to this work. That’s why I joined.
Marie Fagan
Graybirch Lane
Beyond the Loker controversy
I served eight years on the Acton and Acton-Boxborough school committees and recognize that difficult educational decisions rarely satisfy everyone. A consistent process cannot eliminate disagreement, but it can help people understand decisions they may not support.
The recent controversy over instrumental music instruction at Loker Elementary offers an opportunity to examine how Wayland’s decision-making process is applied. When schools face competing demands on instructional time, how does the district reevaluate existing programs and consider new ones?
Introducing an educational initiative requires more than assessing its immediate benefits. It means anticipating long-term demands on staffing, scheduling, resources, and existing commitments. Equally important is periodically reassessing established programs as educational needs and requirements change.
A consistent process provides common criteria for evaluating needs, considering alternatives, weighing tradeoffs, and identifying anticipated results. It helps decision-makers recognize how meeting one educational need may affect other commitments, even when compromises are unavoidable. It also promotes equitable treatment across schools and continuity as administrators and School Committee members change.
Measuring actual results against anticipated outcomes provides a basis for revisiting decisions. Explaining the considerations and tradeoffs behind the Loker pilot could move public discussion beyond competing programs and toward understanding how decisions are reached.
Transparency about the process can build public confidence even when the outcome remains controversial.
Jacqueline Watkins
Forty Acres Drive
