I am writing to give my enthusiastic support for Dionna Carlson, who is running for First Selectman of New Canaan. As a former NCHS PFA & Saxe PTC President and longtime volunteer in our school district, I am very familiar with Dionna’s leadership as Chair of the Board of Education. She was always respectful, transparent, collaborative, and inclusive – engaging with all members of her Board, the administration, faculty, and the residents of New Canaan – partisan politics never came into play. She made herself available to listen to any concerns at arose from members of the community. Her proven leadership should give confidence to all our residents that she will bring the same work ethic and commitment to the role of First Selectman of New Canaan – all are welcome and included.
Aside from her collaborative nature, during her two terms on the Board of Education, she was well informed on every topic that was presented and diligently did her homework. She asked thoughtful, insightful questions and her decisions were based on the input of residents and the data and other information provided. She was not afraid to go against group think in search of more optimal solutions to ensure that ALL families in New Canaan were well represented by the Board’s final decisions. She did not cave to immense pressure on topics that could sometime be contentious. Instead, she found a way to break through the noise and get to the heart of the issue to ensure concerns were thoroughly discussed, properly addressed and resulted in balanced decisions. Her leadership as Chair of the Board of Education focused on collaboration and continuous improvement and that is what Dionna will now bring to the Office of First Selectman. To that point, she was personally thanked by a former school administrator for her efforts made to encourage the administration to get to even better solution on a recent contentious issue.
Dionna Carlson will bring collaboration, transparency, open communication to the office of First Selectman. These skills, along with her strong financial services background and local municipal leadership experience make her the best candidate for First Selectman. She will ensure that decisions are made with ALL residents of New Canaan in mind. I wholeheartedly encourage everyone to vote for Dionna Carlson on November 7th.
Renee Fill
Former NCHS PFA & Saxe PTC President
