New Ward 6 school committee member Patty Lubold vows outreach and operational fixes after write-in victory

Patty Lubold, who won a Ward 6 seat on the Holyoke School Committee in a write‑in campaign after the ballot candidate withdrew, said she will spend the weeks before her Jan. 5, 2026 inauguration meeting residents and pressing for concrete operational fixes in the district.

Lubold told Holyoke Media that she did not set out to run but stepped forward because “our neighborhood would be left without representation” when the certified candidate withdrew and no name appeared on the ballot. She described mounting a three‑and‑a‑half‑week write‑in campaign and winning the seat on Nov. 4, 2025.

She said her experience as a parent in Holyoke Public Schools — including navigating individualized education plans for a son with dyslexia — and her work as a strategy consultant inform her approach. “I was the parent that was showing up … the squeaky wheel,” Lubold said, adding that she wants to improve the district’s processes so teachers, families and students are better served.

Lubold said she is conducting a listening tour and plans to use a 30/60/90 approach to learn stakeholders’ priorities, identify immediate fixes and develop early actions once sworn in. She emphasized outreach to residents who do not currently participate in school meetings and to neighborhood hubs such as Bowdoin Village.

She offered contact options for constituents: a forthcoming official schools email (not yet active), a Gmail address (plueboldward6@gmail.com), phone ((413) 530‑6654) and a Facebook page listed in the interview as Patty Norris Lubold Ward 6.

Lubold described the timing — returning to local control after years under external oversight — as an opportunity but cautioned that it will require policy reviews and deliberate community engagement to translate authority into measurable improvements.

The interview closed with an invitation for Lubold to return with updates after she takes office.