Second School Recall Drive Targets Remaining Four Norwood School Committee Members-August 8, 1978

Parent Group Led by Rita Comite Files Affidavits Seeking Full Board Recall Over Unresolved $618,000

The political turbulence surrounding Norwood public schools intensified yesterday morning when affidavits were filed with the town clerk to initiate recall proceedings against the four School Committee members not already facing a scheduled September 5 recall election. Rita Comite of Pembroke Road, acting on behalf of a concerned group of parents, filed the paperwork targeting members Rudith Berkowitz, William F. Egan, Joseph M. Pentowski, and Joan H. Cuff. The petitioners cited the members’ failure to seek the restoration of $618,000 slashed from the school budget during the June town meeting as the primary catalyst for the action.

The new recall drive follows an earlier effort targeting committee members Henry W. Diggs, John H. Chisholm, and Richard W. Kief, who faced recall after voting to support the budget cuts. Organizers of the second petition drive argued that subjecting the remaining four members to recall would help heal deep divisions on the board and unify the committee. The affidavits formally listed two grounds for the recall: failure to take timely and effective action to provide adequate funding for public schools as unanimously voted by the committee for the 1978–79 budget, and a desire to avoid further discrimination stemming from the partial recall. Once the town clerk certifies the affidavits, proponents must collect 200 signatures from registered voters on official recall petitions for each official. Unlike the opposing faction, Comite noted that her group had not slated alternative candidates, emphasizing that the move was intended to achieve policy accountability rather than run specific challengers. Meanwhile, the local teachers union has actively supported parental efforts to restore the funding through both petition backing and a pending 10-taxpayer suit. Due to the certification process, the second recall vote will require a separate election date following the September 5 ballot.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger