Visconti seeks Newbury's Triton seat

Frank Visconti believes that when it comes to school finances, honesty is indeed the best policy.

If the process of building a school budget is totally open and honest, agreement is more likely because everyone involved is looking at the same set of facts, he said.

The 37-year-old Rolfe's Lane resident wants to help implement that line of reasoning as one of Newbury's representatives to the Triton Regional School Committee. He is one of two candidates seeking to succeed Frank Chiaravalloti in Tuesday's annual town election.

"The most important thing in the process is transparency," he said. "All the taxpayers need to be accounted for. That can be done by opening the lines of communication."

A one-time college football captain, Visconti used a gridiron metaphor to discuss the communication process.

"You've got to break the huddle," he said. "If people break their huddle, rational thoughts prevail. If one side obfuscates, the other side shuts down."

Visconti owns an employment consulting firm that specializes in placements in the high-tech industry.

"Running the company has taught me some important and applicable skills. I'm accustomed to formulating budgets, breaking them down and doing them again," he said.

He said he also has extensive experience in labor and salary negotiation.

In addition to finances, the Triton district's other main issue is personnel, he said.

Although the three-town district of Newbury, Rowley and Salisbury will soon have a new superintendent, Christopher Farmer of Gloucester, Visconti said there are other key jobs to fill. Assistant Superintendent Kathleen Willis recently accepted the top job in North Reading, and Newbury Elementary School is looking for both a new principal and an assistant principal, he said.

"I'm skilled in the search, interview and selection process," he said. "There's a great deal more to hiring than gathering resumes and picking one. Hiring is a skill acquired through experience."

Visconti moved to Newbury two years ago with his wife — a former elementary school teacher — and two children, ages 6 and 3. The family had previously lived in Newburyport for nine years.

Visconti said he values good education.

He said he grew up in a lower-middle class, single-parent household and that winning scholarships, first to The Albany Academy in Albany, N.Y., and then to the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, where he earned a bachelor's degree, changed his life for the better.

"No one understands the importance of education more than I do," he said.