Saco voters will fill three school board seats Nov. 3, and the race is a fault line between the current board's equity-first establishment and newcomers who say the district is ignoring its own educators — with one ward not offering voters any choice at all.
School boards set curriculum, approve budgets, and decide what your children are taught. In Saco, that power is currently held by incumbents who list "equity for all students" as a top priority and who are pushing staff raises, while two challengers argue the board lacks the perspective of the people actually working in classrooms.
Ward 2 pits incumbent Jennifer Preble against newcomer Arianna Parks. Preble, a licensed social worker and the board's vice chair, is seeking her third term. She told the Portland Press Herald her priorities include "equity for all students, especially students living in poverty" and "adequate and balanced funding." Parks, a special education professional, says she is running because special education students and staff need "a stronger voice" — pointing to high turnover among ed techs and the subcontracting of special education staff, which she says undermines consistency of care.
Ward 4 offers voters no contest. Donald Pilon, a real estate broker and former Saco mayor who served four terms as a Democrat in the state House, is the only name on the ballot. He replaces Kevin Roche, who is not seeking reelection. Pilon told the Press Herald that education is "the most important charge" of city government and pointed to his government experience. An unopposed former Democratic officeholder sliding into a school board seat is the kind of bipartisan cozy arrangement that leaves taxpayers without a voice at the table.
Ward 6 features incumbent Sarah Truman, the board chair since 2025, against newcomer Maureen "Moe" Cahill, an occupational therapist with 24 years in Cape Elizabeth schools. Truman's priorities include seeing a new elementary school through to completion, keeping the budget balanced, and — like Preble — "ensuring equity for all students." She also wants to champion "meaningful raises for staff." Cahill says she has heard a desire for "thoughtful leadership and a willingness to see positive change."
The Portland Press Herald framed the race through the lens of teacher representation, noting the two newcomers believe the current board lacks it. What the Herald didn't press is what "equity" means in practice when two incumbents both make it a centerpiece — or how a board claiming to champion educators simultaneously faces complaints about staff turnover and subcontracting that undercuts those same workers.
The Lewiston Morning Tribune, meanwhile, had nothing on the Saco race, covering instead a $2.6 million artificial turf proposal at Lewis-Clark State College in Idaho — a reminder that local school governance gets scant attention from the regional press unless there's a construction contract to discuss.
Three seats. Two incumbents running on equity. Two challengers saying the board doesn't listen to its own teachers. One ward where voters have no say at all. The question for Saco parents is whether the people who control the classroom are accountable to families — or to each other.
