The Groton referendum was a teachable moment.

As a vocal proponent of the “Vote Yes” movement, I extend my congratulations to the winners. These are among my takeaways: 

1. The characterization of Groton charter change yes voters as being anti-education, though McCarthyesque, was successful. I can’t speak for all “yes” voters, but as an alumnus of Eastern Point, West Side, Fitch, UVM and Harvard, I am no more anti-education than I am a Communist.

2. The superintendent of schools’ high-profile involvement in this issue, both via this newspaper and the RTM, was highly inappropriate. I suspect that he is afraid of greater scrutiny. He should be. Being in the Alliance District is nothing to brag about. We must do better! I urge the RTM to challenge him as the Town Council has.

3. 44 percent of Groton voters were in favor of abolishing the RTM. I hope that the members of the RTM consider what this says about voter assessment of their past performance and take this rather large constituency into consideration along with the 56 percent who voted to keep them. 

I learned a lot from this experience. It is my hope that we can use it to improve Groton.

Carl Peruzzotti

Groton