Jess Goetz
She/Her
Currently: Epidemiologost (part-time)
Election history: 1st-time candidate for School Committee
She/Her
Currently: Epidemiologost (part-time)
Election history: 1st-time candidate for School Committee
Jessica "Jess" Goetz has been a Cambridge resident for 14 years and CPS parent for nine years, with two students in Cambridge upper schools. She is an epidemiologist by training and holds an MPH from Michigan. She still consults on epidemiology part-time.
Jess Goetz's main stated goal is to democratize the School Committee, its meetings, and its processes. She attributes her decision to run for School Committee to what she characterizes as systemic miscommunication and disorganization in the superintendent search process. During the process, she developed and maintained a public resource tracking the various Committee meetings and decisions. She maintains several public resources related to school operations.
Jess's central campaign theme is that CPSD governance lacks accountability, transparency, and collaboration. She has suggested various accountability mechanisms for School Committee and a revamped, more informative public website and communications strategy. She wants to publish meeting recordings (even subcommittee work where no quorum is reached), transcripts, and budget-to-actual comparisons. Jess has also suggested introducing staggered, longer terms for School Committee.
On other policies, Jess wants CPS to reform Controlled Choice, is skeptical of MCAS, and wants to invest in repairing the Committee's relationship with educators and the performance of Upper Schools.
I don't believe that school committee members are or should be policy experts, but I do believe the school committee can promote policies either through how we allocate budget or manage the superintendent that support and improve differentiation in the classroom.
I’m thinking about creating a podcast/CCTV show that aims to bring the SC meetings to the public in an easily digestible way.
| Organization | Cambridge? | Union? | View |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cambridge Residents Alliance | this cycle | ||
| Cambridge Education Association | |||
| Our Revolution Cambridge | this cycle | ||
| Cambridge Families of Asian Descent |
Pedestrian and cycling safety, policy, infrastructure, governance
Pedestrian and cycling safety, policy, infrastructure, governance
Lengthy panel on progressive issues; 12 respondents. This is the first year this has appeared.
Lengthy panel on progressive issues; 12 respondents. This is the first year this has appeared.
If Cambridge schools should adopt (or adhere to possible state adoption) of the IHRA definition
If Cambridge schools should adopt (or adhere to possible state adoption) of the IHRA definition
Forum run by the Cambridge Education Association union
Forum run by the Cambridge Education Association union
A two-panel candidate night hosted by the Cambridge Advanced Learning Association focused on achievement gaps and advanced learners.
A two-panel candidate night hosted by the Cambridge Advanced Learning Association focused on achievement gaps and advanced learners.
Roundtable discussion focused on "why" candidates want to run
Roundtable discussion focused on "why" candidates want to run
Cambridgeport Neighborhood Association School Committee Candidate Night 2025
Cambridgeport Neighborhood Association School Committee Candidate Night 2025
Other candidates said they hoped to make the committee more transparent, accusing it of poor communication with the public.
“It has been my experience that the School Committee is not accessible, accountable, responsive, or transparent,” challenger Jessica D. Goetz said.
Oct. 10, 2025 — Dionise Guerra-CarrilloOther candidates said they hoped to make the committee more transparent, accusing it of poor communication with the public.
“It has been my experience that the School Committee is not accessible, accountable, responsive, or transparent,” challenger Jessica D. Goetz said.
Goetz, who began tracking the search process months ago because she found it confusing and poorly explained, spoke Sept. 12 in a call about parent perceptions of how The Equity Process was chosen: that the initial round firms did not meet the expectations or requirements and “so were rendered imperfect and unavailable, so we somehow ended up with a group that was, frankly, completely unqualified.”
“There has to have been a space between not 100 percent meeting expectations and requirements and being able to do it for less than $10,000,” Goetz said. “It’s almost like we just threw the baby out with the bathwater. We said, well, there’s nobody perfect, so we’re not even going to try to get good.”
Sept. 29, 2025 — Julia CarpiGoetz, who began tracking the search process months ago because she found it confusing and poorly explained, spoke Sept. 12 in a call about parent perceptions of how The Equity Process was chosen: that the initial round firms did not meet the expectations or requirements and “so were rendered imperfect and unavailable, so we somehow ended up with a group that was, frankly, completely unqualified.”
“There has to have been a space between not 100 percent meeting expectations and requirements and being able to do it for less than $10,000,” Goetz said. “It’s almost like we just threw the baby out with the bathwater. We said, well, there’s nobody perfect, so we’re not even going to try to get good.”
Challenger Jessica Goetz argued that a lack of oversight from the committee has contributed to the delay.
“There is a consistent disconnect between the policies being discussed and the presentations from the district,” Goetz said, proposing a schedule for updates, better engagement with community members and more robust analysis of performance data.
Sept. 22, 2025 — Julia CarpiChallenger Jessica Goetz argued that a lack of oversight from the committee has contributed to the delay.
“There is a consistent disconnect between the policies being discussed and the presentations from the district,” Goetz said, proposing a schedule for updates, better engagement with community members and more robust analysis of performance data.
“That became a question of, how do we find out what to do? How do I get any information about what’s happening?” she said. “And then that pointed me to basically what has become the crux of my campaign, which is one of process, and the things that we want from a School Committee being accessibility, accountability, responsiveness, transparency … that’s what I built my campaign around, simply because upon digging into the superintendent search, it’s been really clear to me that that’s not the case right now.”
---
Other priorities would be policies aimed at reducing screen use in schools, moving away from an “overreliance on testing and evaluation” and teaching “the untestable,” such as critical thinking and executive function.
Aug. 12, 2025 — Meg Richards“That became a question of, how do we find out what to do? How do I get any information about what’s happening?” she said. “And then that pointed me to basically what has become the crux of my campaign, which is one of process, and the things that we want from a School Committee being accessibility, accountability, responsiveness, transparency … that’s what I built my campaign around, simply because upon digging into the superintendent search, it’s been really clear to me that that’s not the case right now.”
---
Other priorities would be policies aimed at reducing screen use in schools, moving away from an “overreliance on testing and evaluation” and teaching “the untestable,” such as critical thinking and executive function.