Shelby is a lifelong Bristol resident who attended South Side, Memorial Boulevard, and Bristol Central High School (BCHS) Class of '92. She and her husband, Matt, have three daughters - two BCHS graduates and a sophomore. Being a parent herself, she knows the struggles of balancing family, work, and ensuring her children's safety and education.

 Shelby holds a master’s degree in social work from the University of Connecticut and has been employed by the Connecticut State Department of Education for 26 years, where she is responsible for overseeing various state and federal grants that support after-school and teen parent programs in districts with high poverty rates. She plays a key role in fostering collaborations between educators, parents, and community members to enhance school-family-community partnerships.

As an Adjunct Professor at the University of Connecticut (UCONN) Hartford Campus for more than a decade, she teaches undergraduate courses in Family Policy, Schools and Families, Child Welfare, Law and Social Policy, and Low-Income Families. In November 2022, she was honored as one of the distinguished faculty members recognized by the University for her excellence in teaching.

Shelby has been serving on the Bristol Board since 2019 and was re-elected in 2023. She is a passionate advocate of public education, dedicated to representing the interests of students, parents, and teachers in crucial decisions regarding leadership, mission, policies, and budgets. Shelby is focused on collaborating towards the shared objective of delivering top-quality education to Bristol's children and ensuring that informed choices are made to positively impact students, families, district employees, and the economic well-being of the community.

Maria Pirro Simmons has been a Commissioner on the Bristol Board of Education since January of 2023. She is currently the Board’s Vice Chairperson, the Chair of the School Family Community Partnerships Committee, and a member of the Student Achievement, Labor Relations, Policy, and School Safety Committees.

Maria is a lifelong resident of Bristol, proud wife and mother of two boys, Elijah and Luke. She is the Board liaison to Bristol Eastern High School and South Side School, where she and both her sons have attended. Maria enjoys volunteering at the Environmental Learning Centers of Connecticut at Indian Rock Nature Preserve and has been a guest speaker at SEPTO and Opportunability. Maria is the owner of Leading with your Light, LLC providing education and strategic planning consultative services to schools, districts, and community constituents. Maria also offers free education advocacy and support for students, families, and educators.

Maria has nearly three decades experience in education and leadership as a special education teacher, school principal, and school superintendent. While a school superintendent, Maria was appointed to the Governor’s Workforce Council by Governor Lamont and was appointed to the Juvenile Justice Policy and Oversight Committee (JJPOC) as a voting member overseeing the continued reform of the juvenile justice system while evaluating policies that impact youth. Maria was also a project lead for the Adult Reentry Employment Strategic Plan (ARES) facilitating the development of the Connecticut Adult Reentry and Employment Strategic Plan, a statewide guide for establishing policy and programmatic frameworks that build upon existing and future resources for reentry services, education and vocational training, and employment. She was also a member of the Industry Business and Advisory Group (IBAG) assembled to gain insight and understanding from leaders in education, business, and industry. Maria was also selected for, and successfully completed, the Executive Excellence Leadership Program alongside other recognized leaders nationwide. These experiences allowed Maria to further develop her capacity to have challenging conversations and create meaningful solutions in the spirit of bipartisanship. Maria is currently a member of Connecticut’s Dyslexia Awareness Campaign, an initiative from the Connecticut State Department of Education’s Office of Dyslexia and Learning Disabilities.  

Maria honors and values every community voice and passionately advocates for each and every child. She believes that transparency and strong school-family-community partnerships creates safe spaces and places for authentic conversations and enduring growth. Maria celebrates and champions the extraordinary efforts of the teachers, educators, and staff members who are committed to making Bristol Public Schools a district that changes lives. 

Jill grew up in Harwinton, CT, and attended the Region 10 school district. While she was not born and raised in Bristol, she has deep family ties to the community.  Many of her cherished childhood memories are of playing with cousins in Rockwell Park, participating in the Mum Festival parades, and enjoying countless Sunday dinners at "Grammy's" house. Therefore, it was a natural progression to buy her grandmother's house when the opportunity arose, to keep it within the family, and to raise their daughter in the community she has come to love.  Jill, her husband Pawel, their daughter Nora, and their dog Bouza proudly call Bristol home!

Jill holds an undergraduate degree in criminal justice from Becker College in Worcester, MA, and a master's degree in social work with a specialization in policy practice from the Nancy A. Humphreys Institute for Political Social Work at the University of Connecticut. With more than 17 years of professional experience, she has worked with agencies such as the Guardian ad Litem program in Miami, FL, two Child Advocacy Centers within CT, and most recently as a victim services advocate for the Office of Victim Services. Jill possesses extensive experience in navigating complex statewide systems, advocating for children and their families, and effectively collaborating with multidisciplinary teams.  Jill states, "Uniting and genuinely listening to one another is essential to guide our policies and practices. Community members, teachers, administrators, and students each have unique perspectives that are crucial to the decisions we make as commissioners. To carry out our roles effectively, we must listen, learn, and promote transparency. I strongly believe that for policies and practices to be effective, they require direct input to shape them, and in turn, these policies and practices should guide our actions."

Jill currently serves as the secretary for the BOE and chairs the Student Achievement and Policy committee.  She is honored and grateful for the opportunity to serve her community in this capacity and hopes to make a positive impact, especially for the kids! 

Biography:
Dante Tagariello was first elected to the Board of Education in 2021. Before his service on the Board, Dante served on the Bristol Youth Commission from 2015 to 2017. In addition to his elected position, Dante also serves on two non-profit Boards, the Bristol Hospital Foundation, Bristol Health’s fundraising arm, and the Prudence Crandall Center, a non-profit whose mission is dedicated to helping individuals achieve lives free of domestic violence.

Professionally, Dante has nearly a decade of experience in accounting & finance. Dante has worked at an international accounting firm (one of the big five), served as a CFO to a robotics & technology startup, and currently serves as a Manager of Financial Planning & Analysis for the third largest solar energy technology company in the world.

Dante’s skills run the gamut of both management & finance. Some skills include financial reporting, financial analysis, budget planning, financial modeling, KPI analysis, cash management, corporate treasury, debt management & restructuring, ERP planning & implementation, GAAP reporting, IFRS reporting, tax planning, IPO planning, and acquisition planning.

Education:
Bentley University, BSc. Accounting & LSM in Global Studies (dual major)
University of Hartford, MSc. Accounting & Taxation

Other Skills:
Microsoft Suite with emphasis on Excel, Tableau, NSAW, Hyperion, QuickBooks, NetSuite

Lori Osenkowski has served as a Commissioner on the Bristol Board of Education since August 2023, when Mayor Caggiano appointed her. She was then elected in November 2023 for a 4-year term. 

Currently, Lori serves on the Policy Committee and is the Chair of the School Safety Committee. She is a member of the Bristol Republican Town Committee and served on the BRTC's Budget and Finance Committee. 

Lori has lived in Bristol for 38 years and is employed full-time as a Care Specialist. Lori and her husband Rob have been married for 16 years and have three sons ages 10, 13, and 15 who attend the Bristol Public Schools. 

For the past 14 years, it has been an honor for Lori to serve the Bristol Community through her family's Christmas light display, Lights On Rosewood, a non-profit organization bringing the community together by supporting one another in need. 

As a parent and Bristol resident, Commissioner Osenkowski believes it is her obligation and a priority to advocate for our youth and the safety and security of all students, educators, and staff in the Bristol Public School system. She values and has witnessed that a strong community, specifically the City of Bristol, can be a driving force to achieve unlimited possibilities as well as overcome obstacles by working together.