Aghajanian, Correia named co-vice-chairmen 

By Theresa Knapp

The first meeting of the Milford High School Building Committee was held on July 25. 

The committee will oversee the building of a new high school as approved by voters in May. 

The first order of business in July was to select a chairman and vice chairman. The 15 committee members present elected Jonathan Bruce as chair; and Michael Aghajanian and Alberto Correia as co-vice chairmen. 

Chairman 

Committee member and Select Board member Michael Walsh nominated Bruce, who currently serves on the Board of Water Commissioners and previously served on the School Committee, Zoning Board of Appeals, and other school building committees. 

“I served on the School Committee for nine years, six of those years I served with Jonathan Bruce. The one thing that we all have to realize is that, when you’re on a committee, you’re not always going to agree. It’s okay to agree to disagree but one thing about Jonathan was, if he didn’t agree with you or you didn’t agree with him, you were able to work it out because what Jonathan stated earlier, in his heart always was the best interest of the students of this district,” said Walsh. 

“I was fortunate to serve two years as chairman of the Milford School Committee and, when I was chairman, Woodland School was under construction. And there were times when that project wasn’t going very smooth, and it was through the leadership of Jonathan and, God rest his soul Aldo Cecchi, that…they delivered the largest elementary school at the time in the state of Massachusetts and under budget.” 

Walsh added, “A project of this magnitude, of this scale, is going to need, not only a committee, it’s going to need the leadership of that committee to move us forward at all times.” 

Committee member and Housing Authority member Patrick Holland, who is also a former School Committee member, supported the nomination, saying he has known Bruce for 40 years. 

“What I can say about Jon is that he is honest, to a fault sometimes, and he would never let a project, that his name was attached to, fail. And if Jon is confident that he can embody those qualities of Aldo [Cecchi] that made that [Woodland School] Building Committee so successful, then I’d be happy to offer my support.” 

Bruce accepted the nomination. “Thank you very much. I’m honored, humbled, moved to a certain point, by the confidence this community has put in me to lead this project forward.” 

Co-vice chairmen

Members Michael Aghajanian, a member of the Milford School Committee, and Alberto Correia, a member of the Milford Finance Committee, were elected co-vice chairmen. 

A recording of the entire meeting is available at www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSzyqgK4Kbk.