This summer, Rosemarie Weber stepped down from the Granby Board of Education. Weber, an attorney and military veteran, served the BOE for 12 years. In that time, she served in every position: chair, vice chair and secretary. In addition, she served and chaired both the finance and curriculum subcommittees, led the negotiations for several collective bargaining agreements, helped establish full-day kindergarten and one-to-one computing, among many other accomplishments.
Weber served through many challenges, including COVID, and provided guidance to the task force to open schools during the pandemic. She leaves a legacy of consensus-building and passion for student achievement as well as her devotion to providing the best education possible for all Granby students. Her intellectual approach and strong leadership will be missed, and we are grateful for the time she served Granby and its students.
In her place, the Granby Board of Education is pleased to welcome Ali Zafar. Zafar will fill the remaining year of a four-year term vacated by Weber. Zafar, who has an associate’s degree in applied sciences, a bachelor’s degree and many other technical accreditations, moved to Granby almost a decade ago. Having three children across the Granby schools—Zainab (15), Ali-Asghar (10), and Zahra (8)—has facilitated his experience and knowledge of our education system. Zafar grew up in the boroughs of NYC and chose Granby as the home for his family. He feels as a professional leader within the insurance industry that serving on the board of education will capitalize on his leadership skills and share his appreciation of the town’s education system.
Zafar states that he once heard another leader in town say, “You get out of Granby what you put into Granby.” Zafar said that statement “passionately resonated with me and reminded me of why I chose Granby for my family—my kids are my everything. With my wife, a local realtor who is also very heavily involved within the school district along with many other school-
related activities, I wanted to do my part to serve our community. I have a strong desire to do my part in giving back not only to my kids, but to other families as well. I want to contribute to an environment where all values and perspectives are heard and respected.” Zafar continued, “Having been in various school systems of both suburban and inner-city communities, my diverse background, experiences as well as my diversity of thought will bring a much needed and beneficial perspective to our community.”
Zafar feels that he owes it to our (collective) children, who are the future of our town and nation, the best education they can receive in an environment where they are able to think independently and grow. The Granby Board of Education is excited to start a new year and work together to make progress toward our strengthening school system.