Panel Recommends Four Town Board Appointees

Select Board · Meeting of September 22, 2026

NORTHBOROUGH — The Select Board's Interview Subcommittee recommended four residents for town board appointments at its September 22 meeting. Members Jeffrey Ostiguy and Leslie Rutan voted 2-0 by roll call to recommend Kara McCormick for the Scholarship Committee, Shayla Eldarus for the Cultural Council, Sylvia Pabriza for the Community Preservation Committee over fellow applicant Laura Zayton, and James Vanderpoel for the Board of Registrars. Zayton, a former Select Board member, was pressed by Community Preservation Committee Chair John Campbell on a prior vote against Blake Street Park CPA funding and an abstention on the Affordable Housing Reserve, saying she didn't "have my notes in front of me" to explain the decisions.

Scholarship Committee Chair Liz Nolan said the group has awarded $23,350 since 2022 and is running a new "honor roll" fundraising campaign. The recommendations now go to the full Select Board for formal appointment.

In the full story:

• Call to Order and Procedure
• Community Preservation Committee Vacancy: Sylvia Pabriza vs. Laura Zayton
• Scholarship Committee Vacancy: Kara McCormick
• Cultural Council Vacancies: Shayla Eldarus
• Board of Registrars: James Vanderpoel
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 2,060 words

Source: the Select Board meeting of September 22, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript. It was corrected where it differed.