Candidate for Mayor
Website: jillianfornorthampton.com
Social Media: Facebook, Instagram
Podcast 10/11/25: Panorama
Podcast 9/3/25: Hear Me
Smith College – Student Newspaper 10/30/25: Jillian Duclos, Northampton Mayoral Candidate, is Advocating for a New Way of Doing Local Politics
Letter to the Editor 10/15/25: Jillian Duclos – a leader for all
Guest Column 5/19/25: Northampton must strengthen foundation, invest in tomorrow — together
Unscripted Community Conversation
Bombyx Center for Arts & Equity
October 24, 2025
Video Clip – Question to candidates: Most of you probably share the view that the city can afford to move a good chunk of money into the school budgets that we’ve been underestimating research. I think that’s a big reason why all of you are up there and many of us are here. My question is: what happens if that can’t or doesn’t happen.? How do we galvanize this electricity in the air around taking care of our schools better? Everyone is serious about it, and I think there’s this energy that we haven’t seen in the city in a long time. Feel free to answer it one of two ways – either what else can we do, or just, how do we do a combination moving forward – maybe healing some of the disagreements and finding ways to just address the issue, even if we cannot do it via moving recurring 2.7 million year- over-year.
“The people who aren’t listening are the ones who hold all the power, which is why nothing is changing. I just want to say that out loud. Somebody asked me recently why I am not running for city council first or school committee first. I’d say that – probably the main thing – is that there is so much concentrated power in the mayor’s office, which disallows all these wonderful humans who have been working really hard from actually showing up and doing the job that they know they could do for the people of this city.
I think above and beyond that, I just wanted to say how amazing this team is. If you really think about leadership, leadership is not being the smartest person in the room. Leadership is really knowing how to identify the smartest people and bringing them in to solve problems. That’s just really shifting the energy and the way we think about things. That’s what I’ve done most of my life in every room that I’ve been in and that’s what these folks do, too.
Everybody’s working together, and then the people who come to the table, when we’re talking about compassion and listening to people on the ground. I have a four-year-old son. Nobody knows better than I do and his father what is best for him. So if you really think about it, the people on the ground experiencing these issues every day are the ones that know what the issues are and probably how to solve them.
I talk often about how the most untapped resource in this community are the people who live here. I think we worry a lot about amassing all of these dollars because I think we have folks who are in power and in leadership who actually don’t know how to meet problems in real time.
I really believe if we’re bringing the right people to the table, we can actually invest what we have in people now and know how to meet the moment and solve challenges in real time.”
NHS Student Union – Municipal Forum
September 29, 2025
“I am running for mayor because I believe in investing in our future. To me that means ensuring every child receives the education they deserve no matter their circumstance. As I’ve knocked on doors, I realize that what ties us together is our commitment to fighting for public education.
I’ve met grandparents who moved here to be close to their grandchildren who worry their futures are not being prioritized. I have met parents who are products of public education, like me, who never thought they’d have to move their children to another school because their needs are not being met. And I have met parents who can’t afford to supplement the loss of support their child needs as we continue to cut services for our most vulnerable students. I have met educators who understand the long-term consequences our children face if we continue to divest in public education.
It is clear this is not the direction our community wants to go. As your mayor, I will stand up for our children by ensuring we set them up for success.”
Video Clip – Do you believe our city’s discourse around the school budget has been productive? And if not, how do you plan to move the conversation forward?
“I believe that when it comes to conversations around difficult issues, such as what we have been facing around the school budgets, that is our leaders that set the tone. When we have leadership that continues to dismiss the concerns of educators, parents, and students rather than bringing those voices to the table and working alongside them to outline a path forward, we continue to breed an environment of division.
That being said, the citizen engagement around this issue has been productive and I am proud of those that have shown up to do the work to move us forward and ensure we’re not leaving any of our students behind. I plan on leading us through this with my deep understanding that those on the ground – students, educators, and parents – should be driving this conversation and should be spearheading the process. And I will work alongside our community to develop a sustainable plan that prioritizes the needs of our students first.”
Video Clip – It is no secret that our special education department has been under increased scrutiny this past year or more. How do you plan to improve our special education systems and service delivery?
“Our inability to prioritize special education has put our most vulnerable students and their caregivers in crisis. For some families, this has forced them to find alternative options for schooling for their children. And for those families who cannot afford support outside of the public school system, this has signaled that leaving their children behind is an option. And I cannot imagine what that does to a family.
This is our responsibility and I will not let this continue to happen. I will prioritize special education by working closely with the school committee, superintendent, educators, students, and parents to ensure their needs are met.”
Question from NHS Student Union: What is one thing you hope students of NPS take away from their education in this district?
“So I’m going to share a little bit with you that my journey to achieve education has been anything but traditional. I went to Holyoke public schools until I lost my home in the ninth grade and had to go to Commerce for a year where my dad lived. Then I went to work and I got a car and I choiced into Holyoke to graduate with my friends.
When I left home at 17, I went to work and I went to Holyoke Community College. It took me 10 years to figure out what I wanted to do, working my way slowly to make that happen. And once I made it as a non-traditional age student at Mount Holyoke College, I sat in the chair of my adviser with my plan laid out of how I was going to get to law school. And what she said to me is, “You need to put that plan aside. What you need to know about, what you’ll learn here is that wherever you go, you will have the skills to achieve what you need to achieve.
And what I would like to leave our students with is an understanding that no matter what your journey is through education, that you are supported, that we will be here for you, and that you’re going to make it because we give you the skills you need to show up where you are and do what you need to do to make your life happen.”
League of Women Voters – Candidate Forum
August 26, 2025
Video Clip – Describe your leadership style, your approach to problem solving and your method for achieving consensus.
Video Clip – What is your reaction to the DESE report about the problems in Northampton schools and what will you do to make sure special education students can access education?
