WESTFORD — The Westford League of Women Voters hosted its February Civic Social on Thursday, Feb. 26 at WestfordCAT’s studio on Groton Road.
League members welcomed Rep. Jim Aricero’s staff director, Anita Tonakarn–Nguyen, who shared an insider’s perspective on what a staff director does behind the scenes, how legislation and budget priorities are shaped, the role of transportation policy in the region and how state-level decisions affect Westford residents.
Tonakarn–Nguyen was promoted to staff director for Arciero’s office and the Joint Committee on Transportation in July. Her role includes managing daily operations, providing strategic counsel on legislative and budget priorities and serving as the primary liaison for the 2nd Middlesex District.
Before being promoted to staff director, Tonakarn–Nguyen served Arciero’s office as district director, since joining in 2022. She took on the new role while serving her final year as a member of the Westford Select Board, a position she held for three years, after winning her election in 2020 with 2,217 votes for one of two available three-year seats. Her term officially ended on May 2, 2023, when she chose to not run for re-election in the Annual Town Election.
During her tenure on the Select Board, Tonakarn–Nguyen served as a liaison to the Northern Middlesex Council of Governments and worked closely with the Westford Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee. She also helped the town manage the COVID-19 pandemic, which she described as “a unique experience.”
Growing up in Washington D.C.,Tonakarn–Nguyen had a background working in customer service before she ultimately pursued a career in public health, earning a Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences from James Madison University and a Master of Public Health from Boston University.
She then spent 15 years in health and public policy consulting, which included working with the Federal Administration for Community Living, a federal public health agency.
During the recent civic social, Tonakarn–Nguyen told League members that she has always been drawn to taking on new challenges in her life, which is what inspired her to pursue her current role in state government.
Tonakarn–Nguyen also noted that she was previously a League member herself, telling League members and WestfordCAT that she played an important role in helping to implement the civic socials in order to create a space for Westford residents to voice their questions and concerns regarding town and state government.
“The civic socials have actually been going on for several years now and I was a member of the League of Women Voters steering committee at the time that we started to implement them,” Tonakarn-Nguyen said. “The rationale behind that was that I really saw a need for a gathering space or a gathering place for people to come together to just kind of chit chat about town politics. Because usually when you go to a board or a committee meeting you’re not really able to talk with other people there. You’re just kind of listening to what’s going on and you’re engaged in that agenda. But the civic socials create a casual, comfortable space, where people can chit chat about whatever that topic is of the month, or maybe something that’s on their mind.”
When asked if she could provide some advice to constituents from a member of the state government’s perspective, Tonakarn-Nguyen said she wants her constituents to know that their voices are being heard, even if it may seem like the response time is long.
“Once I tell them that I live in Westford or that I live in the district, people feel much more comfortable and at ease right away,” Tonakarn-Nguyen said. “They’re like ‘oh, so you know exactly what I’m talking about, where I’m talking about, if it’s something neighborhood-related.” What I think is important for people to know, especially as the representative (Arciero) was promoted to the House Chair of Transportation, is that we get hundreds of emails every day. It’s even more than that when it’s got to do with a large important bill or something that’s in the news. We just get tons and tons of emails. Because of the volume, we can’t reply to all of the emails, but please know that we literally read through every single one.”
The League said civic socials like the one held last month, are planned for every month of the year and are open to the public. The League said the civic socials are designed to help residents stay informed about local and state government issues in a welcoming setting, inviting any members of the public who are interested in learning about how legislative decisions impact Westford.
