Tuition and enrollment remain main focus.
By: Matt Kirdahy
Candidates for school board say tuition to send students to Princeton High School and the number of students attending the school are some of the main issues facing the district in the coming year.
Four candidates will run for three seats on the Cranbury Board of Education this year. Two-term board member Dave Andrews has announced that he will not seek re-election.
The candidates are incumbents Joan Rue and Austin Schraudenbach and newcomers Lynne Schwarz and Nina Visconti-Phillips.
Ms. Rue is finishing a three-year term as board president. Mr. Schraudenbach has served three years.
Residents will vote on the candidates and on a proposed $11.56 million school budget at the April 15 school elections.
If approved, the budget would raise the school tax rate 15.64 cents per $100 of assessed valuation to $2.17. That means the owner of a house assessed at the township average of $215,000 would pay $4,665 in school taxes, an increase of $336.
A Candidates Night sponsored by the Cranbury Women’s Club will be held 7:30 p.m. April 9 at the Cranbury School. The forum will give residents the chance to ask candidates questions.
Candidates responded this week to questions from the Cranbury Press about working with a budget that has little state aid and increasing enrollment at Cranbury School as it relates to possible future building expansions.
The Township Committee is interested in preserving the West property, adjacent to the school. It is the same parcel that has been considered as an ideal location for future building expansion by the committee and the board. The committee asked the board how much of the property it might need in the event it has to expand. The township would preserve the remaining acreage as open space.
Joan Rue
Ms. Rue has been on the board since 1982 and served as president for about 10 years. Both of her children graduated from Cranbury School years ago, but she said that having children in the school is not necessarily a criterion for being an effective board member.
"What is important is my willingness to listen to the concerns of parents and nonparents alike," Ms. Rue said. "It is also important to work closely with the administration as it attempts to meet the district’s educational goals."
She received a bachelor’s degree from Herbert H. Lehman College and earned her master’s degree in early childhood education from Hunter College. Both schools are located in New York.
Ms. Rue has worked with the board through two school expansions and said she is eager to see this current expansion project finish in August.
Since there is no telling when and if Cranbury School will need more space to accommodate its students, Ms. Rue said the board needs to secure a space on the adjacent West property in the event the school expands again.
She is also focused on the integration of technology at the Cranbury School and the transition for Cranbury students into high school.
"Should I be re-elected, I would like to see the board and administration continue to work on more effective ways of preparing both the students and their parents for the transition into high school," she said.
Ms. Rue would also like to address the tax burden for property owners in Cranbury.
"The cost of living in Central Jersey is high. If it were not for the successful effort of our Township Committee to attract commercial ratables to our township, the costs for education and open space would be much greater than they are now," she said.
Ms. Rue attributed much of the increased tax rate to PHS tuition, and said it is driven by two factors: the growing population of young people between 14 and 18 years old attending the high school and the renovation and construction project at PHS.
The district will pay approximately $1,000 per student included in the tuition costs for the high school’s renovations and expansion, according to Cranbury School Business Administrator Brian DeLucia.
Cranbury will pay $3.3 million for PHS tuition in next year’s budget. The per-student tuition cost in the new budget is $13,684, an increase of $1,915 per student.
"At present, the cost per student at most neighboring high schools are similar to those at Princeton," Ms. Rue said. "The rate is determined by a New Jersey state Department of Education formula that uses actual audited costs per student. Our students are having success at the high school and it is the desire of the board to continue the relationship."
With limited help from state aid, that PHS tuition increase has made an impact on the budget that board members are forced to work around. She said the board is working with its health-care broker to investigate ways of containing rising health-care costs.
Ms. Rue has served as president of the Cranbury Woman’s Club. She has been an active member of the Cranbury Municipal Alliance, Middlesex County Municipal Alliance and the Ladies Auxiliary of the Cranbury Fire Company.
Austin Schraudenbach
With two children in the school system, Mr. Schraudenbach said he has an important perspective on the district.
"It is important to remember that the school board represents the community as a whole and benefits from a variety of perspectives, not just those of parents of children currently attending the grade school," the incumbent said.
He received his bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Illinois and earned his master’s degree in economics from Northwestern University, also in Illinois.
Mr. Schraudenbach said the rise in school taxes is attributable to the cost of tuition paid to PHS.
"The bulk of the tuition this year is due to the PHS construction project, which will yield direct benefits to our students," Mr. Schraudenbach said. "It is important to note that a significant portion of the increase in the tax rate is due to an increase in the number of Cranbury students attending PHS. The tax rate will only stabilize when the enrollment stabilizes."
He also recognized the lack of state aid the district receives.
"Due to this traditional lack of state and federal funding, the impact on local taxes has always been the biggest concern in our budgeting process," Mr. Schraudenbach said. "There is no way the state funding crisis can be construed as good for the Cranbury School. However, its direct impact will be minimal and should not significantly change our programs or budgeting process."
Cranbury School has dealt with an influx of students in the past decade that led to two school expansions in six years. Mr. Schraudenbach said this is no indication of what to expect in the coming years.
"However, since none of us can predict what the requirements of the school will be in 50 or 100 years, I would like to see a portion of the West property reserved for possible future school expansion," he said.
Mr. Schraudenbach also said he wants to tackle two particular issues in the next year the successful completion of school construction projects and carefully tracking the performance of students throughout their high school careers.
The school will see a completed school expansion and renovated large group instruction room that the entire school will benefit from in the fall. The board also plans to hold its meetings in the new room.
Mr. Schraudenbach said that if the school board keeps records of its students up into college, if they decide to attend, it would be a valuable information source for the school.
"It will also yield valuable information on the effectiveness and future direction of elementary and middle school programs for our incoming students," he said.
Lynne Schwarz
Ms. Schwarz is a 15-year Cranbury resident who said she believes she is a "fair representative" of her neighbors. She has two children enrolled in Cranbury School.
She received a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Lehigh University and works for Corporate Education & Development for Impact Unlimited in Dayton.
Ms. Schwarz said that most of her community involvement revolves around the actions of her children, which lends greatly to her perspective on the district.
"I am running for a seat on the Board of Education because I am interested in maintaining the educational excellence of our school system and pursuing areas in which we can improve current programs," Ms. Schwarz.
With concern to the possibility of using the West property for future school expansion, Ms. Schwarz trusts whatever decision township officials have to make.
"If additional school expansion is needed in the future, I’m sure it will be addressed with the same thoughtful consideration and planning as we have seen in the past," Ms. Schwarz said.
She said that even though the taxes are on the rise, she would work with the school board to do what she can to be "fiscally responsible and accountable for taxpayers’ dollars."
"Based on information I have seen, the PHS tuition seems reasonable given the facts at hand increases in the number of Cranbury students, capital expenditures, compensation and reduced state funding and our communities’ shared expectation of educational excellence," Ms. Schwarz said.
She shared a similar contention on how the district can function given no help from state aid.
"Although it is likely that we will continue to face increasing school expenses as state funding decreases, I believe that our educational interests should drive the budget rather than letting the budget drive the educational decisions," Ms. Schwarz said. "We should focus on defining our educational needs and then prioritizing them."
Nina Visconti- Phillips
One of two new candidates, Ms. Visconti-Phillips said she has served on the New Jersey Board of Education State Science Standards Review Committee and taught at the elementary, high school and college levels. She taught undergraduates at The College of New Jersey and graduate students at Kean University.
Ms. Visconti-Phillips received her bachelor’s degree in allied health from Montclair State University and earned her master’s degree in science education from Hood College in Maryland.
"Basically, my wish is to serve the residents of Cranbury and the State of New Jersey with my extensive experience in public education and ability and desire to promote communication among all involved," Ms. Visconti-Phillips said.
She said that she is open and eager to talk with the residents about any issues they might have concerning academic, athletic or any other activities in the school.
As far as handling the issue of minimal state aid given to the district, Ms. Visconti-Phillips proposed hiring a grant writer that would pursue and research private fund and grant sources to supplement the budget.
"In addition, I believe careful analysis of expenditures and input from Cranbury residents and school administrators would yield fruitful results," she said.
Ms. Visconti-Phillips also is prepared to face the two prominent issues in the district that have steadily driven taxes.
She said she wants to address the issues of increased PHS tuition if elected and compare it to other school districts "of a similar caliber."
"Tuition may seem high, but we need to look at the whole picture," Ms. Visconti-Phillips said.
On the issue of future school expansion, she felt that she could not "postulate on how much property might be needed" because of a lack of information.

