Letters-April 28, 2005

Cheers for

volunteers
To the editor:
   Volunteers inspire by example and make our community a better place to live and work.
   These unsung heroes are the fabric of our communities and our country.
   During National Volunteer Week, April 17-23, dedicated men, women, and young people in Hunterdon County and millions of others in communities throughout the nation, were honored for their commitment to service.
   This year’s National Volunteer Week theme, "Volunteers Inspire By Example!" set the stage for national, regional and local organizations to applaud the efforts of volunteers as well as encourage others to help strengthen their communities through service.
   The Points of Light Foundation and Volunteer Center National Network sponsored the annual week-long event to spotlight volunteers. Here in Hunterdon County, people like Kathleen Zuback were recognized. Kathleen received the "Volunteer of the Year" award April 15 during the United Way of Hunterdon County’s second annual "Celebrating Community Caring" event at the Hunterdon Hills Playhouse.
   Kathleen has helped make a difference in Hunterdon County by serving in various capacities through organizations such as Anderson House, the American Cancer Society, Visiting Health and Supportive Services, Meals on Wheels, the Hunterdon County Chamber of Commerce, the Hunterdon Tomorrow committee and the Flemington Lions Club. Kathleen is also active with the Pottersville Reformed Church.
   Currently, Kathleen volunteers for Volunteer Guardianship One-on-One. This agency provides court-appointed guardians to persons adjudicated to be in need of such services. Such persons are typically elderly, indigent and without family.
   Since 2002, Kathleen has assisted an individual with various aspects of life allowing her to remain in her home, enjoying an independent, fulfilling and dignified life.
   Volunteering isn’t simply nice to do, but it is always necessary. What would our lives, our communities, our country be like without people from all walks of life — businesses, faith-based organizations, low-income communities, families, youth, and older adults — who unleash their power of compassion to serve as helping hands to those in need?
   A recent survey underscores the importance of volunteering. In 2004, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor, about 64.5 million people did volunteer work in some capacity — up from 63.8 million for the similar period ended in September 2003.
   That is nearly 29 percent of the population.
   Volunteers are one of our country’s most valuable resources. Though they serve in a variety of capacities, and their contributions are immeasurable, all volunteer hours have the same value. According to the Independent Sector, the estimated dollar value of a volunteer hour was $17.55 in 2004.
   During National Volunteer Week, we joined the chorus of gratitude for the unsung heroes in our community. Make a special effort to let Hunterdon County volunteers know how much they’re appreciated!

Heather A. Holland
community resources manager
United Way of Hunterdon County
Annandale

Why put gay

in headline?
To the editor:
   I am writing in reference to your recent headline, "Gay bar goes up in flames."
   I don’t see the necessity of pointing out the Cartwheel is a gay bar. If it had been any other bar would your headline have read, "Heterosexual bar goes up in flames?"
   Or if, God forbid, someone had perished in that fire would his or her sexual orientation have been referenced in your article as well?
   It is your job to inform the public in a responsible manner and I believe that you failed to do so in this case.

Janice Rauschert
Stockton

Speak face to face

to candidates
To the editor:
   I want to publicly thank both the Women League of Voters and the Republican Party of New Hope-Solebury for their professional and bipartisan interview of all the candidates.
   I must admit I did not know what to expect at either forum. At each event, it was made clear through action and deed it was clearly bipartisan.
   The icing on the cake was when the Republican Party endorsed me as a candidate for school board director.
   Since the Republican party interviews, I have spoken and written to the Democratic Party of New Hope-Solebury to encourage them to have a similar forum where all 10 candidates could be interviewed prior to the May 17 primary. I want to make sure everyone in the community has the opportunity to learn as much about each candidate as possible.
   Presently, I have been saddened and disappointed by the many rumors and innuendoes bandied about in public and private letters.
   The following have been partially directed at me, as a member of the NH-S Kids First team, when none of the parties has ever spoken to me directly regarding any school board issue — breaching codes of ethics; denigrating our children; and misrepresenting facts.
   I encourage these individuals to speak to me and the rest of the team face to face. Ask us your questions and state your concerns. Let’s have a discussion.
   In fact, I encourage the entire community to seek to get to know each of the candidates. Don’t be swayed by rumor, innuendo, and slander.
   The NH-S Kids First group plans on having a number of meet and greets. Check out the dates on our Web site — www.nhskidsfirst.com.
   I encourage all 10 candidates and the entire community to attend. I welcome one and all.
   In the meantime, before you speak as if you know any candidate and state what they stand for, get to know them. Speak to them face to face

Megan O’Brien
Solebury

Use pool

of talent
To the editor:
   During the school board candidates question-and-answer, which took place at New Hope-High School last Wednesday evening, several members of the NHS Kids First slate expressed their desire to establish, if they are elected, advisory committees for each school in the district.
   These advisory panels would consist of parents, members of the parent-teachers organization, community members, teachers and two board members. These advisory boards would act as "clearing houses" to ensure issues affecting the district were directed to the most appropriate venue for resolution. Ostensibly, answers to impending problems might be found at the advisory board level itself.
   As a retired Solebury resident who has watched school taxes increase over the last few years at rates far exceeding inflation, I am naturally tuned in to any ideas that would save money while not sacrificing excellence in education, and these "advisory boards" are a good start.
   I believe the current administration has, at times, been too quick to hire expensive outside vendors when the talent needed to resolve our problems is all around us in this community. We already have a staff of dedicated and extremely capable teachers and administrators. The parents of this community represent some of the top talent in their fields in virtually every major profession, and many would gladly lend their expertise if called upon.
   What is needed is a way to better communicate our district’s needs to the available talent pool that is already here. The concepts of advisory boards, along with a proactive Web site and direct e-mailings to parents — also proposed by the NHS Kids First slate — are good ones and should be enacted by whoever is elected to the next school board.

William A. Dickinson
Solebury

Use ‘friendly’

names for schools
To the editor:
   To the New Hope-Solebury School Board of Directors:
   I am writing you on behalf of many parents and children regarding the names of our two elementary schools.
   Straight to the point: I am asking you to officially name each school with a friendlier and more easily identifiable name — New Hope Elementary for the 3-5 school and Solebury or Solebury Village Elementary for the K-2 school.
   This request has many reasons behind it and strong support from every person I’ve asked: parents, children and teachers.
   First, we are fortunate to live in a wonderful, rural community with roots that are creative and diverse. The names upper and lower are much more reflective of a large city school, such as PSxxx in New York City. They do not, in any way, reflect our community of New Hope-Solebury.
   Secondly, the names themselves are not friendly or uplifting, in fact, just the opposite. Lower suggests less, not as good. This reflects on the whole school — children and staff.
   Next, the names are very confusing. Unless you know upper and lower refer to grade level, most community members I have spoken with think they refer to geographic location, rather than grade levels. With that reasoning, they then correctly deduce the upper would be located in Solebury, and the lower would be the school in New Hope.
   Furthermore, the use of upper and lower also are very limiting on what you can, in the future, do with the schools. What if, a few years down the road, you need to switch the grades around due to enrollment changes? How do you align that with your current nomenclature of naming them by grade levels?
   You will have a large amount of money invested in signage, stationary and all other permanent name items.
   To summarize, please thoughtfully and seriously consider these names for our wonderful schools. They are much more friendly and appropriate than the current choices.
   As mentioned above, one suggestion for the K-2 school is Solebury Village Elementary — how cute is that!
   Recently, while on an outing with my first-graders Scout troop, we visited the original schoolhouse on that property. The mother who did the research for our trip discovered the original name of the school was Solebury Village School. What a great way to honor history!
   The names New Hope Elementary and Solebury Village Elementary are so much more inviting, recognizable and reflective of our community.
   It is important for a decision on this issue to be made soon. Signs are being created; money is being spent on permanent items containing the school’s names.
   Unfortunately, I will be out of town next week so I won’t be there in person so address this issue at your next meeting. I am confident I have provided you with a strong case for adopting these changes.
   I look forward to your decision.
   Thanks for all you do and for your consideration of this request!

Laurie Skoroda
Solebury

Kids First has

genuine interest
To the editor:
   While I don’t normally respond to the letters I read in the local papers, today I had to step up and comment on the upcoming NH-S School board election.
   My family has lived in this community for over 100 years, and for the past 11 years with children in this district, I’ve sat here and watched what was going on in the NH-S district.
   When I first heard about the six individuals running for the open seats calling themselves NH-S Kids First, I listened to what they had to say. Why? Because these are individuals I’ve seen coaching our children, volunteering at school and in our community and taking a genuine interest on what’s in the best interest for our kids.
   Out of curiosity, I went into their Web site one day — www.nhskidsfirst.com. What a pleasant surprise to see the diverse backgrounds of these candidates as well as personally learning more from their Web site in the last two months than I have in the last two years on the issues within our community.
   As taxpayers, you owe it to yourself and to your children to look into the background of your school board members whether they are currently sitting on the board or running for an open seat.
   In reading the local newspapers, current board members are taking this group as a threat. When you go to vote, there is no one lever to pull that has NH-S Kids First written on it. They are individuals with their own opinions. You need to choose who you feel will be the best to look out for the well-being of your children’s future as well as your tax dollars.
   With the NH-S Kids First backgrounds, remember, they all have one common goal. They’re trying to do what’s best for our children, our future leaders.
   After reading the letters to the editor, I do feel compelled to comment on our former school board president’s letter. He questioned whether or not the low PSSA scores our last year third-graders (now fourth) received in math and reading were because of missing class due to music lessons.
   Where have you been? Have you honestly been listening to the parents in your district? Obviously not.
   Where were you when a large group of parents of this particular class voiced their concerns when you took our five homeroom classes down to four, subsequently ending up with 27-28 students per class? Did you not listen to our pleas and concerns on whether this would affect our children academically?
   I guess not. We waited months and months for the PSSA results. Not until this year did we find out the results of how our children did in their third grade PSSA results. We simply received a letter from the school indicating our child’s score and stating tutoring was available through the state on a first-come first-served basis if your child fell below average in math or reading.
   We weren’t even told the overall district results in this letter. Nothing.
   One of the running candidates from NH-S Kids First went above and beyond their duty to find those results from our district as well as the other districts. We parents had this information because of this person even before the school or school board had it.
   One week after these letters were sent home, these same children had one day of math class out of five. The other four days of math was substituted for our Artist-in-Residence program.
   After hearing our test results and only one week later, this was unacceptable in my book.
   It’s time NH-S; we need new faces, new opinions and fresh ideas.
   E-mail or call these six candidates. Look on their Web site to see where you can meet them in person over coffee and listen to their views and reasoning on why they are running for an open seat.
   Take a moment to view their weekly poll on current situations or the results from the previous weeks.
   As an example, one of the previous questions on the poll asked if families use spring break for their family vacation time. Check out the numbers; the majority do go away during this time.
   The current school board approved the new policy on limiting vacation time during the school year, took two days off our spring break for 2006, but added a half day off on the last day of each marking period.
   I’m no mathematician, but this equals four half days and three full days, and here we are back to a total of five. For working parents, do you not take into consideration how hard it is for these parents to find someone to take care of their younger children on these half days? Perhaps not.
   You can sit back, read the letters from our former school board president indicating how well we’re doing and how far we’ve come. If this were the case, then why would he see the need to send his oldest child to a private school?
   You owe it to yourself and to your children to really know your candidates before pulling that lever May 17. There’s no one to blame but ourselves if we choose the wrong candidates.
   Like I did, out of curiosity, go into the www.nhskidsfirst.com Web site. There may be things happening in your district you’re not aware of and should find out how your current board members feel on the topic prior to voting.

Wanda M. Foy
Solebury

NH-S candidate

supports Act 72
To the editor:
   I am a school board candidate in the New Hope-Solebury School District, and I couldn’t be more excited about the choices in this election for representation on our school board.
   I believe we live in a wonderful area with a vibrant community of intelligent and creative thinkers. A voice needs to be given to our community and to those who work closest with the children: our parents and the NH-S teachers and staff.
   That is why I support advisory committees for our schools and why I would not support the outsourcing of support staff jobs. The power to raise taxes should be in the hands of voters, not a nine-member school board, and that is why I support Act 72.
   Act 72 will restrict our school board from raising taxes above the rate of inflation while also providing property tax relief to all homeowners. The long-term planning achievements of the Solebury Township Supervisors are exemplary, especially in the area of land preservation, and that is why I support Act 153.
   If elected, I will strive to ensure each child is challenged in academics, athletics and the arts throughout his or her years in the New Hope-Solebury School District.
   Last week, I read letters to the editor from current board members as well as from a past board president who resigned. I also read a private letter written by a Solebury Township Supervisor that was mailed out in the community.
   Common themes ran through all of the letters: defensiveness and accusations of misinformation, all directed at a group of six parents, NH-S Kids First, who are willing to stand up and ask questions, provide information and resources to the public and offer new ideas.
   I am a member of this dynamic team. I embrace questions and challenges because I think it promotes excellence. One question that perplexes me is why is a group, whose collective goal is to make decisions that put kids first, such a threat to those in power?
   Past letters to the editor from some of the current school board members have accused NH-S Kids First of having a "group think" mentality and of running a "misinformation campaign." These board members also kept repeating the same "factual" statements without any reference to a source or how the numbers were derived.
   I think this might suggest a "group think" mentality is a problem on our current board. Look at the statements made by board members along with actual numbers and sources I have provided and decide for yourself where the "misinformation campaign" is originating from.
   You can also access more detail on any of these issues on our Web site at www.NHSKidsFirst.com.
   • "Enrollment has increased more than 45 percent in the past eight years."
   Using the NH-S School District enrollment projections obtained through the district office, in 1997-98, our enrollment was 1,042 and, presently, in 2004-05, our enrollment is 1,396. This is a 33 percent increase.
   • "During this same eight-year timeframe, our district’s enrollment doubles the percent growth rate for every other school district in the county."
   Central Bucks, which has its enrollment figures online at www.cbsd.org, had enrollment at 14,754 in 1997-98 and enrollment of 19,361 in 2004-05. This is a 31 percent increase and very similar to the growth we have seen.
   • "Our PSSA scores for the fifth, eighth and 11th grades rank in the top 2 percent for all schools in Pennsylvania."
   While this was true of our schools in recent years, it is not an accurate statement today.
   The most recent results from 2004 show our fifth grade ranked 273rd out of 1753 schools, eighth grade ranked 44th out of 874 schools and 12th grade ranked 27th out of 673 schools. Sources: www.psk12.com and www.pde.state.pa.us).
   That’s a range from the top 4 percent to 15 percent, which is excellent, but it isn’t 2 percent.
   For the third-grade PSSA results, it was not reported by the district that 40 percent of the students scored below proficient until a parent asked for specifics. When parents asked for a meeting to discuss the third-grade PSSA results with the school board, the school board president directed them to the Home and School Association, stating "I do not feel that the place for that is a school board meeting."
   • "Over the past 10 years, the budget and our taxes have increased significantly."
   This is true! However, no numbers were ever provided. Using the current budget document obtained through the district office, the budget for 1996-97 was $10.6 million, and in 2004-05, the budget is $25 million, an increase of 14.3 million or 134 percent.
   The proposed budget for 2005-06 is $29.1 million. If you take $29.1 million and divide it by the enrollment projection of 1,413 for next year, that makes the cost per student $20,594.
   • "The point has been made the Finance Committee has not met in recent months. Committees meet based on need."
   I joined this committee August 2004, and I sent e-mails since then, requesting the first meeting time and date. No meeting time or date was ever set.
   If spending $20,594 per student doesn’t indicate a need, I am not sure what would do it. The district Web site does not list any meeting dates for this committee — www.nhsd.org.
   • Regarding the cost to renovate the lower elementary school, "The cost of steel has risen over 40 percent."
   Does this mean the cost projections of $8 million to $9.5 million for renovating the lower elementary school are low? The decision by the board to split elementary children between two buildings has caused taxpayers to incur additional overhead of utilities and salaries in order to operate two schools instead of one. My rough guess is an additional $500,000 a year.
   There is also the cost associated with travel reimbursement for shared staff traveling between buildings daily. The complete loss of so much programming to the children as a result of this split is glaring — Safeties, Buddies, Student Council, Serendipity, "Odyssey of the Mind," opera and K-2 concerts.
   Hopefully, these will all return next year. This is on top of the board removing Spanish and beginning strings from the K-2 grades.
   I believe the pending renovation of the lower elementary school is short sighted and does not put "kids first."
   An addition to the new upper elementary school would be the best long-term plan financially and for our children.
   I would like to thank each and every voter in advance for their "informed decision" May 17, and I look forward to continuing my service to this community on your school board or in attendance at meetings, asking questions of our elected officials.

Amanda Elefante
NH-S Kids First candidate
New Hope

Celebrate

the arts!
To the editor:
   Once again the community has stepped forward to support the annual sculpture New Hope "Indoors & Out" exhibition.
   The patrons preview this Saturday, April 30, is sold out, but the gallery at 2 Stockton Ave. will be open Thursday from noon to 6 p.m. through May 29.
   We thank everyone who supports this community event sponsored by New Hope Arts Inc. and look forward to seeing you at the show.
   Celebrate the arts!

Robin Larsen
New Hope Arts Inc.
New Hope

Board grateful

for budget support
To the editor:
   On behalf of the administration, Board of Education, staff and students, we would most sincerely like to thank the community for their support of our 2005-06 school budget.
   Your trust in us and your desire to support our children is greatly appreciated and helps us to move forward providing the best quality education possible.
   Please come out and join us for our Board of Education meetings and work sessions. Your participation is both valuable and welcomed.
   We also would like to take this opportunity to welcome our two newest board members — Patty Barrett and Chris Castellano — as well as returning members Rob Tomenchok and John Dupuis.

Dr. Todd Fay
superintendent
Cynthia H. Magill
school board president
West Amwell

South thankful

for budget support
To the editor:
   The South Hunterdon Regional High School Board of Education, administration, staff and students sincerely thank the public for your support during our recent passing of the school budget.
   We appreciate the fact your decision may have been very difficult no matter how you voted, but the community’s interest for South to be a better place is very evident. The passing of the school budget demonstrates we are working for a common goal.
   This is especially significant given the fact South was the only regional school district in Hunterdon County to pass its budget. We are encouraged and appreciative of this show of support for our school. We thank you for sharing our commitment to quality education for our children.
   Much of this past year has been focused on assessing where we are and where we need to be in education. We have a lot of work ahead of us to enhance our ability to provide effective and efficient education for our students. The approved budget includes several opportunities that will assist us in achieving that goal.
   We encourage you to continue expressing your support by joining fellow community members in attending and participating in current and upcoming school-related initiatives and meetings.
   You can contact the high school for more information or visit www.shrhs.org and sign up to receive timely information via e-mail.

Douglas Coleman
board president
Gregory Danese
board vice president
Lisa Brady
superintendent
Don Woodring
principal
Julie Mumaw
business administrator and
board secretary
Richard Anthes
David Beaumont
Robert Campbell
Nicole Claus
Boyd Hartpence
Patricia Warford
Laurie Weinstein
board members

Family grateful

for support
To the editor:
   A special thanks to all for thinking of me in the time of sorrow, for the loss of a sister, Minnie.
   It was greatly appreciated. God bless.

Mary Radeer
Lambertville

Candidate agrees

to no signs
To the editor:
   Two longtime residents of West Amwell Township will vie for the Republican nomination in the June 7 primary election.
   One has been an employee for over 30 years, and the other has been elected and re-elected to office four times.
   As one of the candidates, I am sensitive to the reality we both are blessed with many supporters and friends in common who will be unnecessarily stressed if asked by each one of us to display their preference with a lawn sign.
   One way to avoid putting people we care for through this ordeal is to agree to not engage in the typical sign war that has plagued many a campaign.
   As such, I am offering to not put up signs this year if my opponent will also agree. This will help our residents focus on the issues rather than center on littering our beautiful county roads with signs.

Nance Palladino
Lambertville