Board of education decides to keep current leadership in place.
By: Bill Greenwood
MONROE The Board of Education will keep its leadership in place.
At its annual reorganization meeting Wednesday, the board re-elected Kathy Kolupanowich as board president and Lew Kaufman as vice president. It is the third straight year that Ms. Kolupanowich will serve in the post.
"She’s done an outstanding job for two years," said board member Amy Speizer, who nominated Ms. Kolupanowich.
Ms. Kolupanowich was re-elected by a 7-1 vote, with board member Rita Ostrager casting the lone dissenting vote. Mr. Kaufman was re-elected unanimously.
Ms. Kolupanowich thanked the board for its nearly unanimous vote and stated that the April 17 school board elections gave the board a clear message from the public. She also called for board members to stop the infighting and negativity that has been associated with the board over the last few months.
"It is now time for us, as Board of Education members, to put aside our differences and do the job that this community has elected us to do," she said. "They’ve asked us to continue to give their children a quality education, and they want us to move forward and build the new high school in the park."
The board also swore in the winners of last week’s school board elections to three-year terms: Mr. Kaufman, who will begin his third term; Ms. Speizer, who will begin her fifth term; and newcomer Ira Tessler.
Patrice Faraone, a Jamesburg Board of Education member who serves as the borough’s representative to the Monroe board, also was sworn in. She was re-elected to a fourth term on the Jamesburg Board of Education.
The board also moved the starting time of its meetings from 6:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. At that time, the board will meet, pass a closed session resolution and return at 8 p.m. for the meeting’s public portion.

