by Davy James, Staff Writer
Candidates running for school board said balancing the budget without encroaching on the needs of students is the biggest challenge facing the Board of Education.
Three, three-year seats are up for election as the terms of board members Barry Nathanson, Robert Long and Stephen Parker have expired.
Edward Birch, Elizabeth Chang, Victor Heutz, Arif Patel and Deven Patel will challenge Mr. Nathanson and Mr. Parker on the ballot this year. Mr. Long has decided not to seek re-election.
School elections are scheduled to be held on April 21. This week, the South Brunswick Post spoke to Ms. Chang, Mr. Parker, Mr. Heutz and Mr. Patel.
Mr. Parker, a software engineer, is finishing his first term on the board and has lived in the township since 1992. He served as chair of the budget committee this year and is proud of the work done to produce a proposed budget that carries no tax increase.
”The biggest issue we face is maintaining the balance to make sure we’re providing a thorough and efficient education for the children while at the same time doing it within the scope of what the community can afford,” Mr. Parker said. “My focus is on maintaining that balance. We don’t have an agenda to meet other than delivering the best education we can but keeping the balance of what the taxpayers can afford.”
Mr. Patel, who has lived in the township for six years, is an executive with Ernst and Young. He said that while South Brunswick is a diverse community, that diversity isn’t represented on the Board of Education. He also said that balancing budgetary issues while maintaining a commitment to classroom education would be the biggest challenge for the board to overcome.
”I believe I can offer the citizens of South Brunswick a unique vision, supported by the skills I’ve acquired in the business world and beyond,” Mr. Patel said. “As a second generation American, my experiences help me bring together members of different cultural, religious, socioeconomic and age groups. As a technology executive in a global company, I have an exceptional viewpoint on the challenges our students will face in the future.”
Mr. Heutz, who has lived in the township for 11 years, is a vice president of a national franchise chain and has an MBA in business. He has two children in the district and coaches baseball and football teams in the community.
He said he has first-hand knowledge of the competitive advantage that comes with a good education in the real world. He said he would bring high energy and passion to the board and would challenge the curriculum to continue improving.
”To me, the most important issue we face is ensuring that our programs are the best and offer a competitive advantage that enables our children to be best prepared for higher education should they choose that path,” Mr. Heutz said via e-mail. “Our programs need to be on the cutting edge with forward vision around technology, math, communications, social skills and business acumen.”
Ms. Chang is a senior at South Brunswick High School and has lived in the district for 10 years. She said she is running for the board because of the problems she sees in the school on a daily basis. She said some of the problems she has seen first-hand are computers that need to be upgraded, a lack of paper towels in the bathrooms and interactive chalk boards that don’t function properly.
She said she would be a representative for students and parents in the district whose opinions may not reach the board otherwise. She believes that balancing the budget with the needs of students would be a major obstacle for the board.
”Because of the recession people are opposed to their taxes going up and are inclined to vote against the board,” Ms. Chang said. “The board will have problems keeping the budget within limit while trying to satisfy everybody’s needs in the community. I would relocate funds from sources that don’t require money and use it in a better way.”
