Candidates

By: centraljersey.com
For the purpose of introducing themselves to local voters, candidates for seats on the Valley’s three governing bodies recently submitted the following biographical information:
THREE PENNINGTON BOROUGH residents are running for two seats (three-year terms) on Pennington Borough Council. They are:
Republican Eva Kaplan, a 16-year resident of Pennington Borough, moved to Mercer County in 1962. Locally, she has been the longtime chairwoman of Children’s Entertainment for Pennington Day and is a member of the Pennington Business and Professional Association. She has been an educator in several school districts, at The College of New Jersey and at Mercer County Community College. She has conducted programs at the Princeton YMCA and at the JCC of the Greater Delaware Valley. She has designed and coordinated exhibits at The New Jersey State Museum. She is founder and director of a computer camp, Computers + Kids, and is recognized in Who’s Who in U.S. Executives and in Who’s Who in Engineering and Science. She has a graduate degree in interrelated arts from New York University and has done coursework in Administering the Arts and Cultural Affairs at Rider University. Her art is in private collections and has been presented to Gov. Christie Todd Whitman and to Prime Minister Menachem Begin. She was on the board of trustees for Theatre Guild of New Jersey. She has represented New Jersey as a member of the Republican Presidential Roundtable and the National Republican Senatorial Committee. She is a member of the Capital Republican Club, the Hopewell Valley Republican Association (where she was the organization’s secretary for several years), and elected member of Mercer County Republican Committee. Ms. Kaplan has two children, Jodi and Ari, and several grandchildren.
Democrat Alyce McClurg-Doldy is a corporate wellness consultant and owner of a personal fitness studio. She is a biology graduate of The College of New Jersey with a chemistry minor, a business concentration, in addition to master’s work in secondary education. Other professional education includes certifications in management and leadership excellence through the American Management Association. Throughout her 13-year career in fitness and wellness, she has fostered coaching and training relationships with young children and coached YMCA soccer. As a corporate fitness and wellness consultant, she has provided services to Pennington-Ewing Athletic Club, Janssen Pharmaceutica, Bristol-Myers Squibb, New Jersey Manufacturers and Signature Information Solutions. She has a corporate background in scientific research with Mobil Oil and Huntingdon Life Sciences; in retail as department sales manager with Finlay Fine Jewelry at Lord & Taylor and in hospitality, including several years at the Trenton Thunder Stadium Club. She is an eight-year resident of Pennington with her children, Steven, Derek and Faith – students of Toll Gate Grammar School. She has been a room parent, a member of the parent advisory council, and chairwoman for the family sponsorship committee of the Toll Gate Auction. This summer, she completed two half-marathons in Philadelphia and the Hamptons, N.Y.
Incumbent Democrat Tom Ogren is completing his first term on Pennington Borough Council. Just before joining council, he retired from a career of over 30 years in local government administration. He received a master’s degree in public administration from Northern Illinois University and a bachelor’s degree from Hope College in Michigan. He resides on Curlis Avenue with my wife Karen. His son Colin, a recent graduate of Hopewell Valley Central High School, is away at college. As a council member, he has served on council committees, including Public Works, Public Safety, Finance and Personnel. He currently serves as the mayor’s designee to the Planning Board and as a member of the borough’s Open Space Committee. He also is the borough’s representative to the Mercer County Bicycle and Pedestrian Task Force. His volunteer activities include serving as board vice president of Friends of Hopewell Valley Open Space and board vice chairman of the International Charter School of Trenton. He also helps build trails on open space preserves in the Hopewell Valley.
FOUR ARE RUNNING for two open seats (three-year terms) on Hopewell Township Committee. They are:
Republican incumbent James Burd, who is serving this year as deputy mayor. He is serving his third year on the Township Committee. His general areas of responsibility with the Hopewell Township Committee are: the Planning Board, Public Safety, Public Works, Agricultural Advisory Committee and Deer Management Task Force. He has served on the Youth Advisory Board and Advisory Board of Health. He is executive vice president and member of the Board of Directors of Church Brick Company, Bordentown. He has coached with the Hopewell Valley Baseball Association, The Hopewell Valley YMCA Youth Wrestling Program, and as assistant coach for the Hopewell Valley Central High School Wrestling Team. He served as committee chairman for Boy Scout Pack 1776, and as scout master for BAS Troop 15. He was the founding co-president of the Hopewell Valley Music Parents Association. He has served as a volunteer with the Mercer Lutheran Mission Cluster’s Hurricane Relief Committee, raising funds for Hurricane Katrina victims, as well as serving on their relief teams rebuilding homes along the Gulf Coast. He also volunteered with the Cluster’s Habitat for Humanity Team, building houses in the city of Trenton. A member of Abiding Presence Lutheran Church, where he served on the Building Committee that oversaw the construction of a $1.2 million addition, as well as the recent installation of a $300,000 solar electrical system. He is the past president of the Hopewell Valley Republican Association, and a former member of the Mercer County Republican Committee Executive Board. He serves as the District 9 Republican County Committee representative. He was educated in Hopewell Valley schools and received his bachelor’s degree from Moravian College.
Democrat Erika Kotite has a bachelor’s degree from UCLA in English literature. She and her husband Tim have two daughters (Caroline and Elizabeth) and a son, Dana. She is a member of the Hopewell Township Historic Preservation Commission, where I have served since 2008. She also gathered residents’ support to launch a traffic-calming project in her area and has served as a religious education instructor at St. James Church. She has volunteered at Bear Tavern Elementary and Timberlane Middle schools. Ms. Kotite is a local business owner, founder and editor of Toque Magazine. Formerly, she was editor of Hybrid Mom, Romantic Homes and Victorian Homes, as well as a senior editor at Entrepreneur Magazine.
Democrat Michael Kosloski did not provide a photo or biographical sketch.
Incumbent Republican Michael Markulec has over 20 years of experience in computer networking and software, currently serving as president and COO for Lumeta Corporation, Somerset. He is a speaker and presenter on a variety of networking and security topics, most notably networking issues and mandates in the federal government, such as IPv6 transition and the Trusted Internet Connections initiative. He serves on the NJ Innovation Partnership Institute Advisory Board, which develops information technology curriculum for high schools and colleges. Prior to joining Lumeta in 2001, he was the COO of nex-i.com, a data network service provider, where he played a role in that company’s acquisition by Eureka Broadband. He also has held senior sales and operations positions for AT&T’s data network group, Niehoff of America, Pirelli Cable and served as a captain in the U.S. Army. Elected to the Hopewell Township Committee in 2007, he became mayor in January 2010. He serves as liaison to the Historic Preservation Commission, the Youth Advisory Board, and the Pennytown Redevelopment Task Force. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Norwich University and an MBA from Duke University. He and his wife, Jennifer, have two sons Michael (14) and Benjamin (10). A resident of Titusville, he has been active as a coach and an administrator for Hopewell Valley Pop Warner, Junior Bulldog Wrestling and Hopewell Valley Lacrosse over the last decade. He is a board member for the Lawrence-Hopewell Trail.
TWO INCUMBENT DEMOCRATS are seeking re-election to their seats (three-year terms) on Hopewell Borough Council. They are:
– Sean Jackson, who grew up and lived in northern New Jersey until he and his wife found Hopewell Borough some 15 years ago and fell in love with the community. They and their three children are residents of South Lanning Avenue. Mr. Jackson has a bachelor’s degree in history and politics from the University of Michigan (1988) and a law degree from Rutgers-Newark School of Law (1994). He works as a business consultant and develops real estate with offices located in Lambertville. Previously he served as the state director for U.S. Sen. Robert Torricelli and before that practiced law and worked in state government. He is completing his first term on the Hopewell Borough Council.
– David Mackie was born in Princeton Borough in 1959. He and his wife, Mary Rabbitt, were married and moved to Hopewell in 1991. He is a consulting geologist at AMEC Earth & Environmental, Inc. in Somerset. He earned a bachelor’s degree in geology from Rutgers University in 1987; a master’s degree in geology from the University of Connecticut in 1991, and a master’s in public policy (MPP) degree from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University in 2002. He is running for his fifth term on Hopewell Borough Council.
– Ruth Luse