JACKSON — The membership of the Jackson School District Board of Education will remain unchanged next year following the Nov. 4 election.
Three residents sought two three-year seats on the board, and the two incumbents won re-election.
According to the Ocean County Board of Elections, incumbents Barbara Fiero and Michael Hanlon will return to the board after receiving 5,643 and 5,490 votes, respectively.
Jonathan Regan-Levine received 2,632 votes in an unsuccessful bid for a seat on the panel that oversees the operation of the school district.
Fiero, who is currently serving as board president, will begin her fourth consecutive term in January.
“I am thrilled to be back and to continuing to move the district forward and to guide it,” she said. “I am thrilled at the support the community has shown in electing me.”
In looking forward to the next three years, Fiero said she has a short list of key issues she hopes to tackle with her colleagues on the board.
“We are looking at the feasibility of full-day kindergarten — that is the biggie right now,” she said. “We want to continue the best that we can … and not lose sight of the students to make it a wonderful learning experience.”
Hanlon will return to the board for a second consecutive term. Prior to his 2011 election victory, he served on the board between 1999 and 2008.
According to the school district’s website, Hanlon said he aims to “ensure in these difficult times that the needs of our children … are kept in the forefront of all budget decisions.”
Hanlon listed the need to keep extracurricular activities as a staple for students and the need to monitor and use anti-bullying policies as priorities.
In the past, Fiero and Hanlon have emphasized the importance of further implementation of the Common Core State Standards and the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers testing over the next few years.
— Andrew Martins