Robert J. Johnson, West Windsor
Two candidates from West Windsor are vying for a seat on the WW-P Regional Board of Education. I served three terms on the board with colleagues whose hard work and constructive efforts to understand and make sound judgments on issues earned them respect. I served with others whose efforts were not so constructive, and whose poor or careless judgments made the work of the board more difficult and less effective than it should have been. I write to urge voters to value substance in voting for the school board candidate.
For example, I am wary of a candidate who manufactures a non-existent issue. One of the candidates this November says “publish the voting records of all board members, and make them accessible online”. Sounds good — except that voting records of all board members are already always publicly recorded and published and archived — online.
Or consider this same candidate’s proposal for student input into teacher evaluation; regardless of what you might think of the proposal, such input is impermissible by law and by contract.
And while I admire and respect anyone willing to step up and serve on the school board, I doubt that a candidate who is unlikely to live in the district during the three-year term of office truly appreciates what school board service entails.
Attending two board meetings and at least one committee meeting a month might not be impossible with a 50 mile (one-way!) commute, but that’s just part of a board member’s service. Other required service — on contract negotiations committees or ad hoc committee work, for example — is difficult enough after commuting to and from New York, as many current and past board members know. Adding another commute at the end of what could be a half-dozen meetings in a month to a dorm room 50 miles away does not strike me as a realistic arrangement for an effective board member.
For me, the choice of candidates is clear, and I’ll be voting for Michele Kaish on Nov. 3.
Robert J. Johnson
West Windsor
