By Gene Robbins, Managing Editor
Local teacher association leaders questioned whether the school incurred extraordinary expenses for last week’s visit by Governor Chris Christie’s to Hillsborough High School.
The governor spoke June 21 from the Commons to announce his “fairness funding” initiative for state school aid. He advocated moving to a per-pupil basis for delivering state dollars to local schools.
Henry Goodhue, the president of the Hillsborough Education Association, asked at Monday’s school board meeting how much the district had paid for cosmetic improvements — like mulched and weeded landscaping at the front entrance to the high school, newly planted rose bushes, replaced ceiling tiles and re-waxed floors — that appeared coincidentally with the governor’s visit. Mr. Goodhue asked for an aggregate accounting of expenses.
“In a rather ironic twist, money was spent to welcome the governor who has consistently underfunded Hillsborough public schools,” Mr. Goodhue said.
The HEA is a state N.J. Education Association member. Unionized education and the governor have been like cat versus mice over pensions and salary issues for years. The HEA and local school board are also deadlocked in contract negotiations, with the first session with a state mediator scheduled for July 14.
The governor’s 30-minute speech (he took no questions) proposed replacing the state aid system that he said sends 58 percent of its money to 31 needier, usually urban, districts with a simple formula that gives each school district in the state the same amount per pupil — $6,599 per child.
If state school aid was reallocated in this way, the governor said, three-quarters of the state’s school districts would see reductions — sometimes dramatic — in property taxes.
In the governor’s proposal, Hillsborough property owner could see a reduction of $1,443, if all increased aid goes back to the taxpayer. Hillsborough has received about the same amount — approximately $25 million — for five years. If the district received what the governor proposed at $6,599 per pupil, it would almost see its state aid doubled.
Yet, Mr. Goodhue said “money was quickly spent to prepare for the arrival of the very person who consistently denies these school what they are rightfully owed per the funding formula he seeks to make ‘fair.’”
Business Administrator Aiman Mahmoud said the physical improvements were made as part of a plan to improve the look at the high school, and will be followed at the other schools in the district. He said staff was “pushed” to make the improvements in short time, but he said the goal is to make all schools look as good.
If there was overtime, he said, it was “de minimus.”
Superintendent Jorden Schiff said at the beginning of the meeting that Hillsborough was proud to use the occasion to showcase the district. “Regardless of what you might think of the policy, I’m not sure there’s a scenario in which we would deny the governor a chance to visit our schools,” said Dr. Schiff.
Board member Steven Cohen said it would be “disrespectful to the office” to not welcome the governor.
Mr. Goodhue said he wasn’t advocating denying the governor access to the school, but encouraged the board to avoid the appearance of divisiveness and disadvantage and “to fight for what we should have received in the first place.”
Mr. Mahmoud noted that members of the governor’s advance team chipped in as laborers with hammer and nail to build the stage and other work to prepare.
