Residents have 17 days left to file a nominating petition to seek one of three available seats – two for residents of Hopewell Township and one for a resident of Pennington – on the Hopewell Valley Regional School District Board of Education.
The deadline to file is 4 p.m. July 30. Nominating petitions, signed by 10 registered voters in Hopewell Township or Pennington, must be turned in to the Mercer County Clerk’s Office in Trenton by the deadline. The school board election is Nov. 6.
The terms of Jenny Long, Leigh Ann Peterson and Lisa Wolff are expiring. Peterson and Wolff represent Hopewell Township on the regional school board, and Long represents Pennington. The term is for three years.
Seven of the nine school board members represent Hopewell Township. Pennington and Hopewell Borough have one representative each.
Only registered voters who live in Hopewell Township can sign a nominating petition for the two Hopewell seats and likewise, only registered voters in Pennington can sign a nominating petition for the Pennington seat.
Long is seeking another term, but Wolff has decided not to seek re-election. Peterson could not be reached for comment.
Long, who is seeking a second term on the board, said she is running because “we have a strong working board that respects one another’s opinions.”
“I would like the opportunity to continue working on the board and to use my experience as we go forward over the next few years,” Long said.
Wolff has opted not to seek a fourth term. She served six years as the board’s president and is currently the vice president.
Wolff said she is not seeking re-election because she achieved the two goals she set out to accomplish when she ran for the board – for it to become a more cohesive board and to attract non-taxpayer revenues to the school district.
“When I ran for the school board 10 years ago, I ran on a simple platform of two issues – to transform the school board from being very contentious to one where all board members collaborated with each other, the administration and the community,” Wolff said.
Wolff said that when she stepped down as president last year, the board dynamic had evolved into one where members showed respect for each other, and all voices were heard.
Wolff also pointed out that the board she led was the first one to renew a superintendent’s contract since the position became a non-tenured one many years ago.
“Additionally, the school board negotiated several rounds of collective bargaining agreements (with the unions) with less contention than those in neighboring districts,” she said.
Her second goal – to attract non-taxpayer revenues to the school district – took years of widespread collaboration. For example, community members, foundations and private businesses funded the turf field at the Timberlane Middle School, she said.
Candidates for a school board seat must be 18 years old, be able to read and write and hold U.S. citizenship. They must have lived in the school district for at least one year before the election, and be registered to vote.
Candidates may not have an interest in, or hold a claim against, the school board. They may not serve on the municipal governing body, and may not be disqualified from holding office because of conviction of certain crimes.
Nominating petitions are available for pickup at the school district’s Business Office, through the Mercer County Clerk’s Office or online at the school district’s website, www.hvrsd.org