PINKOWITZ: Why I am running for a seat on the Board of Education
Recently, I made a decision to serve the people of Woodbridge and our students, by running for the Board of Education. I am an eleven-year resident of Woodbridge. I also grew up in Middlesex County and have lived in this area of New Jersey for much of my life. I am not related to anyone working in the district, nor do I work for the Township. My wife, Marci, and I are simply the parents of two daughters and we care about their education. One is in elementary school now, with the other starting next year. As for my work background, I am currently a software development manager. Working in software followed a brief career as an attorney.
My campaign Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/pinkowitzforboe displays my views in more detail and I plan to air my views over the next few months prior to the April 27 election. My hope is that those who share my concerns will come out, vote for me and share what you have learned about me with others.
Last year, like many in Woodbridge, I watched as Governor Christie slashed the funding of schools across the State. The Board of Education was forced to remove millions of dollars from the budget, which led to cuts in many programs including middle school activities, courtesy busing, privatization of custodians and the cafeteria, freshman sports and some academic programs, including the elimination of G&T Arts.
As a concerned parent, I spoke up at a Board of Education meeting, but watched as the cuts were made. Because the budget was later voted down, further cuts were made by the Township Council.
I was not happy with some of the choices the Board made. But I am also realistic. With deep cuts in the funding, cuts must come from somewhere. But it was my hope that cuts would be selected from the correct places and that cuts would be distributed fairly.
As I continued observing the Board, the Board did have the opportunity to bring back some programs. Had they decided then not to spend any money at all, perhaps that could have been seen as the start of fiscal responsibility. But they did vote back in some programs, including courtesy elementary busing and freshman sports. The courtesy busing was brought back when a large number of parents showed up at a Board meeting in the late summer surprised that the buses were being cut, despite these cuts having been posted on the District website since the spring. At least arguably this could have been for safety reasons, although it is not clear how these parents are in any different a situation from parents of current walkers, who also may not feel it is safe for their children to walk to school. The Board also voted to bring back freshman sports.
In an ideal world, I believe that first and foremost, the schools would provide the best education to our students. Secondarily, if money is available, different types of activities to encourage students to explore areas outside academics are important. When there is a choice to be made, though, academics should come first. G&T Arts and freshman sports both cost similar amounts of money. In terms of participation, G&T Arts had about 800 students, while freshman sports served almost 500 less. Whether the measure is academic versus extracurricular or even just judging how many students are involved, the decision should have been a no brainer. But this Board thought differently and brought back freshman sports. I would love to tell you that the Board had some grand justification for doing so, but as with many matters, the members voting in favor of reinstating freshman sports refused to discuss anything about it in public.
The Board of Education is made up of individuals, but it must act as a body. To make the best possible decisions, healthy debate should occur and be encouraged. All too often, whatever debates this Board has happen behind closed doors in committee away from the public’s view.
Too often, this Board appears to be reactive rather than proactive. For example, in a recent Open Finance Meeting, Board Member Brian Molnar stated that he would support zero-based budgeting, where we would review all our budget needs to see what we actually need. Zero-based budgeting can be a good idea, but it is no good to raise it just weeks before the district receives its budget numbers and has to create a budget. The Woodbridge School District is one of the largest in the state. Examining the entire budget takes time. Where was this suggestion after the Board reorganized last April? The Board must proactively create a vision for the district.
It is my goal that the Board deal with the matters it can control. It cannot control the state funding, but it can formulate principles to ensure that the best decisions are made when spending the money. The Board must look to the future. Many of the buildings are aging with four schools pre-dating World War II, two of which also pre-date World War I. That does not even include the administration building, which pre-dates the Spanish-American War.
Although the current economy cannot likely support any building at this time, this does not mean that the Board should be blind to the fact that plans must be made to replace some of these aging structures in the future. In so doing, the district could potentially consolidate some of the schools, reducing administrative overhead. For example, five small middle schools might have seemed a great idea when they were built, but each school needs administrators, secretaries and a nurse and all that is before we turn on the lights.
When you look at this Board, many assume that a large number of Board members have relatives in the district and seem to care more about employment issues at times than the students. The reality is that seven of nine Board members did report relatives in the district on their disclosure statements. The other two Board members are employees of the Township. For those most concerned with their rising property taxes, if you can imagine a time where more state funding is provided in the future, do you honestly believe that once the Board has spent the money on important programs involving the education of our students that it will share some of the excess by not raising property taxes to the cap? I believe it is much more likely that the Board will find a way to waste money. After all, the Board allowed the cafeteria to operate at a deficit for years until it was basically forced to privatize.
Over the next few months, there will be a lot of discussion on the budget, but the decision that annually has the most impact on the governance of our schools is the election for Board of Education. I care. I am willing to listen to the community and make the best decisions for our students, our schools and our taxpayers. Sometimes we will agree. Sometimes we will disagree. But you will always know where I stand. On April 27, vote for me, David Pinkowitz, for Board of Education.