Opinion: Board of Ed. Not Representing Children, Taxpayers
Former Bloomfield BOE member Susan Wolf sees the Board of Ed. leading the district in the wrong direction.
The following letter to the editor was written by Susan Wolf.
Board of Education President Mary Shaughnessy wrote a statement last week regarding the states funding of our schools. This statement was made to set the scene for the tax increase that the board will soon vote for.
Shaughnessy along with the other members of the board will continue to mislead the Bloomfield residents and blame the state for their incompetence.
Back in 2007, Superintendent Frank Digesere along with the board was giving the same sound bites to the public about the state's lack of funding, and how the state owes us money according to its own “funding formula.” It is now 2013 and Bloomfield will never see that “so called” money. It is important to note at that time the board was also operating with a deficit.
Beginning in 2008, the board had three years of responsible leadership creating a $1.5 million surplus, reduced classroom size, and renovated Foley Field. This was all accomplished, while millions of dollars were cut from state aid to Bloomfield schools.
Now that surplus is gone, taxes increased, and so did classroom size.
Since Shaughnessy has been the president of the board, the district has received an additional 7 percent in state aid along with an additional $272 plus tax increase. With this additional state aid and tax increase, the board still laid off teachers, eliminated “important facility projects” and increased classroom size.
Why is it that the prior board was able to come to the public with a zero percent tax increase while receiving 7 percent less from the state? As a parent and taxpayer, I ask Shaughnessy, "Where has all the money gone?"
We need to vote out the politicians that are currently controlling our school board. Only two out of nine board members have children in our schools. This is not a board that is representing the children of Bloomfield.
Pat Gilleran
6:10 pm on Monday, February 11, 2013
Ruuning again Susan> How does a surplus equate to smaller classroom size? Isn't classroom size dictated by the number of children in a grade and not by state funding. There are MORE CHILDREN NOW IN BLOOMFIE:D SCHOOLS THAN THERE WERE IN 2008!
When you ran for re-election in 2001 (and lost) part of your platform was "My main focus has always been class size. Since I have been on the board, we have successfully added more classrooms in every elementary school in our district."
So, do you plan on adding more trailers in Bloomfield school parking lots in order to facilitate a smaller classroom size? There needs to be other solutions - solutions that the present BOE has been researching.
And YES the current BOE has been diligently working for both the children of Bloomfield and the residents of Bloomfield.
ps- I don't see the need for the entire BOE to have children in the Bloomfield school system. The people on the Board currently have a great deal of varied and useful experience.
jfc
6:10 pm on Monday, February 11, 2013
The BOE has to be reigned in with their cost to Bloomfield's taxpayers.
This township give's them a free ride every time a school budget is up for a vote. So I blame both parties. I always VOTE DOWN a budget because I see nothing be done to cut expenses. Being a senor citizen WITHOUT any children, I have to live on a fixed income and budget my expenses. Why can't the BOE do the same?
Pete Mock
5:15 pm on Wednesday, February 13, 2013
reigned in jfc? I guess you don't follow the BOE news these days. In the last two years there was one budget with no tax increase, and another that was under 2%. That's a free ride? As Ms Wolf states, teachers were cut, facility maintenance was left undone, all while class size was growing significantly. If you don't see anything done to cut expences you're not paying attention.
Not sure you realize that by voting down every BOE budget you're shooting yourself in the foot. If you care about your taxes and stabilizing the tax base then you want new families moving into Bloomfield, but they won't come of the schools are underfunded to the point where we're cutting teachers and putting kids in trailers.
A
6:10 pm on Monday, February 11, 2013
Amen! Someone has spoken! I agree 100% I strongly believe that from the board to the mayor They need to be voted out!!!!! ASAP! before you know we will paying our mortgage just to support the school tax and the mayors crap of development.
Pete Mock
5:15 pm on Wednesday, February 13, 2013
A, you might want to tune into a BOE meeting or two. As I mentioned, they've done such a great job protecting the taxpayers the past two years that it's killed the BOE budget for this year.
Better yet, you might want to go to a Planning Board meeting and hear members of the BOE speak out against all these new developments with big tax giveaways being rubber stamped by the mayor with no thought to what it will do to the schools.
Pete Mock
5:15 pm on Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Oh no please, not another political hit piece by a former board member who wants back in.
I should have expected you were running when you posted in defense of Joe Lopez's own hit piece that ran in the local press a few weeks ago. In response to my criticism of Lopez for essentially disappearing after he was voted out as President, you claimed that, under Lopez "the BOE was about the children". I guess you found your theme.
If you had used this space to talk about your ideas that might help Bloomfield out of the current situation, one that you helped get us into with the zero budget of 2011, you'd have my attention. But instead it's more politics, and attack, attack. I might even like your positions on the important issues, but the politics is a complete turn off.
You had your shot, you were voted out, please find another way to contribute to the town.
Pete Mock
5:15 pm on Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Susan, is it just you and Joe that are running under the flag of the Democratic County Machine, or are their others we have to watch out for?
Nothing but good sense
11:42 am on Thursday, February 14, 2013
Can't beat your logic and your numbers, Susan. If you're running again, don't let the personal attacks get in your way. Smaller classroom size and fiscal responsibility. Makes complete sense.
xoxo
9:12 am on Thursday, February 14, 2013
Hey Susan - Get back under that rock with Lopez. Let's see your contributors. The sames as those of the Democratic Machine. Bloomfield is for sale and both of you were lead sales people. You guys did your best to screw up our schools and now the Democratic Machine needs you two to come back and wrestle back the vendors like the board attorney and the insurance broker this board fired. The Machine needs you guys to bring in some more pay to play money for them.