Seven candidates are vying for three seats on the South Orange-Maplewood Board of Education in the Nov. 5, 2024 election. Village Green invites voters to submit Letters to the Editors in support of candidates. See guidelines below.
Last spring, our district faced a completely unanticipated $9.5 million deficit that led to abrupt cuts to teachers, supplies, paraprofessionals, and the Director of Guidance. This fall, I have seen the fallout from those cuts and their direct impact on our students. But I keep returning to the surprise of it all and how the district had to swiftly make cuts and compile a budget. These cuts could have been approached more strategically, and with lesser impact on our students, if we had seen this coming through budget forecasts–a mainstay of all business operations from the government, to corporations, to individual households. A strategic and detailed budget forecast for five years minimum would allow us to build programs that are sustainable and when cuts are needed, to do them strategically.
I keep saying, “our students deserve better,” and that is what motivates my continued advocacy on their behalf. Our opportunity to do better for our students comes with the slate of Deirdre Brown, Jeff Bennett, and Bimal Kapadia.
Jeff Bennett served on the BOE from 2012-2015 and since then has remained actively engaged providing deep analysis into bussing, the budget, and other data. He brings knowledge of the operations and regulations of the BOE and administration as well as a unique ability to synthesize data to inform strategic decisions and identify efficiencies to maximize the resources we have. I voted for him in 2012, supported his write-in campaign last fall, and am delighted to have this opportunity to champion his candidacy again. He is an asset to our community and will bring the accountability, strategy, and analysis that is so desperately needed. Jeff has shown this community who he is and what he will bring to the BOE. Jeff will do better.
Deirdre Brown’s professional experience in government accountability working for a non-partisan Congressional agency means that she has the insight and motivation to engage with stakeholders for strategic planning, the evaluation of programs and processes, as well as budget analysis. She understands the need for analysis to identify areas of potential cost-savings and to ensure that there is oversight, accountability, and transparency. She is also a parent of students at the middle and high school levels, so she is here with the CHS parents now, with a full understanding of the impact that the short-sighted cut of the Director of Guidance had on our students this year. Our students deserve better, Deirdre will do better.
Last spring it was suggested that the district engage in a forensic audit. Bimal Kapadia supports a forensic audit and budget transparency so as a community we are informed. The forensic audit and the insight that it will provide will allow the district to make better decisions going forward and will help to restore public trust in district leadership. Let’s move forward. Let’s look under the hood, fix what’s broken, and do better. Bimal will do better.
My two children have had some truly amazing teachers in this district. Teachers who have shown up and done their best for their students every day. We need a BOE that supports our students by valuing our teachers and giving them a work environment where they want to stay. Brown, Bennett, and Kapadia will do the work needed to make sure that our budget is analyzed to maximize our ability to pay our teachers a fair and competitive wage.
This district has so much potential. I am optimistic and confident that Brown, Bennett, and Kapadia will do better.
Anina Rossen
South Orange, NJ
Letters to the Editors guidelines: Village Green publishes Letters to the Editors in support of candidates. Publishing these letters is at the discretion of the editors. We do not publish letters attacking competing candidates or any person. We aim to publish as many letters as we receive; however, if there is a large volume of letters and they are received late in the race, we cannot guarantee that they will be posted. Letters to the Editors can be submitted to villagegreennj@gmail.com. Please send as a Word or Google document, not as a PDF. Letter writers should provide their name and place of residence (town and state). The deadline for submitting a Letter to the Editor for the Fall 2024 election is Tuesday, October 29, at 5 p.m.
