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.
Hi Neighbors,
I’m Courtney Magahis, a Maplewood resident, licensed clinical social worker, and mom of two—one at Seth Boyden and one at Montrose Early Childhood Center. Our family thoughtfully moved here from Austin, Texas, drawn by South Orange & Maplewood’s diversity, safety, and commitment to equity through the Intentional Integration Initiative. While our school district has it’s challenges, the ongoing commitment to these ideals has been a refreshing change for our family.
Now, as I consider this upcoming board of education election, I’m supporting a slate of candidates who demonstrate qualities that will further align with why we chose SOMA: a strong moral compass, dedication to advancing equity, and the ability to see the humanity in each educator, administrator, and student. This is why I’m supporting Qawi Teleseford, Arun Vadlamani, & Bethany Joseph—they embody these critical values in ways that I believe will benefit our schools and unite our community.
Board decisions are often complex and fraught with competing interests. It is vital that these decisions rest on a strong moral foundation to ensure that every decision is made with integrity and the best interests of all students and educators at heart. Qawi and Arun’s current board of education contributions consistently prioritize equity, fairness, and empathy. During board meetings, I have observed Qawi and Arun thoughtfully advocate for a pause, by voting no, to ensure clarity of thought and action before finalizing a major decision. At a recent campaign gathering, Bethany told how she initiates tough conversations with commonality and sincerity to foster respect between each side before engaging in conflict resolution—a clear example to me of moral and ethical alignment.
Qawi, Arun, and Bethany are active in their support for the III—not just in rhetoric, but in practice. I admire their dedication to advancing equity in our schools and ensuring our schools reflect our community. Systemic solutions to systemic oppression demand discomfort, humility, and connection from the community. This slate has a proven understanding of this while remaining committed to equity. As Bethany said, “You have to commit as a community that we are going to do this because our schools, every single school, needs to reflect the diversity of our community.”
While academic success is important, I believe it’s essential to first see individuals as whole people who bring value to their community. This slate shares that belief, viewing policy and procedure as a vessel to ensure every individual is treated with the dignity and respect they deserve. Qawi and Arun emphasize both quantitative and qualitative data, while Bethany’s social work background highlights the connection between problem-solving and relationship-building. They don’t see teachers as mere cogs in a machine or students as data points—they see them comprehensively with dreams, challenges, and diverse needs.
In these challenging times for our district—marked by budgetary constraints and political divides—we need leaders who are grounded in moral clarity, courageous enough to advocate for equitable reforms, and compassionate enough to value every individual’s humanity. I am proud and confident to cast my vote for the Qawi, Arun, and Bethany slate, knowing they will steer our schools with both wisdom and compassion.
Warm regards,
Courtney Magahis
Maplewood, 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.
