Each of the three departing South Orange-Maplewood Board of Education members — President Dr. Qawi Telesford, 1st Vice President Arun Vadlamani, and former President Kaitlin Wittleder — was honored by their colleagues at the board’s final meeting of 2024 on Thursday, December 19. Every speaker noted that the last three years have been a period of great turmoil and change in the district, and each complimented the board member they honored for weathering those changes.
You can watch the remarks here, beginning at the 1:11.04 mark:
The three were elected as new members to the BOE in 2021 and sworn in together in January 2022. Wittleder chose not to seek re-election for a second three-year term this year. Telesford and Vadlamani ran for re-election together on a three-person slate that also included Bethany Joseph, but were defeated — along with independent candidate Paul Stephan — by Jeffrey Bennett, Deirdre Brown, and Bimal Kapadia in November.
2nd Vice President Nubia DuVall Wilson spoke to recognize Wittleder’s service to the BOE. DuVall Wilson served as Wittleder’s 2nd Vice President in 2023.
“It is an honor to recognize and celebrate the leadership and service of our former board President Kaitlin Wittleder,” DuVall Wilson began, explaining that she brought tissues in case she cried during her speech.
“Kaitlin, the board legacy you leave behind has a trail of successes, challenges, triumphs, and perseverance. You were elected president at a time when the community demanded change, and you delivered on it,” she continued. “Your vision, paired with your tenacity, enabled the board and district to advance in critical areas that have brought us to where we are today.”
Arun Vadlamani, Dr. Qawi Telesford, Kaitlin Wittleder. December 19, 2024. Photo by Eshaya Draper.
Wittleder, in her remarks delivered during the meeting, singled out as achievements during her board tenure the introduction of a phonics-based English language arts curriculum and intervention and referral services (I&RS) in the district’s elementary schools and transportation services to support the Intentional Integration Initiative.
In particular, Wittleder said that the testimony around transportation in the district pushed her “to advocate for every child as if they were my own.”
DuVall Wilson highlighted many of the same achievements, and noted additionally the creation of a sexual misconduct and harassment training for all coaches and activity leaders in the district and the introduction of the Rutgers Implementation committee, intended to provide oversight of the 23 recommendations the district must implement by 2026 to comply with the settlement of the lawsuit filed by the Black Parents Workshop in 2017.
“You have done so much to champion the students of our district. If you ever question if you did enough during your tenure, I want you to remember that all students, regardless of their background, benefitted from your tenure,” DuVall Wilson concluded.
BOE member Elizabeth Callahan spoke in support of Vadlamani.
“Before I begin, just a friendly reminder, Arun, to please hold any objections until the end,” Callahan said at the outset of her remarks — a nod to Vadlamani’s outspokennness during meetings (although, she also said, Vadlamani is “always able to share a laugh afterward.”). Callahan joked that her remarks about Vadlamani began as “an epic roast” but changed tone to “focus on your impeccable contributions.”
“To know Arun,” she said, “is to know someone who is tenacious, opinionated, honest, yet incredibly warm, caring, and funny.”
Callahan cited Vadlamani’s priorities during his board tenure as “ensuring equity and maintaining a high expectation for all of our students” and she credited him and the BOE leadership team and “board collective” with “a noticeable improvement in board culture and the tone of our public discourse.” She also praised his “steadfast centering of student achievement and outcomes” and his “focus on stabilization,” as well as his contributions to hiring Superintendent Jason Bing and returning Columbia High School principal Frank Sanchez to his post this year.
“Arun’s positive impact will be felt in our district for years to come,” Callahan concluded.
For his part, Vadlamani, who had never run for office before his election to the BOE, said, “Public service is rewarding, and I strongly recommend it to everyone in our two towns. We can only improve when we all work together, especially for our children.”
Speaking for Board President Telesford, BOE member Shayna Sackett-Gable noted that Telesford was the first Columbia High School alumnus to serve as BOE president. She observed that Telesford served on nearly every committee on the BOE, all while becoming a father twice — children, she noted, “who will be part of the next generation of South Orange-Maplewood students.”
“You have brought to the board an intentional focus on data-driven decisions, placed priority on high expectations and achievement, and always demonstrated a strong commitment to the equitable education of all of our district students,” Sackett-Gable said.
Telesford served during a “time of significant transition in the district,” she said.
In his own remarks, Telesford said, “I can attest to joining a board that was relatively stable and watching as it descended into chaos. That’s when I realized the true power of a board. Beyond our good intentions, we can derail forward progress that affects all students…while we can support growth, we also have the potential to thwart progress. That is a sobering reality and a responsibility we must never take lightly.”
“You have shown yourself to be a person of strong, unwavering principles, and you have left our board and district in a strong and growth-oriented posture,” Sackett-Gable told Telesford. “Your contributions will not go unnoticed.”
