''Twas the night before Election Day...

It’s the night before election day and I’m sitting here feeling overwhelmed, stressed, nervous.. but at the same time I’m feeling so proud of myself for going through with this BOE campaign. I promised myself that I would run a clean campaign. NO negativity. Others can go that route.. but that’s just not me. I’ve seen so much negativity with the presidential campaign. And even at the local level with the town elections. It truly saddens me. Negative campaigning to me is a sign of weakness and speaks a lot about a person’s character.  Our country, our town, our schools do not need any more negativity. I hope everyone goes out and votes for who they truly think is the best candidate and will do the best job and not vote because of party or friendships. Tomorrow good people will win. And good people will lose. Regardless of the outcome, I’m just happy I can honestly say that I’ve kept my head held high  and stayed positive during all this. Go out and vote. Your vote. Your voice.

Sport Budget

I attended the high school baseball parents meeting tonight and what I learned has completely shocked me. The parents purchase the baseballs for practice and other needed equipment. How do we have this huge district budget but not enough money to purchase needed sporting equipment. Baseballs of all things. You can't play without them. I'm just shocked this isn't paid for by the school. I wonder what other basic equipment is being paid for by parents in all sports. I'm definitely looking into this. What a disgrace.

Democrat or Republican?

As I have been walking around town and meeting new people, I'm frequently asked "Are you a Democrat or a Republican". I always answer "neither". Regardless of the fact that the BOE is not affiliated with a political party I want them to know that I truly am not for one party over the other. I've always voted for the candidate that I thought would do the best job. And not just because of their party. Where I might have voted one party one year, I might vote the opposite the next. Let's vote for the best candidate out there. And not just by party. Please don't forget to vote November 8th. I"m column #7. Thanks in advance for your support.

Top Five Objectives

If elected, what are the top five objective you would like to achieve during your term?

1. One of my main objectives would be to have the board members act more like a team and not against each other. The board should be able to collaborate well with other and be respectful of each other and the superintendent.

2. My second objective is to focus on what's best for all students. In particular I would like to see a change in the preparation involved in state testing. Right now our students and teacher are spending an excess amount of time preparing for a test. This prep time is taking away from our student's education. It's time to get back to teaching and not being so worried about the outcome of one test.

3. Thirdly, I would like our schools to move forward with technology. One area that needs to be addressed is the inconsistency of WiFi within the schools for teachers, students and guests. Students are encouraged to use Google Classroom, especially at the high school. However how are they supposed to use this technology if they don't have access to a dependable network.

4. Another objective of mine is better communication. The Board of Education has a responsibility to communicate their actions to the community. A successful school board keeps the community informed of the districts progress and challenges.

5. My last objective is to more proactively market our schools. Especially at the high school level. Did you know that Paramus High School has more course offering and a lower student teacher ratio than neighboring parochial high schools. However we lose students to private schools because parents aren't properly informed of all we have to offer. We need to get the word out by advertising how great our schools really are.

Time for change!

Those of you that personally know me know that I'm a person who doesn't like to sit back and watch. I'm a doer. I like to get things done. If I see something broken I will try and fix it. If a volunteer is needed, i'll raise my hand and do it. So when I saw that Paramus needed new school board members I decided to run. A politician I am not. I am a parent who wants what's best for their kids and all the kids of this town. Being PTA president of both Stony Lane and West Brook I've learned a lot about our schools. I've seen firsthand what works and what doesn't. I feel this town is ready for change. I feel our town is ready for new voices on the board. There are 7 other candidates that are running BOE with me who I hope all feel the same way. It's time! Throughout this election campaign I've tried my best to stay focused and positive in the same way that I would if elected. There is no room on any board for negativity.. especially a school board. Our schools are in need of a board who can work together and put aside their personal agendas. A board that operates together with the same goal. The goal of making our schools exceptional. November 8th is coming up quickly. Please don't forget to vote. I'm #7 on the ballot. Thank you in advance for your support.

Bathroom renovations

I absolutely love seeing school renovations. One of the projects the BOE has been working on a few years now is much needed bathroom renovations. The age of our schools really shows in the bathrooms. I was so excited and happy to see this high school bathroom renovation in the 700 wing. It looks fantastic. Great job!

Testing and evaluations

Most of you already know that I'm passionate about technology in our schools. I posted about that awhile back (check it out in my news feed if you haven't  already).  But I wouldn't be running if I wasn't also passionate about our student's education.  Where I am not opposed to standardized testing (I do think it's important to see how our students perform compared to the rest of the state and country)..I am however opposed to standardized testing such as the PARCC being used to evaluate our teachers.

Did you know that the PARCC test used to account for 10% of teachers evaluations. But now Chris Christie has changed that! He didn't double it.. but he tripled it! So the PARCC results now count for 30% of a teacher's evaluation. That's absurd. I'm opposed to our kids being taught a test. It has to be more than about just a test. Teachers need to teach their way! Telling a teacher how to teach, what to teach and when to teach is taking away from the teaching experience for everyone involved.  And honestly it's not why these teachers became teachers. These test preps are taking away from our student's education.

Growing up I remember standardized "bubble" tests. What I don't remember was my teacher taking time out of the day to just teach us the test. We just took it. The results of these tests in no way affected the teachers evaluation. And that's how it still should be. How it should always be.

Update: I just read yesterday that a bill was passed by the State Assembly to cut PARCC results from teacher evaluations. I just hope this bill can pass the Senate as well. I'll keep you posted.

Ballot Position

Ballot Position. It's important. In an election where the top three candidates win, to get ballot position 1, 2 or 3 is huge. So you can imagine my disappointment when I didn't get those. Or 4. Or 5. Or 6. But SEVEN. Some say seven is lucky and I'm hoping that's true. So my request to you is to please spread the word that i'm number SEVEN on the ballot. 7! Thanks so much for your support.

Technology

Technology! It's what i'm passionate about. I'm that person that always has the new iPhone, iWatch, iSomething. I'm that person that people call to help with their computers, email or gadgets.

I was so excited to hear that my cousin's daughter was given a new laptop as a freshman at her high school. In fact every student at her school was given laptops to be used for the duration of their high school careers. My cousin's daughter is now a senior in college. A senior!! That was almost eight long years ago that her public high school lent out student laptops. 8 YEARS AGO! To say Paramus is behind is an understatement. I've asked around and many neighboring public schools have given out laptops to their students. We are one of the few that haven't. Textbooks are online. Assignments are online. Everything is online.

One of the things I want to fight for if elected to Board of Ed is more technology. I'm proud of our schools but don't want them to fall behind with this. Anyone that has visited the high school or any of the middle schools knows how shotty the wifi is. The high school has a BYOD policy. Bring your own device. But you are only allowed to bring one. That's great! But when that one device you bring can't successfully connect to the school's network, how useful is that?

Now i'm not going to be pretend to be a technology expert. That I am not. And I know that new computers and upgrading our network is going to cost a lot of money. But can you think of a better way to spend the budget's money. I'm hoping the future of Paramus schools is more connected. In more ways than one.

Happy New Year

The new school year is days from starting. I might be more excited than the kids. I drove around the schools yesterday and was so happy and impressed to see the changes everywhere but especially at West Brook Middle School. The addition of the many many parking spots will make traffic flow and parking a lot easier this year. I've also seen photos of the new and improved cafeteria. It looks absolutely fabulous. New tables, new floors, new lights! The works. Thank you Board of Education for funding these much needed projects. I know you will see many improvements at all the other schools as well. Many jobs well done!!

Make a change? But how?

I recently was asked how i wanted to "make a change". I wanted to share my reply.

First things first. I obviously want to change who's on the board. I want to change the dynamics of the board. I want to change how the board interacts with each other and the community. I've attended many many meetings where the current board is just so disconnected from each other. Many ugly arguments and inconsistencies.

I feel like I'm a fresh voice and it's time to shake things up at the BOE. It's time for change. It's time for something new.

I want to change how the public views the board. Right now it's not very positive. This needs to change. A board that works together cordially is one that can achieve anything. I want what's best for my kids and all the students of Paramus. I'm not saying the current board doesn't have the students best interest in mind it's just how are they supposed to accomplish anything when they can't agree on simple things. (Attend any meeting and you will see what I mean.)

Last night I attended the monthly board meeting and there were 8 people in the audience and that included one reporter. You might say "well that's b/c it's the summer", but honestly that's the usual attendance unless there's some pressing matter that the parents are upset about. Our community doesn't attend these meetings regularly at all. That's something I would love to work on. Getting the parents and community wanting to attend and be more informed on what the board is working on to better our district.

More to come! thanks for listening.

But why?

As soon as I announced my candidacy for Paramus Board of Education I was repeatedly asked, "Why?" "Why do you want a volunteer position where you're not paid for all the hard work it demands". Well the answer is because. Because I love Paramus. Because I love the Paramus Schools. Because I want what's best for my kids and your kids. Because I'm sick and tired of sitting back and being unhappy with the current board's actions and decisions. Sure.. i could sit back and do nothing. But that's not me. I can't sit back and watch our schools be only good. I want to do something to make them great. Make them outstanding.  Hey, I know I can't change everything. Nobody can. But being elected is a start. There are many many reasons why I'm running. But truth be told I'm running mostly to shake things up at the Board of Ed. It's time they got a new voice. It's time for a change. I hope I can count on your vote on November 8th. Make a difference. Make a change.

Summer improvements!

 I'm always happy to see summer improvements at our schools. The biggest discussed update of the summer is the East Brook turf. Originally I had thought it was supposed to be used for soccer. But now with the installation of the goal posts and the lines I'm beginning to think differently. Regardless of what sport will be using the field, I think it looks absolutely fabulous. Now if only they could fix West Brook up as nicely. Maybe next year.

4th of July - Help from my little friends.

I attended the Paramus 4th of July parade with some little friends... by little friends I mean my daughter and her 11 year old friends. They were happy to help me spread the word that I am running for Board of Education. Honestly I think they think they are my campaign managers. They each wore a tee shirt with my name, that I made at my house the night before (i'm a bad procrastinator) and they walked the parade route handing out my business cards with contact information and candy. I wanted to thank my little friends (or shall I say minions) for doing such a great job! So thank you to my daughter Katie and her friends, Riley, Vanessa, Lea, Jenna, Amanda and Rachael! Thanks for spreading the word!

Paramus Scholarship Night

Last night I had the honor of presenting two scholarships to West Brook alumni  from the West Brook PTA. I was amazed and so happy to see so many organizations donating scholarships to graduating seniors. The room was packed with not only soon-to-be graduates but with family, friends and supporters. What a great night. I was so honored to be a presenter and to just be there. A big congratulations to all the Paramus graduating seniors! Enjoy and cherish these last days of high school and best of luck in all your future endeavors.

8th Grade Philadelphia Trip

Joey leaving for the bus at 6am

My son, Joey, left today for his 8th Grade West Brook trip to Philadelphia. I was a little disappointed knowing that they no longer go on a longer trip to Washington DC like I did when I was his age.. but that was until I read on a friend's Facebook page that their 8th grade trip is to iPlay America (an amusement park). Not very educational at all! I'm so happy and lucky that our district puts on emphasis on education. And I believe hands on teaching is the best way to learn. I know Joey and his class will have a lot of fun in Philly for the next two days but I also know how much he will be learning!!! Great job Paramus for not doing away with these educational trips. If only my friend's district was as lucky.

It's Official!

Today I went down to the Bergen county clerks office to officially file my petition to run for Board of Education.  So it's official. I will be on the ballot in November. I won't lie, I'm a little nervous about all this. But I'm very excited about what's to come.

Happy Memorial Day

I was excited for the Paramus Memorial Day Parade on Monday. I had planned on going to the parade with Katie and a few of her friends to get the word out that I am running for Board of Education in November. I made shirts for the girls and had my business cards all ready to give out. I'm serious about getting my name out there especially to the older generation of Paramus residents. So you can only imagine my disappointment when I read on the mayor's Facebook page that the parade has been cancelled because of predicted stormy weather. Tropical storm Bonnie could not have picked a worse time. Oh well.. I'll have to wait for the July 4th parade. I hope everyone has a great Memorial Day, however wet it may be!

Drinking Water

A big pat on the back to the District for being proactive and getting the water fountains at all schools tested. Unfortunately 25 units were found to contain lead, which is not surprising considering the age of our schools. Old school. Old pipes. I was happy to hear from a current board member that the district will be installing filtered water bottle stations. I've seen these at other schools and love them! After all does anyone really put their lips to the water fountain anymore. No! Fill up those Poland Spring bottles. Love it! Great job Paramus. Here's a pic of the new water fountains in case you don't know what i'm talking about. 

My first post!

So I decided to run for Board of Education. Most people think I'm crazy (oh yeah.. i heard that when i ran for PTA President) but when i believe in something I just do it. I love Paramus! I really do. I love this town and I love the schools. If i can try and make the schools better well then I'm going to do it! I'm no dummy. I know that one person can't fix everything. But you know what? It's a start. I don't know how many of you attend the monthly board of education meetings. But if you do you know the disconnect with the current board members. I'm at times embarrassed at the actions of the board. So instead of hanging my head down and ignoring it I want to try and do something about it. So here I am.. running for the Board of Education. Please join me on my journey. I will be posting on this blog regularly. Thanks in advance for your support.