Who Do You Want on BOE?
Plaintalker is taking comments on school board candidates, with one rule: You must state the qualities that have convinced you to vote for your choices. Example: "Mousie A. Cat has my vote because ..."
Keep in mind what issues board members face over the next three years and what traits and experience/background may be most useful in their role. Even understanding the role of a board member is a good start.
Signed posts (names, initials) are preferable. Negative comments will be deleted.
Candidates for three three-year seats are Rasheed Abdul-Haqq, Patricia I. Barksdale, Brenda Gilbert, Mahogany Hendricks, Joanne Hollis, Lisa Logan-Leach and Joseph M. Ruffin Sr.
Abdul-Haqq, Barksdale and Logan-Leach are incumbents.
Candidates for one unexpired two-year term are Katherine Peterson, Tammy Westbrook and Terrence Williams.
The election is Tuesday and polls will be open from 2 to 9 p.m.
--Bernice
Keep in mind what issues board members face over the next three years and what traits and experience/background may be most useful in their role. Even understanding the role of a board member is a good start.
Signed posts (names, initials) are preferable. Negative comments will be deleted.
Candidates for three three-year seats are Rasheed Abdul-Haqq, Patricia I. Barksdale, Brenda Gilbert, Mahogany Hendricks, Joanne Hollis, Lisa Logan-Leach and Joseph M. Ruffin Sr.
Abdul-Haqq, Barksdale and Logan-Leach are incumbents.
Candidates for one unexpired two-year term are Katherine Peterson, Tammy Westbrook and Terrence Williams.
The election is Tuesday and polls will be open from 2 to 9 p.m.
--Bernice
posted by Bernice at 3:19 AM
3 Comments:
Katherine Peterson has my vote.
It has been years since a TRUE educator has sat on our Board of Education. Having attended a few of the forums, I have been extremely impressed with her. She speaks with intelligence, class, and professionalism.
One of the great concerns that has been directed toward the BOE race is that pay-for-play contracts have been awarded based on politics. For example, the law firm of Wiener/Lesniak was hired for some legal work after Mayor Sharon was elected to the school board in 2003. They charged very high legal fees, as opposed to the prior legal counsel, who was an education lawyer. For the BOE members who voted for Wiener/Lesniak, what do they bring to the table for such high fees? How are the public contracts awarded and are all BOE members in favor of having public bids for contracts? Can the school board make a decision that no contracts will be awarded to companies who give money to elected officials? This is the essence of pay-for-play.
The Plainfield Board of Education voted to dump the law firm of Lesniak/Wiener about a month after Paula Howard walked out on the children of Plainfield. Assemblyman Jerry Green came to Dr. Howard's defense because she was the one steering all of the legal work to Lesniak's firm. Mr. Green's interest in taking over the school board is in the contracts he can give to his supporters around the state as he did when Sharon was Board President. Now Jerry Green and his vendor friends are spending big bucks on glossy mailers full of lies. The hope to get Lisa Logan-Leach and her team elected so that they can go back to the "good old days" of giving contracts to politically connected lawfirms that overbill the school district to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars. Why doesn't someone put in an OPRA request for the bills from Lesniaks firm during the Howard/Briggs/Green days. Plainfield schools are finally moving in the right direction. Letting the wolf back into the henhouse would be a huge mistake.
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