The six candidates for WW-P School Board — four from West Windsor and two from Plainsboro — were asked to give a brief biography and provide answers to the questions below. Their responses are listed in alphabetical order by last name.
1.) What experience, expertise, or perspective would you bring to the board? Which trait would be most useful?
2.) What’s your opinion of the district’s financial management, including annual increases in the budget and budget surplus amounts. If cuts are required, what one subject/activity/initiative would you cut first? What would you cut last? What area or areas would you increase funding for?
3.) The school district this year has budgeted about $1 million for increased security measures. What’s your view of the district’s safety program?
4.) What changes or additions, if any, would you make to the district’s foreign language offerings?
5.) The district is embarking on a new technology initiative for students. Should the district be more or less aggressive in pursuing this initiative and what would you cut from the budget to fund it?
6.) The state has mandated a salary cap for superintendents, and also mandates changes to the teacher evaluation and tenure process. How can WW-P ensure that students are not harmed by these changes?
7.) Are there any other school district issues you feel should be addressed?
Who am I?
• A scientist by education
• Ph.D. in High Energy Physics from SUNY Stony Brook, 1996; B.S. in physics from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), China, 1986.
• A technologist by profession — an experienced IT professional since 1997 after one year of post-doctoral research at Columbia University.
• A businessman in operation — currently director of sales engineering at NetScout Systems Inc., providing network and application performance management solutions
• A musician — a self-taught amateur musician playing as a one-man-band in local communities
Why am I running? I am a strong believer that education is the foundation of our society upon which the future of our nation and this world is built. If elected I will work with the entire school board, the district administration, and the public, whom I represent, to improve the great schools that we have and make them greater. To accomplish this goal I believe we need a well-balanced budget that focuses on academic advancement and student preparedness. We should better leverage the resources that exist in the form of local businesses, many of which are top pharmaceuticals, and take full advantage of being next to Princeton University, one of the greatest universities across the country and in the world.
1.) My management experience and good personal skills are gained both from working in the technology sales team and from years of services in the community, including serving as the board chair of Plainsboro Chinese School for two terms, involvement in West Windsor Arts Council (advisory board) and Cub and Boy scouts. While my professional expertise is in technology, I work with people of different backgrounds and opinions to seek common ground to build consensus and reach agreement. My perspective on our school district is to continue our success in academic excellence and student advancement. My expertise in advanced technologies and my international experiences are my strong traits, as our goal is to equip our students in both areas so that they are well prepared to face the future challenges and global competitions.
2.) I believe the district’s finances are well-managed presently, but incremental improvement is always possible. Cutting the budget is never a simple task. A well-rounded education is an important goal, and it is difficult to weigh one subject or activity against another. It is my belief that budget-cutting recommendations should be made by those who are closest to the action — the campus-level leaders together with the senior administrators at the school district. The board has the final say as the representatives of the public. Any increases in funding should be targeted to better serve our mission. That could be in technology, career and technical courses, or anything else that will inspire life-long learning.
Public input is a valuable part of any budget change. Committees of the public should be formed whenever necessary to give advice on meaningful budget changes. Since board members are elected by the public to act as representatives, the final decision-making power should remain with the board. As an elected board member I will interact with and listen to all concerned members of the community, listen to their points of view carefully, understand their agenda clearly, and put them into my consideration and decision.
3.) The safety and security of our students and staff are a top priority. While no plan is bullet-proof, and no amount of spending will guarantee a bad person with ill intent will not find a way to circumvent our procedures, we should continue to work with the professional law enforcement agencies to fine-tune our safety measures. In a broader sense we should continue the efforts to protect our students and staff from all forms of hazards, such as fires, severe weather, and natural disasters.
4.) I personally support the expansion of multi-lingual offerings, as they prepare our students to embrace the international community and help them become global citizens. The decision to introduce new languages should be made based on public input and future trends.
5.) As a technologist myself, I strongly believe that we are only at the beginning of the digital and information era. Utilizing technology for learning is the way forward. We cannot keep teaching the same old way and expect a better result. For our students to be prepared for the world they will enter we must support advancements in technology available for them. Teaching will evolve to more of a leading/coaching position rather than being the sole source knowledge. A systematic and gradual approach to implementing technology is better than an explosive (and thus expensive) change. Some of the traditional expenses, such as text books and certain staff positions, can be decreased or even eliminated over time by technology.
6.) The vast majority of the public would agree that administrative costs should be kept as low as possible so that all available resources are directed toward the classroom. However, schools are not unlike the corporate world in that the employees should be compensated fairly for their expertise and contributions. We have to strike a balance between respecting the changes and reducing the risk of losing talents that would have a long-term negative impact on our students. We need to work with the teachers and district administrators to express our support and ensure that their efforts are rewarded adequately.
7.) • I believe it is important to invite public input during major decision making processes.
• To increase the talent pool in our teaching staffs, I hope we can recruit and retain higher quality teachers with stronger motivation in education.
• I suggest the district to better leverage the local businesses and communities, including Princeton University, to obtain more corporate resources and gain stronger community support.
• I support continued maintenance and improvement of existing facilities (less expensive to maintain than fixing a bigger problem or build new buildings).
