The WW-P School Board voted 6-3 at its September 23 meeting to name the baseball field at High School North in honor of the late David Bachner, the culmination of a process that began shortly after his death five years ago. The former star pitcher died suddenly of cardiac arrest in August, 2009. In his honor the field will now be called David J. Bachner Baseball Field.
Board members Michele Kaish, Dana Krug, Rachel Juliana, Rachelle Feldman-Hurwitz, Louisa Ho, and Yu Taylor Zhong voted in favor of the measure; Scott Powell, Board President Anthony Fleres, and Board Vice President Richard Kaye, voted against it.
After the meeting, Fleres explained, “My ‘no’ vote was not meant as a reflection on David himself, but solely on the principle of naming school facilities after people. I don’t want the school district to embark on a process of renaming facilities after people. I believe it can be divisive to the community as some groups will inevitably get their way and others won’t. I have also seen it used to gain political points in board member elections, which I find unseemly and not in the best interests of the schools. But as Michele Kaish pointed out at the meeting, reasonable people can disagree. The Board of Education has nine members to allow for differing opinions, and I support its final decision.”
Kaye offered a similar explanation, also noting that his vote was not against David, but rather against the idea of naming school facilities after students. Kaye noted that a decision to name a facility after a specific student will put future school boards in the untenable position of having to place a value on a student’s life and accomplishments when considering naming a facility.
Powell, the third dissenter, offered no explanation for his vote.
Michele Kaish, Dana Krug, and Rachelle-Feldman Hurwitz explained their “yes” votes. Said Kaish, who made the motion to rename the baseball field after Bachner: “Tonight, as is often the case, we are being asked to vote on an issue that really has no one ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ answer. One thing that I hope that everyone can agree on, though, is the course of action that has led us to where we are today.
“While some have expressed concerns about the precedent this vote would be setting, I have been more concerned about the precedent our process would be setting. As chair of the Administration and Facilities Committee and a member of the Ad Hoc Committee on Naming, it was very important to me that people who wished to voice an opinion had ample opportunity to do so and that those who communicated with us felt that their voices were heard. With two public forums and an E-mail address solely dedicated to the naming issue, I believe that anyone wishing to provide feedback was able to do so.
“I have given considerable thought to the subject of precedent and certainly understand the concerns expressed on that issue. However, Policy 7250, which guides us in the naming of a facility, contemplates a case-by-case assessment. The outcome of tonight’s vote will represent a decision on this specific request and neither diminishes the accomplishments of others in our community nor impacts any future requests that may be made. Each request made under Policy 7250 will be evaluated individually, on its merits, against the criteria specified in the policy.”
Kaish continued: “It is important to note that the intent of this policy is not to honor or recognize people solely because they have passed away or no longer have a formal association with the district. A five-year waiting period was established to see if a person’s legacy could truly stand the test of time.
“My ‘yes’ vote tonight is based on an application of those criteria to David Bachner’s contributions and achievements on the baseball field. In considering this request, I needed to ask myself: did Bachner have ‘an especially significant, notable, or extraordinary contribution or achievement?’ Bachner’s numerous school, county, and state records continue to stand. I am convinced that his accomplishments on the baseball field more than sufficiently meet the criteria.”
Said Krug: “I come to my ‘yes’ vote as a school board member, a High School North parent and a long-time supporter of youth baseball through the local Little League and Babe Ruth and travel team organizations.
“I have studied the board policy, and I have reviewed the contributions that David Bachner made to High School North Baseball, the High School North student body, and the greater West Windsor and Plainsboro community.”
“As I heard the forum participants, read the letters from supporters, and reviewed Bachner’s baseball record, I understand the impact that he had and continues to have on our community. The high school north baseball field is already the David Bachner field — the students, staff, community, and the media call it that. There is already permanent commemoration of David’s accomplishments at the site.
“Additionally, as a long-time fan of youth baseball, I see that he did have a significant contribution to the school community. He set school records. In addition, many of the speakers at the public forums shared stories of how David was as a classmate — kind, considerate, and well-liked. All of these attributes indicate to me that the request to name the High School North varsity baseball field after Bachner meets the criteria of the board policy,” added Krug.
Feldman-Hurwitz also explained her “yes” vote. “Both the Bachners and the Bakers have suffered a tragedy in the loss of their sons. This decision, like many others the board must make, is a very difficult decision, and I have thought long and hard about my vote. But in the end, I believe that naming the baseball field after David Bachner is the right thing to do.”
She continued: “In no way does this mean that I discount the Bakers’ position, and I hope that they continue their work with the community through AIR because I think it is extremely valuable.
“I hope that our vote today will bring, if not peace, then at least closure to both of the families, as well as the community.”
Approximately 15 members of the public gave public comment on the motion, 13 in favor and two opposed, both of whom emphasized the possibility of triggering suicidal tendencies. The others spoke of David and his achievements in baseball and his contribution to the WW-P community.
Steven Bachner, David’s father, spoke movingly about his son and his time in the district and in baseball. Throughout the night, parents and children told stories of David Bachner and how he touched the lives of everyone he came into contact with.
“After David died, the stories came out,” Bachner said. “The things that he did were incredible. He would give the shirt off his back. Even more than that, he was the kind of kid who just had an infectious smile. It never changed.”
Bachner recalled an instance when one of David’s baseball teammates, an outfielder, had lost his sunglasses. David gave the teammate his own sunglasses, and, after the game, told him to keep them. At the funeral the teammate told David’s father the story, and offered to return the sunglasses; Bachner said no and him to keep them as a reminder of the type of person David was.
Others who spoke in favor of the renaming were Bachner’s former baseball coach Bob Boyce, who had originally raised the question of renaming the baseball field; long-time friend and teammate Ryan Phelan, and residents, both young and old, who viewed Bachner as a role model and someone they hoped other students would emulate.
Kurt Baker, co-founder of Attitudes in Reverse and father of former student Kenny Baker, who committed suicide in May, 2009, spoke out against the measure. Baker’s concern is that naming a facility after a deceased student, and thus immortalizing that death, would act as a trigger for students with suicidal tendencies to take their own lives. “Your job as board members is to protect the students’ best interests,” Baker said. “If you feel compelled to act on an emotional level, then you must abstain from voting. If you feel like voting regardless of the facts then you must resign from the board.”
Mental health advocate Shauna Moses, the associate executive director of the New Jersey Association of Mental Health Agencies, seconded Baker’s viewpoint, noting that suicide is one of the leading causes of death among high school and college students. She cited research showing that glamorizing the death of a student can encourage others to take their own lives.
Several members of the public countered this viewpoint, among them former Board of Education member Michele Epstein, who said that she had spoken with a mental health professional at Princeton University about this very issue and was advised that honoring the death of a student who died from natural causes is unlikely to cause a student to take his or her own life.
And 25-year resident Eric Sleeper, whose younger brother committed suicide many years ago, also addressed this issue. “I wasn’t planning on speaking today, but I wanted to address the issue of suicide. I have been involved with the issue of suicide for most of my life, and have read about the causes of suicide in an effort to understand my brother’s passing, and based on my research, I respectfully disagree with the Bakers’ position.”
In other school news, Superintendent David Aderhold noted that while the start of the 2014-’15 school year had begun reasonably well, the administration was working to rectify issues with bussing that have arisen.
In addition, Aderhold provided a little information about the new state-mandated testing that students in grades 3 to 11 would be taking this school year. Said Aderhold, “The PARCC test will replace the NJASK. There will be two 20-day testing windows for students in the spring, and there will be no graduation requirement for 11th graders.” Aderhold advised that the district would be providing more information about the PARCC testing in the near future.
Board President Fleres announced that High School North Assistant Principal Douglas Eadie will be retiring as of January 1, 2015. The district has begun the search for a replacement has posted the vacancy announcement online.
Finally, as chair of the finance committee, Krug said that auditor was compiling the district’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for 2013-’14. The finance committee expects to receive a draft next month, she said, after which a presentation will be made to the full board.
She also noted that most summer construction projects are complete or nearing completion. “The Village school addition continues to move forward,” Krug added, “and consideration is being given to find ways to gain schedule time for the project.”
