Three candidates are running for three open 3-year seats on the Lawrence Township Board of Education.
Barring the appearance of a successful write in candidate, incumbents Kevin Van Hise and JoAnn L. Groeger are assured re-election. Takign the seat beaing vacated by Thomas Patrick, who opted not to run for re-election, Joyce Scott, a newcomer to the board.
The Lawrence Gazette asked the three to submit biographical information and answer several questions regarding the state of the school district. Their answers are below.
Name: Jo Ann L. Groeger
Age: 62
Occupation: Retired physical education and health educator, Lawrence Township Schools.
Education: Bachelors, The Kings College Masters, Georgian Court
Years living in Lawrence: 35
Community Involvement: Liaison to Lawrence Township Education Foundation; vice president of the N.J. Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance for 20 years; coached field hockey, track and field and gymnastics in the Lawrence School District.
Children attending or having attended the school district: Holly, Brian and John all graduated from Lawrence High School.
Why are you running for re-election to the Lawrence Board of Education?
My passion for the students and the community we live in is what drove me to originally run for the board. I am running for re-election to the board to continue what I started when I was first elected to the board. I want to make a difference in the education that each and every one of our children receives.
What do you believe are the most pressing issues confronting the Lawrence Township School District today?
The most pressing issues the Board faces are: 1. Fiscal constraints that the board faces with rising costs and decreasing revenue such as reduced state aid. 2. Working within the framework of PARCC Assessment. 3. Finding ways to address the diversity of the student population and insure that of all of our students continue to receive a quality education that meets their specific needs.
The introduction of PARCC last year revived a statewide debate about standardized testing. What role should standardized testing and the scores it yields have in shaping the actions and policy of the Lawrence Township School District.
We must meet state mandated requirements such as PARCC without sacrificing the quality educational and developmental experience all of our children deserve.
Do you feel that there are any areas in the school budget that need to be looked at in order to reduce expenses? Are there any programs you would like to see added or improved in the district to improve the quality of education?
The Board and the administration have collaborated to be proactive and fiscally responsible with the budget and the taxpayers of Lawrence Township. I would like to see Career Readiness programs for our students help prepare them for life after high school whether it is technical school, college, the military or entering the job force. We must continue to educate the “Total Child” as detailed in our Character Education Programs in every school as evidenced by our selection as a “District of Character Award”
Name: Joyce Scott
Age: 59
Occupation and place of employment: Secretarial Assistant 3, Division of Academics, Office of Teaching and Learning, New Jersey Department of Education for the past 33 years.
Education: 1974 Lawrence High School graduate; some collegiate study at Cheyney University of Pennsylvania.
Years living in town: Lifelong resident of Eldridge Park section
Community Involvement: Executive board member of CWA Local 1033, in addition to being shop steward and area representative; Golden Life member of First Antioch Church.
Children attending or having attended the school district: Both of my children are/were educated in Lawrence schools. My daughter, Ajee graduated in 2012 and is now a sophomore at Mercer County Community College. My son, Aijalon is a senior at Lawrence High School and is also attending Mercer County Vocational School District studying Architectural Graphic Design Engineering.
Why are you running for election to the Lawrence Board of Education?
Lawrence schools have always ranked among the best in Mercer County and in the state. Ajee’s academic foundation has fueled her success on the collegiate level while Ajalon has benefited greatly from flexible scheduling options. This is the hallmark of Lawrence’s academic philosophy i.e., “find a child where they are and help them be all they can be.” I want to make sure that Lawrence schools continue to foster opportunities for our children in the future.
What do you believe are the most pressing issues confronting the Lawrence Township School District today?
Lawrence School District provides a stellar education for our children and offers a wide array of extracurricular and athletic activities to showcase our children’s talents while attempting to make the cost tolerable to the property tax payers. The other pressing issue would be for Lawrence to properly identify and classify students for Special Education services, especially with New Jersey’s high rate of autism. Conversely, we need to provide more support and services for less traditional students so that they are not shunted off to Special Education for lack of other available resources.
The introduction of PARCC last year revived a statewide debate about standardized testing. What role should standardized testing and the scores it yields have in shaping the actions and policy of the Lawrence Township School District?
Regardless of what side of the debate you are on, statewide testing has been a staple in New Jersey for almost 40 years. Lawrence schools’ responsibility is to ensure that our students will be successful on these state tests; minimize their anxiety surrounding the consequences of not passing these state tests; keep parents informed; maintain Lawrence’s high graduation rate; and lessen the need for our students to take remedial courses during their first year of college.
Do you feel that there are any areas in the school budget that need to be looked at in order to reduce expenses? Are there any programs you would like to see added or improved in the district to improve the quality of education?
I am sure that people have varying opinions regarding school taxes, especially if it raises your property taxes. However, I am fairly confident that the administration and the board scrutinize every expenditure for the value it adds to Lawrence School District goals and objectives. Even so, it is imperative that the administration and the school board continue to be transparent in all transactions by actively engaging in community outreach to property tax payers so everyone with and without children in the school district will be well versed in the daily programming of Lawrence school district.
Name: Kevin A. Van Hise
Age: 44
Occupation and place of employment: Attorney at Mason, Griffin & Pierson
Education: BA, Rutgers University (1993); JD, Rutgers School of Law (2003).
Years living in town: 36
Community Involvement: President, Lawrence Township Board of Education; Chair, Lawrence Township Affordable Housing Board.
Children attending or having attended the school district: A son, Tyler, is in 6th grade and daughter, Paige, is in 4th grade.
Why are you running for re-election to the Lawrence Board of Education?
I have been honored to serve the community the past four years as a Board member. During that time, the district has made significant strides in increasing student achievement, broadening student horizons, and preparing our students for the future. I have had the privilege to work with the best administrative team in the State, have seen first hand the phenomenal job our amazing teachers do, and witnessed the amazing successes of our students. However, our work is not done and continues to evolve with changing laws and new requirements. Because of my background, professional experience and knowledge of the Board, I seek to continue that work and ensure that the district provides the best educational opportunities for all of our students and does so in the most efficient manner possible.
What do you believe are the most pressing issues confronting the Lawrence Township School District today?
Continuing our efforts to increase student achievement; maintaining our level of academic programming within the confines of limited budgets and finite resources; increasing our delivery of services to students with special needs; improving our athletics, arts and extra-curricular activities to develop well-rounded and multi-faceted students; ensuring that we are developing the necessary skill sets for not only our college-bound students, but those seeking to directly enter the workforce or pursue other alternative paths; and enhancing teacher support so that we can continue to retain and support the best staff in the state and continue to attract new teachers to our district.
The introduction of PARCC last year revived a statewide debate about standardized testing. What role should standardized testing and the scores it yields have in shaping the actions and policy of the Lawrence Township School District?
Standardized testing has a valuable and important role in the district. It enables our teachers and administrators to receive objective data on student performance, giving us the ability to customize, support and strengthen the educational experience for our students. It also provides valuable information on performance trends and allows us to evaluate our performance in comparison to other districts. However, as with all things, balance is of utmost importance. State and federal leaders need to ensure that we are not wasting precious instructional time on needless and repetitive testing, which reduces the very learning we are trying to achieve, causes undue stress on our students and diverts significant resources and financial assets from the classroom.
Do you feel that there are any areas in the school budget that need to be looked at in order to reduce expenses? Are there any programs you would like to see added or improved in the district to improve the quality of education?
During my time on the Board, we have constantly sought ways to save money, reduce expenses and look for alternative revenue sources in order to alleviate the burden on the taxpayers. We have successfully held the line on expenses. With almost 80 percent of the budget comprised of salaries and benefits, significant further reductions can be achieved only by reductions in programming, which we have not been willing to do in order to maintain the high level of instruction provided to our students. Our academic programs continue to lead to higher student test scores, greater student achievements and state and national awards. This has given us the ability to now extend our focus to extra-curricular activities such at athletics, the arts, and clubs and activities, in order to advance our goal of enhancing the “total child.”
