The harbingers of spring are here. The birds are singing, the bulbs are blooming, and the annual school election has been scheduled. On Tuesday, April 18, Plainsboro voters will choose between four candidates, all newcomers, running for two open three-year seats on the board: Anthony Fleres, Anjani Gharpuri, Neal Phenes, and Christopher Pordon.##M:[more]##
In West Windsor, long-time board member Stan Katz is facing off against newcomer Brett Boal for one three-year seat.
As always, one of the chief concerns on the mind of voters will be the school budget — an item that will also be on the April 18 ballot, and the taxes they pay to the WW-P School District.
A closely-related issue revolves around the division of the tax burden between Plainsboro and West Windsor. The school board is considering a referendum that would ask residents in each township if they favor a change in the way the district splits the taxes paid by both towns.
The current method bases the burden on the total amount of assessed property valuation in each town. This has created a situation where tax rates can swing wildly from year to year because residential and commercial property values are constantly in flux.
If the referendum is held, voters would have the chance to change to a system where a town’s burden is based on the number of school children sent to the distict. The referendum would have to be approved separately in each townshipo.
Another issue facing the district in the next few years is making sure that the projects approved by voters in the $27.5 million facilities referendum January are finished on time and within budget.
West Windsor’s plan for redevelopment of the area around the Princeton Junction train station is another issue the district may have to condend with in the coming years.
The school district has completed a building program that it believes will be sufficient to handle the number of students that would be generated at full build out under both township’s master plans. January’s facilities referendum dealt with essential upgrades and repairs at existing district schools.
But if West Windsor’s redevelopment plans, or some other plan in either township, include a significant residential component, the district coudl be forced to develop a new strategy to deal with the resulting children added to the district.
The WW-P News has asked the candidates to respond to these issues, and presents their answers in the following profiles:
West Windsor
Brett Boal, 45, lives with his wife, Lisa Sheppard, on Park Hill terrace. A resident of the township since 1999, he is an independent business strategy consultant focused on IT and Six Sigma strategy, a movement concerned with business process improvement and quality control.
He and his wife have three daughters — one in eighth grade at Community Middle School, one in fourth at Village School, and one in kindergarten at Dutch Neck.
“I am running for school board because I’m angry about WW-P policies that do real harm to our children,” says Boal. “The statistics show WW-P holds students back and restricts their education, particularly in math but apparently in all subjects.
“This generates undue pressure and reduces excellence, so I want those policies changed. The facts show our district does not educate our children as well as an average district would educate those same children. I have identified several no-cost ways to bring WW-P performance up to national average, and I believe those changes would also reduce student pressure.
“This district’s families expect excellence, and WW-P enrolls elite students, but sadly the results do not match that elite capability. Our district is complacent, erects barriers to student achievement, and does not plan for growth.”
Boal says he wants to clarify a statement he reportedly said in a recent newspaper article. “The article said I attribute student success (in WW-P) to tutors, rather than to their teachers.
“Actually, I attribute student success primarily to their families’ emphasis on education and achievement. Teachers do play a critical role in student success, and while many students have tutors, many parents are their kids’ tutor. All of this simply reflects the support that students in this district get outside the classroom.
Born in Hastings, NE, Boal’s father was a music professor and administrator, earning his doctorate in musical performance. His mother taught music at all levels, from college to pre-school, and earned a PhD in musicology.
Boal holds undergradate and graduate degrees in management science from MIT. An assistant coach for Lightning Lacrosse, he also is a member of the American Society for Quality, and is an ASQ certified Six Sigma Black Belt. He has served as CEO, COO, CIO, and an officer of two NASDAQ traded corporations.
Boal says that because he works as a consultant, his work schedule is flexible enough to afford him the large amount of time that board membership demands.
“I expect to generate the results that parents and taxpayers need because I’m focused on achieving results, not on the time it takes,” he says. “Like many people, I’m more energetic and efficient while working to achieve results. I would bring new expectations and energy to the board, and I’m neither entangled in existing approaches nor complacent. I would also make the overarching point that a School Board is not supposed to run the schools, but to see that the administration runs the schools well.”
Boal asserts that students not deemed to be in the upper echelon of the school district are being shortchanged because WW-P does not assign them to advanced classes. In many other districts, most of these children would be considered top students.
“Teachers should educate. It’s not their job to separate the strong from the weak. National statistics on student abilities show WW-P does not schedule enough advanced classes. WW-P tells qualified kids that they’re not capable and forces them to drop back.
“This is incredible, damaging, and stressful. It happens in every department, although math is easiest to gauge. Simply scheduling the right classes would decrease pressure on students and increase excellence.”
For example, says Boal, national statistics suggest that more than 80 percent of WW-P eighth graders should be in algebra and more than half of the district’s seniors should be prepared to take an AP calculus test. “Unfortunately, only half our eighth graders are in algebra and just a quarter of seniors take a calculus AP test.”
Says Boal: “Changing class mixes would cost nothing, increase excellence, and reduce pressure. Every seventh grade math teacher already teaches two pre-algebra sections and two math seven sections. Each teacher could teach three or four pre-algebra sections.”
Boal also says that WW-P does poorly in bringing eighth grade algebra students into calculus as seniors. “Nationally, an average high school gets 75 percent of their eighth grade algebra students into calculus, but WW-P only gets half of its more elite eighth grade algebra students into calculus. “
He says that nationally, 6.5 percent of students take an AP calculus test. “At WW-P, over half our students are above that 94th percentile, but less than a quarter take an AP calculus test.”
Boal says another issue is that the district needs to “remove other arbitrary limits in advanced and extracurricular activities.”
He says that WW-P limits the gifted program to one class and the many other students who are capable of handling the work get bored in regular classes. He also says that the high school artificially limits participation in honors classes. “This puts the students who could do the work under tremendous pressure to either get a slot or drop back.
Boal also criticizes WW-P’s planning efforts, despite the fact that since WW-P initiated its school building program in 1996, school overcrowding has been all but eliminated.
“The district’s strategic plan does not address the self-evident population growth,” says Boal. “Poor planning in this district has repeatedly caused inadequate preparation and overcrowding. We must be realistic and re-open our strategy, but that is just a first step.”
Boal also proposes that the district use sound field systems — a speaker system that amplifies a teacher’s voice through the classroom to make it easier for students to hear, in all WW-P classrooms.
“Studies show that students in classrooms with sound field systems participate in class more and test higher,” says Boal. “The district has systems for classes with hearing impaired kids, and our family has donated a set to Village School. Putting a system in every classroom would be a cheap way to improve performance.”
Boal believes the district must do more to reduce budget expenditures. “The administration has done well to keep budget growth within state limits, but we must do better. Budget pressures will only increase in future years if we don’t start innovating, and the strategic plan fails to address this issue. My prime approach would be to learn from the successes of Six Sigma quality programs in other school districts and consider a quality program here.”
He says he’s also not sure that changing the method of dividing the tax burden is a good idea. “Although I don’t like the current system. the proposed change seems to set up more problems for the future. As long as two identical homes with identical values in different townships will pay different school taxes, there will be conflicts. It seems to be a waste of taxpayer money and energy to fight this issue the way it’s being fought.”
Boal says he believes that WW-P needs to hire someone to oversee the referendum construction program. “The district needs a construction manager looking after its interests. Having managed large technology and construction projects myself, I’ve seen this successfully structured in various ways.”
On the issue of whether the district should provide input to the townships if future residential construction is proposed, Boal once again criticizes the district’s planning practices.
“The district’s published strategic plan, available on the district’s website, simply ignores population growth and long-term cost pressures,” Boal says. “This district has a long and costly history of ignoring growth projections. I’d like the school board to re-open its strategic plan to anticipate and respond to various growth scenarios. I expect those strategic plans will lead to improved planning at all levels.”
Stan Katz, 61, a Rumford Way resident, has lived in West Windsor with his wife, Stephanie, since 1976. He has served on the board for almost a decade.
Katz has two sons, Dan, a sophomore at High School South, and Jeffrey, a 2004 graduate of South, and currently a sophomore at the University of Denver.
“Experienced board members are especially valuable when a large number of the board members are relatively new,” says Katz on why he is seeking re-election. “With two new members guaranteed from Plainsboro in this election, at least six of the nine board members next year will have fewer than three years of board service.
“I feel I can help supply vital experience and knowledge that the District will need to tackle our three-year program to upgrade some of our aging facilities, deal with the middle school curriculum and schedules, and, almost certainly, conduct a superintendent search within the next three years.”
Katz says that experience is an important factor voters should consider when casting their ballots. “A person who needs substantial time getting up to speed because of inadequate knowledge and preparation hampers Board operations in many ways, not the least of which is the potential perception of the Board by the public (and, sometimes, by the administration and the staff) as unprepared, unknowledgeable, and therefore unworthy of trust and respect.”
He adds that in cases where all the candidates are non-incumbents — such as the Plainsboro election — voters may want to look at the candidates’ histories of serving on school district boards or task forces.
According to Katz, three issues in recent years — the facilities referendum, strategic planning, and the middle school curriculum — were all areas that residents had the opportunity to volunteer their time and become familiar which the way the district operates.
Born in the Bronx, Katz grew up in Englewood, where his father owned a dry goods store and his mother was a stay-at-home mom. He earned a degree from Johns Hopkins University in economics in 1966, and a PhD in applied economics from the University of Pennsylvania in 1970.
He spent 25 years on the American Stock Exchange as a floor trader and a specialist. He is currently retired, but owns two seats on the American Stock Exchange, which he leases out. He continues to make forays into private banking.
Katz says that as a retired individual, “I have the flexibility to devote the 20 to 30 hours per week that are often necessary to digest the vast amounts of material that board members receive in order to make intelligent decisions for the district.”
Katz is a member of the New Jersey Interscholastic Lacrosse Officials Association, National Federation of High School Officials Association, and an NJSIAA-approved lacrosse official. He is a former member of the Lightning Lacrosse Board of Directors.
Prior to his election to the school board, Katz served as the chairman of the West Windsor Cable TV Refranchising Committee. He was a member of the 2005 committee — a group in the mid-1990s that came up with a schools construction program to carry the district through the year 2005.
The following year he was a co-chair of the citizens referendum committee, a group that successfully lobbied in favor of a bond referendum to fund the school construction recommended by the 2005 committee. He currently serves as chair of the School Board’s finance committee, and was also chair of the board’s negotiations committee for the most recent teachers contract.
Widely recognized as the school district’s “de-facto demographer,” Katz has devised statistical models that the school district, West Windsor, and Plainsboro townships have used to project future student population growth and trends.
Katz takes exception to his opponent’s contention that poor planning by the school district has resulted in overcrowding.
“Long-term planning has been a hallmark of this district,” says Katz. “Clearly he (Boal) doesn’t know what kind of planning has been going on in this district for the past 10 years. The very notion that in 1995 we had a 2005 committee shows that we were committed to long-term planning.
“The 2005 committee was dedicated to the notion that rather than build each building as it became overcrowded, we fund them and plan for them well in advance. We bonded in 1996 for buildings that were needed in 2004.”
Before 1996, overcrowding problems at WW-P schools were widespread. Since the implementation of the building program outlined by the 2005 Committee, overcrowding in WW-P schools has been minimal.
Katz also points out that the district’s most recent student population projections, which he prepared in large part, run well into the future. “I’ve presented several papers to the West Windsor and Plainsboro planning boards that detail demographics and forecast them out to the year 2012, so we know if anything is going to have a major effects on the district’s ability to house students.
“We have been making forecasts for the last 10 years that have been literally 10 to 15 year forecasts so that we know what size schools to build, and when to build them. I’m baffled by Brett’s comment.”
One area in which Katz partially agrees with his opponent is that WW-P should allow more students into advanced classes — at least in the area of mathematics.
“I have been trying to fight the trend in our school district, which attempts to discourage students from pursuing ‘more challenging’ paths in middle and high school, for many years with only limited success,” Katz says. “The prevailing philosophy of ‘stress reduction’ does, in my opinion, a major disservice to a large number of students who are capable of taking pre-algebra. From there, the damage multiplies as those children (and parents) are told that they don’t have a sufficiently strong background to take honors biology in ninth grade, and so on.
“But that ‘stress reduction’ philosophy does exist in WWP… My personal opinion is that many of our supervisors, and not just in math, have been, by nature, non-competitive people. As such, they are much more affected by articles that they read, and by parents who complain about what they consider the excessive competitive nature of top-flight districts such as ours. From these supervisors, the attitude works its way both upwards — to principals and central office, and even to the board, and downwards to the subject teachers.
“It is absurd,” Katz adds, “to have a district where the median middle school student’s national math percentage is in the mid 90s, and yet half of them are counseled out of pre-algebra.”
Katz says that because the math curriculum has never been deemed to be a problem, he believes officials have taken an “if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it” approach.”
“Years ago, our language arts scores were deemed too far below our math scores, and so most of the reform efforts were concentrated in those disciplines. Next came reform in high school science course offerings, a process which is still continuing, and some changes in high school language arts offerings. It is my fervent hope that we will start to address the middle school math situation as a priority soon.”
As a member of the board’s finance committee, Katz has been working on the 2006-’07 budget for many months. “I am quite pleased with our budget process, which has produced four consecutive years of small budget increases between 3.9 and 4.6 percent, despite still-rising enrollments and consistent inflation in many areas such as energy, special education, and insurance costs. I take great pride that our district is among the best in New Jersey, while our inflation-adjusted cost per student has fallen in every one of the past five years.”
Continuing to maintain a balance between fiscal prudence and educational excellence should be one of the major goals of any school board member, he says. “Consequently, I am not sure that minimizing future tax impacts should be a goal in itself, because you can always do that by simply cutting programs regardless of their value to the students. I would prefer to believe that most people feel the goal should be getting the most value for every dollar spent, while also making sure that the spending doesn’t become onerous to the taxpayer.”
Katz has been on a group with officials from both townships that has been looking at the issue of changing the school funding method.
“Splitting the tax burden on the basis of the number of students in each township is something the district has wanted for some time, for three reasons: fairness, simplicity, and stability. It is almost universally agreed that it is by far the fairest way to allocate the tax burden between the two townships. It is simple to calculate, especially when contrasted with the extremely complex procedure by which ‘equalized valuation’ is calculated. Finally, it is much more stable year-to-year than equalized valuations, and so there are far fewer instances of unexpected ‘jumps’ that are always unsettling politically.”
On oversight of the referendum construction program, Katz says the issue is still being determined by the board. “The District has used many forms of construction oversight over the years, and there are several approaches being considered for this facilities project.
“We almost certainly will not use an independent project manager for these construction projects, because our past experience with that method has not been totally satisfactory, and it adds a large extra component to our costs. While the details have not yet been finalized, our lawyers will probably develop a contract with our architect whereby an employee of that firm will assume the responsibilities of a project manager for an additional fee.”
Being no stranger to working with officials in both townships on determining the impacts of housing developments on the school district, Katz says that school officials must be available to provide information, but not make the decisions.
“We work with (township) officials on any issue where they ask for our input, but we would be loathe to take a formal stand for or against any particular project,” says Katz. “Over the years I believe we have established a reputation for providing good, honest, and accurate demographic forecasts, and I guess I can give myself some measure of credit for the board’s reputation in that area as a result of what I like to call my role as ‘de facto demographer’.”
Plainsboro
Anthony Fleres, 51, of Mifflin Court has lived in Plainsboro since 1993 with his wife, Maria. The couple have a son at Grover middle school and a daughter at Town Center.
Fleres was co-chair and treasurer of the Citizens Referendum Team, a volunteer group that assembled to advocate approval of the January schools referendum.
“I believe that community service is an important part of good citizenship, whether it is coaching Little League, serving on the rescue squad, or volunteering at the library,” says Fleres on why he is seeking. “Education and our schools have always been important in our family. Through my work on the Citizens Referendum Team, I have gotten to know the school board and administration better and believe that my background and experience can be a benefit to the district in seeing that the construction program is successfully completed.”
Taking into consideration that two of the three board incumbents this year chose not to run to allow for work and family commitments, the amount of time it takes to serve as a member of the board is a major factor.
“The time commitment was an important consideration to me,” says Fleres. “I discussed it with my family and spoke to several current board members before deciding to run. I believe that I can devote the time required to responsibly serve on the board.”
A native of Brooklyn, NY, Fleres’ father was a carpenter in the construction industry and his mother was a dressmaker. Fleres graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School, earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering in 1976 from the City College of New York, and an MBA from the University of Connecticut in 1980.
He current job is manager of the URS corporation in Newark.
In addition to his work on the Citizens Referendum Team, other activities include president of the Gentry Homeowners Association board, and a member of the Grover PTSA and Town Center PTA. He is also a member of several professional/industry organizations. Fleres has also served as a den leader and cubmaster of Cub Scout Pack 168 in Plainsboro.
Fleres says he supports the 2006-’07 school budget, currently proposed to be $141.1 million and a 3.9 percent increase over last year. That number is the lowest increase since the 1980s.
“Considering the rate of inflation, student population growth, and the recent steep rise in utility costs, I believe the current budget is a good one… Our per-pupil cost compares favorably with the surrounding school districts,” Fleres says.
He says that the size of the overall budget is an aspect of the budget under the school board’s control. “In this area, we must continue to seek efficiencies so that we continue to provide the quality education to our children at a reasonable expense.”
He adds that moving to a per-pupil formula for determining the funding split between Plainsboro and West Windsor “could go a long way toward eliminating the huge year-to-year swings in property tax increases that have hit both townships in recent years. While the township split is beyond the board’s control, having large differences in the tax increases between the two townships undermines the public’s sense of fairness in the system.”
“This is an issue that I feel needs more public discussion and debate so the voters can have a full understanding should the question come before them,” he says.
He explains that under the current system, the state divides the tax burden between the two townships based on the total market values of the properties in each township. “While the actual process is more complex, they basically look at recent sales and assessment data, and compute an average assessment to market value ratio that they refer to as the equalization ratio. If this is done properly, the result would be that homes of equal market value would be paying the same school tax regardless of which township they are in, which to me seems fair.
“Unfortunately, the system for estimating market value isn’t perfect, especially when it comes to commercial property. In recent years, this has resulted in drastic swings in the school funding split between the two townships.”
Fleres says that since 1999, Plainsboro’s share of the tax burden has gone from 40.6 percent, to a low of 38.3 percent, then up to a high of 43.1 percent.
“These huge swings can cause people to question the basic fairness of the system,” he says. “It seems that the way the state computes the equalization ratios creates too much confusion and distrust in the eyes of the public. Funding the school district on a per-pupil basis is simple for everyone to understand and accept. It also has the added advantage of putting each township in charge of its own destiny where the commercial and residential development choices they make will have less of an impact on their district partner.”
On the school referendum construction program, the board will have to sit down and determine the best way to proceed. “For a construction program to be successful, it must be actively managed. A schedule should be prepared showing milestones for design, regulatory approvals and construction. Progress for each of these items should be tracked, and where issues occur they should be dealt with quickly and not allowed to linger.”
He adds that this management can come from any of several sources including district personnel, the design architect, or a separate construction management firm. “The key issue in deciding should be the qualifications and availability of existing personnel — both in-house and consultant — and the overall organization’s structure.
“I understand the school board and the district are in the process of reviewing their options. This is one area where I feel my background and experience in engineering and construction can be a particular advantage to the district.”
On the issue of the impacts of future residential development, Fleres says that township officials should work with the district before moving ahead with their plans.
“The townships should consult the school board when considering new development and the impacts to the district be taken into account when either township is planning or reviewing development projects,” Fleres says. “However, the final decision should remain solely the responsibility the township committee or council. They are the ones elected by the people to consider all aspects of a development project — and the issues with any development plan can be more complex than just the impact on our schools.”
Anjani Gharpure, 41, of Blossom Hill Drive is an eight-year resident of Plainsboro. Her husband of 19 years, Vishwanath, is a senior partner at Abington Hematology Oncology Associates, where he is a medical oncologist.
“I wish to give back and serve the community and school district by making sure that the school district continues to provide quality education while taking into account the tax burden on local citizens,” says Gharpure. “Concerned tax paying citizens of Plainsboro should elect a school board candidate who will work efficiently with other board members, has experience and maturity, and thus will bring positive contributions to the school board meetings and to our school district.
“I would like to work with other parents (school board members) who devote their time and energy to volunteer for our school district,” she adds. “I will bring deeper understanding to the issues faced by our district and working in cohesion with the administration and other school board members, I would like to resolve the issues, as and when they come up. I would like WW-P school district to see a better and brighter future by continuing on the path of higher achievements.”
Born in India, Gharpuri moved to United States 16 years ago. Before that she lived in England for several years. Before coming to West Windsor, Gharpure lived in Baltimore, Atlanta, Indianapolis, and Dallas as a result of of her husband’s training as an oncologist.
Gharpure’s mother was a teacher at a local school, while her father left the family to study in the United States for serveral years during the 1950s. He returned to India to work as a scientist.
Gharpure has two children. Her daughter, Radhika, is a senior at High School North, and plans to attend the University of Pennsylvania. Her son, Anant, is an eighth grade student at Community Middle School.
Gharpuri holds a bachelor’s degree in commerce, and a law degree from schools in India, and worked briefly in a law firm there. She earned an MBA with concentration in finance from Butler University in 1997.
Although she is currently a stay-at-home mom, she worked as an analyst for a bank, and has more than four years experience working for several non-profit organizations. She has served as the treasurer of the Youth Orchestra of New Jersey, and as vice president/grant administrator for a private non-profit foundation in Princeton.
Gharpure also served on district group that developed tools for measuring strategic objectives during the Strategic Planning process.
She has also volunteered for the North PTSA for the past three years, serving as secretary of the PTSA Executive Committee for two years. This year she is chair of the Mini Grants Committee, and Post Prom Corporate Fund Raising Committee.
Gharpuri says that with one of her children leaving to go to college, she will have time to to devote to the long hours and commitment of time that serving on the board of education requires. “I’m going to have to look for more time. It’s a challenge, but I look forward to that challenge.”
Gharpuri says she has serveral ideas ideas about minimizing future tax impacts and raising district revenue.
“With the state aid on the decline, the school board should always make decisions keeping in mind the financial conservatism versus excellence in education,” she says. “This involves prioritizing spending, considering cost effectiveness and then promoting innovative ways of reducing operating costs for various programs. Also, for the purpose of funding special programs, alternative ways of seeking funds from the state and other private agencies can be looked into with the help of a grant writer.
Gharpuri says she needs to know more before taking a position on school funding methodolgies. “I’d like to get more information on both. I’ve heard that in the past the district used the per pupil method, and things worked out properly at that time.”
On the issue of referendum-approved construction, Gharpuri says that the district admninistration is more than capable of managing the projects. “We have an excellent administration, starting with the superintendent and his staff, and dedicated school administrators. I think we are in good hands to see the projects get completed.”
She adds that the district must also must work to minimize the impact of on students of any projects done while school is in session.
On the issue of residential development theat might be generated by West Windsor’s plans for redevelopment, Garpure says that the school board should have some involvement.
“West Windsor township’s elected officials must initiate a dialogue and get input from the community members, school administrators and the school board, if there is a possibility of increase in the student population due to the railway station development.”
Neal Phenes, 50, is a resident of Chandler Court. He and his wife, Elise, have lived in Plainsboro for four years and have two children at Wicoff School — a daughter in second grade, and a son in kindergarten.
Born in Lynn, MA, Phenes grew up in Stamford, CT. His father was a salesman and his mother an office worker at General Electric. He earned a degree in journalism from University of Rhode Island in 1977, and graduated from New York Law School in 1985.
Phenes says that parents’ needs and expectations have not been fully served by the school district. “I want to poll the parents and work towards making the school system more reflective of their desires,” says the candidate. “I also want to serve as the citizens’ watchman to analyze expenditures within the school board’s control as local taxes continue to skyrocket upwards.”
Phenes, a lawyer at American Re in Plainsboro, says that the proximity of his work to the township will help to make more time available to serve as a member of the school board.
He adds that because he is also not involved with any other outside groups or organizations “to distract my attention.”
On the school budget, Phenes says that “taxpayers have to drill down into the numbers and make serious decisions on such things as class sizes, student to administrator or teacher ratios, essential services, and services that distract schools from their core goals of providing a good education to all students.”
“My fellow citizens’ biggest concern,” he adds, “is that the public spending actually may not be causally connected to the school district’s scholastic achievement. It may be the result of other factors. If so, then there is room for significant improvement without continuing tax increases.”
Phenes says he has not “crunched the numbers to reach a preference” on the question of changing the method of school funding. “I am also not so sure an option other than those two (valuation versus per pupil) cannot be considered.
Phenes says that if elected to the board, he would watch to make sure that the referendum improvements program stays on target. “My role will be to monitor progress and make sure the public avoids a boondoggle resulting from incompetence or corruption.”
“Naturally, the experience of the facilities providers as well as the accuracy of the prior estimates from the town’s professional consultants will result in timeliness and efficiency,” he says. “Absent both getting their roles correct, we will wind up with lateness and cost-overruns. I am coming in after most of the budgeting has been done.”
Phenes says that he is not opposed to stopping residential development in WW-P. “While additional students add to the stress upon existing facilities, I am unconvinced that additional schools and teachers are necessarily warranted.”
“I believe in an America where people can pursue betterment for themselves and their families and part of that is to be able to reside in places like WW-P,” says Phenes.
Chris Pordon of Hampshire Drive, is one of the youngest — if not the youngest — to run for elected office in recent WW-P history. Currently a senior at High School South, Pordon, 18, says he plans to attend Rutgers or another nearby college after he graduates in June.
“Being a student in the schools, I get to see every day where money is being spent wisely, and where our policies could use improvement,” Pordon says. “I look forward to bringing that important perspective to the Board so that we can better address what our priorities should be in the future, and how we can spend money most effectively, to keep property taxes low.”
He adds that he is encouraged by the interest that other students have taken in his campaign. “I am optimistic that my candidacy will inspire other young people to become involved in their community, and it is very important that they do.”
Born in Paterson, Pordon moved to Plainsboro seven years ago with his parents. His father, Lee, is a sales manager with Tour Andover Controls, and his mother, Sue, is a medical editor for TriCore Interactive.
Pordon has participated in various school organizations over the years, such as student government and the varsity debate team. He is currently active in area historical societies, including the Princeton Battlefield Historic Preservation Society.
“Involvement in the community has long been an interest of mine, and my candidacy for the School Board has grown out of a passion for public service,” Pordon says. “I will always make time for my priorities, and to fulfill my commitment to the community.”
He says that people seem to be reacting positively to his candidacy. “I am finding that people are refreshed to see a young candidate, and I am grateful for the support of so many members of the community. Students from several district schools have been meeting voters door to door with me, and I am confident that on April 18 more teenagers will vote than ever before in WW-P.”
He adds that his parents have been supportive. “Like many parents, they are impressed with the quality of WW-P schools, but as homeowners, they are eager for more accountability and fiscal responsibility on the school board.
“As a student on the School Board, I will be able to help (board) members better understand what is going on inside the classroom, and where money can be spent most effectively,” Pordon says. “Responsibility and better prioritization will allow us to significantly slow the budget growth, and finally lower property taxes.”
According to Pordon, a change in the method of dividing the tax burden between the two townships should be studied. “The current method of property valuation and taxation is complex, and it can be hard to determine how fair it really is. The per-pupil system could prove to benefit Plainsboro residents, and for that reason I believe it deserves more discussion and review.”
Pordon says he had some reservations about the January school referendum. “I was hesitant to support the January referendum due to the lack of details provided by School Board and administration officials. I believed that a project so ambitious deserved more scrutiny, but now it is going ahead, I will work to ensure that construction and improvements are carried out so as to cause as little interference with classroom activities as possible.
“To make sure we meet our budget and timetable, the Board must consult and cooperate with all parties involved. The feedback of teachers, parents, and students will be very important.”
