Independence Board of Education

Independence Board of Education

Hello everyone. I have an almost five year old daughter who will be starting kindergarten next year. We live in Independence and I have started to notice signs for the board of education election. Last night, I happened to stumble upon a Facebook post also asking about the election. I have a great interest in this election because my daughter will be starting school in Independence next year. We moved here because we have family in the area that love the schools. I hope this doesn't come off as being mean but is this woman M Frost already on the school board? I know that autocorrect can be troublesome but out of curiosity, I checked back three more times to see if she corrected it and after two edits, there were still several mistakes. She said that she was pro-education but her posts have me concerned about my daughter's education (sorry again, not trying to be mean). Can anyone give me information on the board of education? Did I make a mistake moving to this district?

Ella's Mom Ella's Mom
Oct '18

Re: Independence Board of Education

Looks like she is an incumbent. Scary stuff right there.

3wbdwnj 3wbdwnj
Oct '18

Ella's mom- Use the search feature and search Rich225. That is a person who has posted a ton recently regarding the school district. Rich225 seems to have a handle on the candidates.


3wbdwnj, that is scary!

Thank you, Greg. I read through his posts under another topic. I'm honestly surprised by all of the trouble the public has with the board. It sounds like the current officers have a lot of negative feedback. The information is eye opening. From what I've gathered, Agatha Wolke is also on the board now? There seems to be a lot of anger surrounding how she got on the board. Frost said on Facebook that they were running together but this afternoon I saw a sign that only said Frost (it's amazing what you notice after you're made aware of someone). I'm confused by her! At the very least, I know one person to eliminate.

Ella's Mom Ella's Mom
Oct '18

Also do some proof reading

Bug3
Oct '18

Wait - what?

"We moved here because we have family in the area that love the schools"

Reggie Voter Reggie Voter
Oct '18

Reggie voter- my sister also lives in Independence. The schools were not our sole reason for moving here but we were encouraged by her and my brother in laws review of the school district. My husband was relocated and we moved from out of state about a year and a half ago. Independence was on our short list. Of course it's always nice to be close to family, too!

Ella's Mom Ella's Mom
Oct '18

Wow! I read Dawn's FB post..it was almost painful to read.

positive positive
Oct '18

What is up with that weird font, though?

3wbdwnj 3wbdwnj
Oct '18

The font is my phone's fault. It came with that lettering as the default setting and I don't know how to fix it! :)

Ella's Mom Ella's Mom
Oct '18

Ella, welcome! I look forward to your name on the next ballot! I am sure that this school district could use someone with your discernment and passion. I hope that your child proceeds well through the independence district - our child generally received a very good education in this system. There were highs and lows in each school, but that is true everywhere, and some of the opportunities and teachers were superb.

pmnsk pmnsk
Oct '18

FUNNY, i also saw that post last night and one from Agatha and it did not look like that at all. Maybe one typo but thats it. And definitely never that font. I smell something off.with tbese posts.oops was that a typo? Oh no.
Sorry!!
.Probably more trolls trying to discredit two very qualified and really good, honest people.
Why doesnt everyone actually read it themselves instead of reading this propaganda.

.I know that autocorrect can be troublesome but out of curiosity, I checked back three more times to see if she corrected it and after two edits, there were still several mistakes." This is definitely untrue.

Friendlyface Friendlyface
Oct '18

Anyone know dawn, ask her about the post?

justintime justintime
Oct '18

Great idea justintime instead of hiding behind names and posting negative things how about you actually confront someone as yourself and ask. I like it. Its almost like being an adult.

And before i get slack for posting under a different name. I will never start a negative post or make fun of someone on here. And many of the posters on here can be vicious. I have 3 kids in the schools I do not want them affected.

Friendlyface Friendlyface
Oct '18

Re: Independence Board of Education

I'm sorry, Friendly Face. I never meant to offend you or anyone else. I promise you that Frosts original comment was what I posted. I really was just asking about the candidates. I don't know any of them other than what was put on Facebook last night and the information I was given here. My intentions were not mean spirited, but her original comment was exactly what I screenshotted and posted above. I sent it to my sister to see if she knew her and then went back several times to see if she had revised her original post. The font is the way it is because of a setting on my phone. All of my texts are in that font, everything that I read on Facebook is in that font and the time on my homescreen and text under my icons are all in that font. This is my first time ever posting on this forum. I was jarred by what was first written on Facebook and had questions. Like I said, my daughter will be in the school district next year and I want to make the right decision. I apologize again. I did not mean to cause a stir. You are right, the comment has been modified and there are far less typos now. I am sharing a screenshot of what it looks like now. I hope that this will make up for my original post in some way.

Ella's Mom Ella's Mom
Oct '18

Pmnsk, thank you for the welcome. I am so glad to hear that you and your child did so well in the district. I am looking forward to meeting the teachers that my nephews enjoyed so much!

Ella's Mom Ella's Mom
Oct '18

Thank you Ellas mom.
Dawn is a friend of mine and when i told her what was going on she was appalled. And actually less upset than I was because she said that after she hit send she went back and corrected everything as she was in a rush. She refuses to go on this site because of how people act. She has been brought up on this site more than once simply because she is currently on the board and running for re election What people post on here is mostly with out substance as they are mean spirited and most likely by people that do not even know her. She is a strong, intelligent, successful working mom who volunteers more time than there actually is in a day to support everything pertaining to her children.

So before you eliminate her why dont you actually do some real research. I understand that you are "new" to the area but you should know you will most likely not get real answers on this forum.

And before saying things as this:

"Frost said on Facebook that they were running together but this afternoon I saw a sign that only said Frost (it's amazing what you notice after you're made aware of someone). I'm confused by her! At the very least, I know one person to eliminate."

Just ask the actual people

Friendlyface Friendlyface
Oct '18

“She refuses to go on this site because of how people act”

Sad that that’s the case.

I’ve always tried to view it this way:
Every one of us is different, without exception. We form our opinions based on the world as we experience it, and unfortunately many of us don’t have the opportunity to see the world as others do, which is horrible if you ask me. The best way to get along with each other is to listen more and try as hard as we can to step back from our predispositions (which is *very* difficult). That’s not reality, unfortunately, but if we really want to get along together it’s a good goal and someone has to do it.

Anyway, there are more decent folks reading than not IMO but they stay quiet because of the difficulty of communicating in this forum style. If it were me I’d suggest to not be afraid to post and instead just stick to the high road and don’t get drawn into the nit picky stuff.

A great example of that is JimL. I don’t always agree with him but he’s been very good about “ignoring the trolls” and passing along his views. Lots of respect and kudus there. Other board members pop in periodically too and for the most part they also stay above the fray. Not much else to do other than to clearly express their views.

justintime justintime
Oct '18

Justintime
You are definitely correct however, i guess when people are mean spirited while stating their opinion about you i imagine it makes it hard to keep reading.
I dont even like when people do it using "friendly" i cant imagine if they used my real name.
Unlike others justintime ive seen you disagree without being mean and rude on here that is the biggest difference.

Friendlyface Friendlyface
Oct '18

Oh I’ve stooped on occasion and am no Saint. I just happen to think that it’s a worthwhile goal to push through the negativity. We won’t always succeed, but if we don’t try then where are we?

justintime justintime
Oct '18

I also live in Independence and can't find any info about the candidates other than what I've read on this site. Which Facebook group have the candidates been posting on?

Smilingbecs Smilingbecs
Oct '18

I would not recommend moving here if you have school aged children. Many good teachers and staff, but BOE and superintendant are not about what is best for the children, staff, or community.

Get a grip Get a grip
Oct '18

FriendlyFace, I know she's your friend and you're defensive, but you realize you can view the edit history of facebook comments right? There were at LEAST 4 edits this afternoon. Saying something is "untrue" doesn't magically make it untrue.

As far as the rest of this I get that people are in a rush. We all make typos, even the most educated and intelligent among us. It's most often about rushing, not being ignorant.
That said, you still shouldn't have to edit a post FOUR+ times over 2 days if you expect to be taken seriously on an educational platform.

BluntForceDrama BluntForceDrama
Oct '18

Ella's Mom, Welcome!
The district can be amazing or terrible, depending on what type of child you have, as well as age. Many special needs parents loathe it, but pretty much all the neurotypical parents love it.
Hopefully you're the latter. However, knowing ahead of time you can be prepared for the fight and get a leg up. :-)

BluntForceDrama BluntForceDrama
Oct '18

Blunt force
Yes i do know that, however, as most reasonable people have stated why not ask her yourself about it. I mean 1 bunch of typos does not make or break a persons ability to make decisions as a board member. Nor does it speak for what she stands for as a board member or her beliefs for the school and the community. I can defend her all that i want on this forum but it will make no difference to many. Im just saying its crazy for people to pass judgement so quickly about someone they do not even know or probably havent even heard of until now over typos on FACEBOOK. Think about how silly that sounds, judging someone over typos on facebook, seriously.
I am sure that once she found out about this she went on the post again. Who wouldn't!?
In fact if she didn't then i would question it more.
The point is she cares and has done a lot as a board member already. Its just wrong to see someone like her get a bad rep. because of typos that were corrected on social media. In fact its sheer idiocy for that to happen.

Friendlyface Friendlyface
Oct '18

There is nothing wrong with wanting a change for our BOE. For too long our parents and taxpayers have felt that this board and the Superintendent doesn't listen or care about the issues we feel are important. People who have raised their issues with the board have been treated rudely by some of the board members and the Superintendent. Seven members of this board vote in a block for anything the Superintendent wants without questioning it. They are rude to the two members that do ask questions and vote against them. The President and Vice President have been in their roles for eight years. How about giving someone else a chance to be in charge?
Some new people on the board would be a good thing. I will vote for Courtney Wenthen and Douglas Smith.

Rosie Rosie
Oct '18

Rosie, I will also be voting for Doug Smith and Courtney Wenthen. I don't know either of them personally, but this board needs to change and we need new blood. It will be a slow process to get them all off, but we have to start somewhere and these two candidates cannot be any worse than those who they would be replacing. I have been at several BOE meetings and am appalled at the way this current board speaks to the public who put them there. They are rude and condescending when asked questions or are given suggestions they don't agree with concerning the handling of a particular issue. A major change must take place. let's start now!!

Parental Unit Parental Unit
Oct '18

"She refuses to go on this site because of how people act."

If she can't handle this site, we're supposed to trust her with a Board of Ed position?

That just solidified my vote.


Re: Independence Board of Education

MB
Funny that you should post this at this very time because in fact Dawn did go on line this morning and post. However, for some odd reason it is not showing.
Since she knows that i have been on here she asked me to put this on.
Again something is very strange about this thread and the timing of everything.
Hopefully the admins will fix this error soon.
To me this speaks volumes as to the type of person Dawn Frost really is.
Take a look

Friendlyface Friendlyface
Oct '18

Friendlyface



Pathetic! The world is not out to get Dawn Frost. I am in the camp of Doug Smith and Courtney Wenthen.

Retired Retired
Oct '18

Retired
What is pathetic?
That she asked me to post this when hers didnt post? Does she not have the right to stick up for herself?
I am just saying this is all very strange. Why would this not post?
See you have just proven my point. Let the mean spiritedness commence.

Friendlyface Friendlyface
Oct '18

Friendly - are you Mr. Frost? ;)


Friendlyface

We know exactly why it won't post. You can't post twice on the same thread when using the same device. Old ladies are not mean but well informed

Retired Retired
Oct '18

Hello Everyone
Let’s try this again...Guilty party here Dawn Frost. Before this thread starts to take a turn towards the reason why I usually stay off of it with demeaning posts I wanted to come clean about the original post.

Ella’s mom
Thank you for holding me accountable for my post on Facebook. It was a scramble of typos that I did not take the time to go back and check because I was in the middle of 6th grade homework, laundry, lunches and still actually working at my full time job.

Like most of us busy parents, 99% of my on-line activity is done from the phone. For me this is not the ideal set up. It is also an area of development for me that I have been trying to work on. My friends have no problem calling me out when my texts and messages come across like that but mostly it is in a joking manner. I have been working on slowing down but as you all know times are busier now more than ever. Especially since we are all so accessible with our smart phones.

Although my friends are able to decode my texts it was wrong of me to not look at the post before hitting send and I take full responsibility.
However, it is unfair, and actually in poor judgement, for anyone to make a decision on who is and is not fit to be on the Board of Education based on a Facebook post.

Ella’s Mom
As for the signs. I ran 2 years ago for the Board of Ed and had some signs left. Agatha and I were in agreement that we should use them as another means for campaigning. It in no way hinders our relationship as running mates it was just a fiscal way to get my name out. If she had them she would have done the same. I hope that this lessens your confusion.

I appreciate this chance to post again, but I will let anyone know who is about to pick this apart and degrade me on here that I will not be responding.
I apologize in advance if my first post decides to make an appearance and this is redundant.
Thank for Your Time!

Dawn Frost Dawn Frost
Oct '18

No Retired I am not Mr Frost. And yes I know that about this site. Give me a break.. lol...I know that you do not know The Frosts so you have no idea how funny your comment actually is...

Friendlyface Friendlyface
Oct '18

Friendly- what is strange about the timing of this thread? It was created the day after the unintelligible post on Facebook. The post that Dawn wrote was directly related to the election which people are discussing here. There is nothing strange about it! BluntForceDrama brought attention to the fact that Dawn had to edit that post on FB FOUR TIMES. If you don't see an issue with a sitting board member who can't write coherently, one who ironically boasted about being pro-education, then you must be voting blindly because she is your "friend".

Everyone is busy but can still type a simple message. More importantly, she was addressing a potential voter and representing herself as a candidate, you would think that she would take care to take the five minutes to give the proper attention to the task at hand and another 30 seconds to proofread. If she is too busy to do that, then it's probably not the best idea for her to be on the board, making important decisions for our district.

Rich225 Rich225
Oct '18

Friendlyface
You are correct in that I do not know Mrs. Frost personally. My taxes are familiar with this board of education decisions. I could start with the utter waste of taxpayer money on vestibules for three schools. One of which I am told they might be closing. I could bring up shared security with Hackettstown. We have a police station across the street. What has this done for the education of my grandchildren? I will tell you it has done nothing! I am being taxed to death by one bad decision after another. If Mrs. Frost voted no to these thing then I will apologize. If she voted yes then she and the others must go.

Retired Retired
Oct '18

My wife and I were confused about the signs too - some with two names, some with just one. As if the candidates had a falling out. Weird but not worth trying to figure out. Easier to just vote for the opponents.

Reggie Voter Reggie Voter
Oct '18

“Let’s try this again...Guilty party here Dawn Frost. Before this thread starts to take a turn towards the reason why I usually stay off of it with demeaning posts I wanted to come clean about the original post.”

There are so many grammatical errors and overall incoherence in the above quote that I do not believe this person should be on the BOE. I’m not being “mean spirited” by saying that. It’s just my opinion.

Consigliere
Oct '18

Really Consigliere? Great reason to not vote for someone to be on the board.

Friendlyface Friendlyface
Oct '18

Consigliere- just because someone is on the board, making important decisions about the education of our students, doesn't mean they should know how to write complete and coherent sentences. You should definitely vote based on who their friends are. That is how it has worked for years, we don't want to upset the balance. It doesn't matter what anyone else thinks. The board is always right and the public shouldn't get involved.

Rich225 Rich225
Oct '18

Sometimes overly defensive friends can do more harm than good.

Smilingbecs Smilingbecs
Oct '18

"Sometimes overly defensive friends can do more harm than good."

+1

Calico696 Calico696
Oct '18

Retired said - You can't post twice on the same thread when using the same device. Old ladies are not mean but well informed.

That might be true, but that's not the only reason.

scottso scottso
Oct '18

I do measure candidates by sign consistency he said sarcastically.... Spelling is a bit more serious, especially in this day n age, but facebook not exactly guided by “the little blue book.” Neither is HL where my spullin and grummer is terribull.

It is getting Frosty, perhaps a sign?

Good answer Jit; I still have a copy. Makes me laugh, makes me cry. Became a part of me
;-/

Strangerdanger Strangerdanger
Oct '18

Being a busy mom is no excuse. I'm a single mom with two jobs and a side gig and several kids that have many activities, and more. But guess what? I still find time to proofread if it's IMPORTANT. If I want to give people a good impression. She's in an ELECTION. You're trying to get voted in but can't bother to proofread one short comment where you're hailing your fantastic abilities?
Please.
How are you going to find time to properly manage your position on the board itself? How are you going to find time to talk to the parents (not your besties) and analyze information and deal with problems (etc, etc) if you can't proof one paragraph regarding your hopeful election to an EDUCATION-based position?

Friendly, you're coming off very defensive and making a lot of personal claims about not knowing Frost (which is unfounded as you don't know us), or you're being condescending and it's just making Dawn look worse. As Becs said... "Sometimes overly defensive friends can do more harm than good." And that's what you're doing. You're attacking our collective character, for questioning her experience and ability for the job at hand when our CHILDREN are on the line.

We're passionate about our community and our children. You're seemingly mostly passionate about your friend who can defend herself.

BluntForceDrama BluntForceDrama
Oct '18

Why does the budget continue to go up while the student population continues to go down? Do we have too many school teachers on the BOE who are completely blind to saving any money whatsoever? Vote for real change this November, vote for Douglas Smith and Courtney Wenthen


10. Great Meadows Regional School District
Student enrollment change in grades K-2 since 2011-2012: -94
Percent change: -20.3%

https://www.lehighvalleylive.com/warren-county/index.ssf/2018/09/warren_school_enrollment_down.html?fbclid=IwAR28W8Q98col4iDPdmfIHmVALIMbJioELRP1IEWZMiWH0lF1gXhXl95DZzI#incart_river_mobile_index

GreyHawk GreyHawk
Oct '18

"Why does the budget continue to go up while the student population continues to go down?"
You still have buildings to maintain, you still have regulations that have to be followed, you still have to pay for lights and heat. Teachers benefits cost more every year, and you have now added police officers to your monthly expense. You have to pay for the retainer on the school lawyers which increases every year in your sue happy Amerika. And as I hear you whine, just remember something else, you really have not paid enough-you still owe 80 BILLION DOLLARS to the retirees of the State of New Jersey, and this is not only teachers so don't blame them alone. Hold your nose, then put it to the grindstone and get to work. Your predecessors who did not previously pay enough taxes, sold their homes, and retired to Florida have left you with 80 BILLION in debt to pay. So either put on your parachute and sell your house and bail, or be prepared to pay more, way more, in the future. Do what the other folks did, leave your debt to the younger generation to pay off or continue to complain. Those are your choices. NJ should have had a balanced budget every year going back to 1950.

Dodgebaal Dodgebaal
Oct '18

Of course NJ could do what Detroit did and restructure existing pensions as part of its bankruptcy.

I would imagine NJ, CA and IL are close to insolvency...debt just grows until it explodes....boom...bankruptcy.

Can’t pay what you cannot reasonably collect or have ...


Can't take blood from a stone, and the courts back this up...


"Can’t pay what you cannot reasonably collect or have ..."

And there comes the hiccup of equity in your home. Easy to collect. Slap a tax lien on it.
Don't pay, get evicted.
As Boobalaa likes to point out, follow the law....

Dodgebaal Dodgebaal
Oct '18

folks over the last 12 years GMR student population has gone down by over 350 students. At a conservative estimate of $11,000 dollars average cost to pay for these students to go to the High School over these past 12 years ,well you do the math. On top of that at least 80% of the senior teachers have retired over those same years with lets say an average salary of 85K per year with a new teachers salary starting at 55K a year. If that still does not grab your attention,we over paid for our declining enrollment to Hackettstown 2 MILLION DOLLARS over four years and was not discovered for another 2 years all of it interest free.. Furthermore we were hit for a 2% increase every single one of those years which is still factored into our present school year budget. Well it does get worse,this 2 million dollar over payment, the tax payer will never see, because Mr. Havlusch is playing with the sending district cost per student as suits the districts needs. When we have surplus funds coming in he high balls the number. When he needs to create a credit he low balls the number( as I believe he did on this past years fiscal years budget) making this a perfect slush fund for the district to park its surplus funds and tapping into it at a later date when needed.

hammer hammer
Oct '18

We must vote these people out! I can not afford anymore bad decisions by this BOE.

Retired Retired
Oct '18

That's Capitalism (with Socialism for the down and out) Dodgebaal...


Wow, that's like millions of dollars wasted, rising costs against lowering student enrollments, sounds like waste and fraud. How do they get away with it?

Which candidate has specifically said they would go after this malfeasance and the people who perpetrate this theft from the public?

strangerdanger strangerdanger
Oct '18

strangerdanger,

Wilke and Frost have been on the board for a number of years and have voted as a block with the board leadership. We need new people on the board. Wenthen and Smith will be new to the board. The financial mismanagement has been consistently endorsed by the seven members who vote together to increase taxes when they know it is not necessary. Wilke and Frost have never voted no to a tax increase. Time for a change.

Rosie Rosie
Oct '18

Thank you Rosie for connecting the dots!!!

hammer hammer
Oct '18

I will also be voting for change. I will vote for Doug Smith and Courtney Wenthen.

Retired Retired
Oct '18

I am all for change but..... "Which candidate has specifically said they would go after this malfeasance and the people who perpetrate this theft from the public?"

Change for changes sake --- well, not so big on that one....often change for change sake turns out to be more of the same sake....if you know what I mean, if you catch my drift.

strangerdanger strangerdanger
Oct '18

Anything has to be better than what we have now. Mango says jump and the board members ask how high!! I for one am tired of it. There will only be two new members if they get elected, so the change may take a while, but it's a start.

Parental Unit Parental Unit
Oct '18

Outside of the taxes, how is the education your children are getting? I don't hear anyone speakong of that. Noone is talking about the education and care thier children are getting. If you want something good, you have to pay for it, that goes for education also. The super and boe are for the children and public. It is a hard line they have to walk. Btw, great to hear from bill vondahaar aka 'hammer' on this thread. Was getting nervous he had nothing to say......

Forthekids
Oct '18

"It is a hard line they have to walk" What a line of bull that is. They have so much money Mr. Havlusch has to keep inventing ways to hide it all. Of course when you have a superintendent who is more than ready to tap into that cash by hiring more shared services personnel such as facilities,curriculum and our new rent a cop not to mention his own services, Mr. Havlusch's job becomes that much easier.

hammer hammer
Oct '18

Forthekids

We hear the same refrain every year. Somehow they have convinced the parents that the education in Great Meadows is superior to the other districts around us. I'm sure that the parents in Allamuchy, Hackettstown, and Mansfield think the education their children are receiving is just as good. The difference is that they are all paying 5,000 less per student than we are.

And by the way, by accusing a board member that you don't like of anonymously posting on here, you have exposed yourself as one of the seven.

Rosie Rosie
Oct '18

No, not a member, just a tax payer. Whoever gets voted in will face the same issues, money and the public. I think all the candidates are good and seem to have their best interest for the children and the public. Good luck candidates, new and old, it's a hard position to be in. I think a way to lower taxes in our community is to bring in new business.

Forthekids
Oct '18

Hammer -

"Of course when you have a superintendent who is more than ready to tap into that cash by hiring more shared services personnel such as facilities,curriculum and our new rent a cop not to mention his own services, Mr. Havlusch's job becomes that much easier."

Shared services SAVES money - or would you rather GM pay the full salaries by themselves? Do the math.

Tim the Tool Man
Oct '18

But do we need the shared services, or we just really helping out Hackettstown with their bill? A prime example is the security guard who is stationed in Hackettstown when we have our own police department across the street? That just doesn't make any sense to me. That is a reason why I firmly believe it's a conflict of interest to have the same superintendent for these two different school districts.

Parental Unit Parental Unit
Oct '18

Tim the tool man,I fully realize that but 98% of the people reading this have no idea that this is going on. Mango is running our school district like we are regionalized when we are not. As far as I am concerned he should be the first to go and that will entail spending more money. As far as a curriculum coordinator, I find this position a complete waste of tax payer money, dittos for our rent a cop. The only position that I would consider to share with is the facilities manager and even that position I would scrutinize. Do you want to know where we can cut ,how about not rehiring and assistant principal at our middle school (who has recently been chosen to replace the principal at Liberty school). How about increasing our class sizes and cutting some personnel. Do you folks realize that our cost per student is equal to or higher than the tuition at Rutgers University. Most of all we need to watch Havlusch like a hawk!! Follow the money!

hammer hammer
Oct '18

Lots of wasted $. Hackettstown also has a Night cleaning crew. Why?! That's the janitor's job!

Older Mom Older Mom
Oct '18

I agree with most of what Hammer has said. The waste of money and the lack of accountability of wasting that money is insane. If we do not vote new people In things will not change!

Retired Retired
Oct '18

But do the new people even plan to change it? How? And what's to happen to those who apparently misappropriated funds, mis-managed spending, and the like. Do they just get left off the hook?

Change for change's sake is not necessarily change for the better. Why is this change better beyond just being change.

And what's to happen over this great malfeasance which Hammer et al have calculated to be in the millions? Just vote em out and forget about the millions lost? That does not seem right.

strangerdanger strangerdanger
Oct '18

As I stated in an earlier post, this change will not happen overnight. Most members of this current board have to go in order for any major change to occur. There is only the possibility of getting 2 NEW members at this time. They can be outvoted by the remaining current members of the board regardless of whatever change they may propose. I believe the date is November 1st when the public will get the opportunity to meet them and hopefully learn what and how they plan to improve our district. I will be there.

Parental Unit Parental Unit
Oct '18

"A prime example is the security guard who is stationed in Hackettstown when we have our own police department across the street?"

May be time to combine police forces as well. Other towns have done so successfully.

Dodgebaal Dodgebaal
Oct '18

I heard you, but that does seem to be a vote for change sake rationale. How do we know they even want to change it in the direction you want to go? Realize that I am just asking, I don't really have a vote in this.

strangerdanger strangerdanger
Oct '18

My daughter actually likes the new principal at Liberty and from what I hear so do the teachers.Back to school night was actually enjoyable when I went. It seems like a dog chasing it's tail with all of the other issues. Some good ideas and others are just people being angry and making judgments. It will be interesting to see what happens in the upcoming months with teachers as well if they close a school. How does that work with who stays?

Parent of 3 Parent of 3
Oct '18

Any comments on the meet the candidates night?

hammer hammer
Nov '18

I went in there with the expectation that I would vote for Courtney Wenthen and Douglas Smith and absolutely nothing changed my mind. In fact, I'm more confident in my decision. It seems to me that the current BOE members, including Dawn Frost and Agatha Wilke have a lot to hide, which is why I am glad that Courtney brought up the lack of committee reporting at board of education meetings. Dawn Frost was quick to rebut and say that most things discussed in those committee meetings is privileged information. Doug countered and explained what the Sunshine laws really mean and that the information from those committees should absolutely be shared with the public. Applause erupted from the crowd. Wilke doesn't seem to have a clue about what has happened in the district for the last year, probably because she didn't attend a boe meeting for almost 8 months after not being re-elected. Frost
seemed to think that her best qualification for being re-elected was that she is already on the board and it would take too long for the others to learn. Courtney and Doug seem sharp as a tack and I don't worry at all about them being slow to learn. Frost kept using the word "taxpayer" as if it were a buzz word that would make us forget that she has already screwed us over for YEARS! I've always had great admiration for Bill Vonderhaar and I think that he finally had the opportunity to show his true personality without the other members shutting him down.

Retired Retired
Nov '18

Thanks for that update Retired. I see it exactly as you do. Did you receive Mr.Smith's and Ms. Wenthen's mailer today? Absolutely awesome! well done. I am working on calling every one I know to vote for them. I hope others are doing like wise,Tuesday cannot come soon enough for me.

hammer hammer
Nov '18

I just found a flyer from Frost and Wilke on my mailbox. Frost seems to think we don't have enough resources. She wants to focus on saving money, but has never voted against a tax increase in her time on the board. Wilke believes that fiscal responsibility is important but only so that she can keep the taxpayers informed on how much less state aid we will get. These two just don't get it. They voted to raise taxes every year even when there was hundreds of thousands in surplus. Even the state knows you don't pay for students that you don't have. Time for a change!

Rosie Rosie
Nov '18

They love spending money and as I have said many times before,it is infuriating to see their utter contempt for the tax payer. When O'Melia says jump they say how high. On Tuesday there will be a change.

hammer hammer
Nov '18

Rosie- Did you notice that they misspelled a word under the "Education" header? A friend from Independence sent me a picture earlier.

#3 Upgraded to Go Math FORM Everyday Math.

Do these ladies know how to proofread at all? What an embarrassment!!

Rich225 Rich225
Nov '18

"You're right Rich, they don't seem to be able to write or read! Oak Hill has signs all over that read, "NO SOLICITING" yet they stuck those ridiculous pamphlets on everyone's doors. I called the community office at 11am and they had already gotten close to 15 complaints. They will be facing a huge fine.

Smith and Wenthen all the way!”

Retired Retired
Nov '18

Anyone know the results of the school board election? I haven't seen the results.


Never mind I found it. Looks like Smith and Wenthen took it. Now let's see if they can make some improvements. I wish them well.


Here are the actual results. Wenthen 894, Smith747, Frost 666, Wilke 622.

hammer hammer
Nov '18

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