Collingswood Educational Advocate Group Works To Educate Voters

Locally: The attention of residents in Collingswood, NJ turned to the district's Board of Education last year after a failed attempt for a Bond Referendum. Record numbers of residents came out for public meetings of the board of education, and many op-eds dueled back and forth in the local newspapers and online. People have been asking how they can stay involved with schools once their children graduate?

Nationally: pundits are making their predictions about how the Midterm Election will turn out, and the usual phone banking and election tactics are running their course. On the national level, people know what they need to do- vote!

Now on one ballot, you will have a balance between the national and local elections. 3 seats will be voted on, along with your Midterm election ballot on November 6th, for members of the Collingswood School District's Board of Education. Do you know who you will vote for already?

Who are the candidates?

5 candidates: William Johnson, Reagan Kaiden, Danie Moss-Velasco, Mary Saverino, and Christine Sheridan Celia are running this year for the 3 available seats. For more information about their various platforms, visit the CEAG website for campaign materials.

If you are still undecided, you should consider attending the Candidate Forum that is being organized by the Collingswood Educational Advocacy Group and local news source NJPen on October 30th from 7-8:30 pm at Good Shepherd School, 100 Lees Avenue in Collingswood. The group has added a question submission form to their website to accommodate as many questions and comments as possible during the discussion with the candidates.

Who is The CEAG?

The Collingswood Educational Advocacy Group (CEAG) started as a Closed Facebook Group in June 2016 as a way for community members to organize a discussion with the Collingswood Public School District, the Borough, law enforcement, and county officials about actions taken by the district and local law enforcement in regards to enforcement of The Uniform State Memorandum of Agreement Between Education and Law Enforcement Officials (The MOA). The members of the group (which included parents, caregivers, and educators) shared frustration in the shortfalls in communication from the school district. The Group, with over 500 members, found that they could communicate more effectively with the school district as an organization so continued to meet and work toward making the voices of stakeholders heard and to advocate for the ideals of the community.

The group now hosts regular group meetings, reports on Board of Education meetings, publishes opinions on local education issues via their website, and helps serve as a point of contact and clearinghouse for both individuals and organizations seeking to improve all schools and educational opportunities within the Collingswood school district and all other participating schools districts utilizing Collingswood as a sending district, inclusive of such matters as homeschooling, sustainability, and greater educational opportunities.

Jen Rossi (the contributor) is the VP and CIO for the Collingswood Educational Advocacy Group