Meet The Morris Plains Board Of Education Candidates

MORRIS PLAINS, NJ — Morris Plains voters will head to the polls this November to elect new Board of Education members, and Patch caught up with them ahead of the election.

Four candidates are running for three seats on the board. Those elected will serve for three years. We asked all candidates the same four questions:

• Why are you running for Board Of Education?
• What is the biggest challenge facing schools in your town, and how will you address it?
• What three words would you use to describe yourself to someone who has never met you?
• What experience in your background has prepared you to be an effective leader?

All candidates were sent the questions at the same time, and were given the same deadline to submit them. They were given no minimum or maximum word count, and encouraged to write as much as they needed, or to keep the answers brief if they wanted to. Answers were submitted by email and are presented here as submitted. Candidates are listed in alphabetical order by last name.

Candidate Lucia Galdi said she was unable to participate in the question-and-answer exercise by deadline because of what she described as issues beyond her control.

Diane Del Russo

Why are you running for Board Of Education?

I would take the opportunity to be an advocate for our students. To ensure that each child would receive a quality education that prepares them to become highly productive citizen. I have received continuous extensive training and have many years of experience honing my skills to have become an administrator for a large urban high school. My beliefs and experiences have increased my confidence level with difficult decision making. It is my desire to pursue a position with the BOE to provide input and decision making for our community and my own children. I will work hard as an advocate and representative focused on the improvement of our school system.

What is the biggest challenge facing schools in your town, and how will you address it?

Schools need to produce critical thinkers. The biggest challenges usually boil down to money and staffing to accomplish this goal for each individual learner. I would address the need of a fiscally sound budget paying specific attention on hiring effective staff and training in order to implement instructional strategies which establish critical thinking techniques.

What three words would you use to describe yourself to someone who has never met you?

Reliable, Dedicated, and Compassionate

What experience in your background has prepared you to be an effective leader?

I started my teaching career in 2006 as a High School Teacher of Mathematics at East Side HS in Newark, NJ. This opportunity led me to teach Advanced Placement Calculus in my second year as a teacher. My success was measured by the fact that I was to not only teach my students mathematics but also teach them life skills they needed to succeed in their future. My immediate success as a teacher pushed me in 2010 to become the school testing coordinator. This position tasked me to manage all state assessments which were required to be administered to all 1700 students over the course of the entire school year. This position required that I manage staff training, state testing protocols, student and teacher scheduling, constant state changes, differing state requirements for each test, as well as specifics for students with individual educational plans and limited English learners. Post testing I managed and conducted data analysis of the results and designed overall intervention programs to continuously improve our current instructional curriculum. I administered and analyzed school surveys completed by students, parents and staff to better understand the environmental climate of our building. Based on the results, I created and maintained a very successful family-friendly environment by making specific changes to the school which enhanced our perception and the impression we were offering to the students and parents in our community. To finalize, the state completed a full audit which I had to provide documentation of every aspect. The state noted that despite significant hurdles I did not miss a deadline and met all testing requirements as per the state of NJ without a single issue.

Amy Lyons

Why are you running for Board Of Education?

Last fall I decided to get my name out to the town as a write-in canadidate for an open one year term on the board because when my husband and I moved our family to Morris Plains two years ago I was looking for ways to become a very active member of the community, particularly in some kind of role that was connected with the school district that will serve my young children (ages 4 & 6) for many years to come. This continues to hold true as I seek to be elected now - I have a vested interest in the education of all of the students of the Morris Plains school district and would be proud to continue to serve on a board that works so cohesively with school administration to ensure that the best education is given to its students.

What is the biggest challenge facing schools in your town, and how will you address it?

Having served on the board since January, I have come to understand just how far the Morris Plains school district has come, especially within the past few years. The district continues to constantly look for ways to better themselves in the use of technology, school safety, and the ever-changing 21st century learner, areas where other districts may find their greatest challenges. I had the opportunity to participate in two meetings as the district formed their strategic plan for the coming years and was able to see first-hand that the one of the biggest challenges facing the district will be to find ways to quantify data to show growth, etc., in areas that administrators, teachers, and parents all agree are important for their current student’s success (example - teaching social-emotional skills, mindfulness to the young learner).

What three words would you use to describe yourself to someone who has never met you?

I would describe myself as dedicated, motivated, and creative.

What experience in your background has prepared you to be an effective leader?

I feel that my experience of over 10 years in teaching (both special education and as a literacy instructor) provides me with many ways to effectively support the board. I believe that I am a very honest and trustworthy person and am also very easy to communicate with. I am also the co-leader of my daughter’s daisy troop in town and in this capacity I truly enjoy instilling the values and skills needed to be a leader into these young girls.

Kenneth J. Wilbur

Why are you running for Board Of Education?

I am very proud of our District. I have enjoyed serving on the Board and am excited by the chance to continue to do so as a means of giving back to a community that has been my home for 27 years.

What is the biggest challenge facing schools in your town, and how will you address it?

Defining the “biggest challenge” depends on the time frame. Our Superintendent and staff have proven their ability to run the District efficiently while also being State-recognized leaders in implementing innovative education programs. With this caliber of management in place, the primary day-to-day challenge becomes facilitating communication between the administration and parents. This dialog is essential, as parent feedback helps identify what the District is doing well and what I, as a Board member, need to urge the administration to do better to meet the needs of our students. The biggest long-term challenge facing our District is maintaining its commitment to excellence in an increasingly difficult fiscal environment. The Board as a whole needs to continue to be good stewards of the resources made available to it not only from taxpayers, but also from contributions by the Education Foundation, the Home School Association and other community groups. Increasingly, these contributions are what make it possible for the District to offer programming and extracurricular opportunities to our students.

What three words would you use to describe yourself to someone who has never met you?

One of the first things I tell my clients is never accept a question’s limits on the answer! In the spirit of the question, however, I would describe myself as inquisitive, fair and vigilant.

What experience in your background has prepared you to be an effective leader?

I am completing my first term on the Board, during which I was part of the effort to pass and implement the referendum for needed school improvements. I also served on the committee which successfully negotiated the District’s collective bargaining agreement. I currently serve on the Finance Committee and as chairperson of the Policy Committee. I am approaching the end of my term as Morris Plains Little League’s Vice President for its softball program, which has doubled in size in the past three years and, hopefully, has let a lot of girls have a lot of fun playing a great game with their friends. Professionally, I have been a partner in my law firm (Drinker Biddle & Reath) for over 20 years, and have frequently been involved in matters involving State and local government.

All candidate images submitted by the candidates and used with permission.