Duties of the board include overseeing a $43 million-a-year budget, negotiating contracts with teachers, administrators and other staff members, and setting education policy for the schools. Hoboken's public school system includes Hoboken High School, two middle schools, three elementary schools and two charter schools.
Voters will get to choose three candidates from a field of seven for three-year terms.
Incumbents running again include Carrie Gilliard, a Bloomfield Street resident who has been a member of the board since 1996; John Raslowsky II, a Willow Avenue resident and principal at St. Peter's Preparatory School in Jersey City who was appointed to the board in January to fill the unexpired term of John Pope; and Robert Crespo of Madison Street, a former aide to former Mayor Anthony Russo, who was first elected to the board in 1993.
Raslowsky is running on a ticket backed by Mayor David Roberts. The other incumbents are running individually.
Also on the Roberts-backed ticket are Frances Rhodes Kearns, a Church Towers resident and parent who ran last year; and Carmelo Garcia, the city's director of human services.
Other independents running are parents Rose Marie Markle of Grand Street and John Madigan of Marine View Plaza.
Over the last week, each of the candidates were contacted and asked their views about the challenges that the school board faces, and the professional experiences that they believe will help them improve the quality of education in the mile-square city.
They were also asked their opinions of the Hoboken-Stevens Partnership for Public Education (HSPPE). The partnership between the city and the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken will be charged with creating a new public school in town and with offering development training to local teachers. The school is slated to be technology-themed. While it might offer more choices to parents in the district, some candidates said they fear it will only cater to the best students. The program is still in the planning stages, and the newly elected board members will play a definite role in its formation.
Carrie Gilliard
Gilliard, 55, a local real estate agent who has put three children through the Hoboken school system, has spent the last six years on the board. She is a graduate of Adelphi Business School and the Fashion Institute of Technology. Some of her main goals are to improve the use of technology in the classroom and to bolster after-school activities for students.
Wednesday, Gilliard harshly criticized Mayor David Roberts for not selecting an African-American candidate for his ticket. "I feel that the mayor obviously doesn't have the vision for all the citizens of Hoboken," said Gilliard, who is the first and only African-American ever to be elected to the Hoboken school board.
Gilliard added that in her six years on the board she has not been afraid to go against the majority when she feels they are in error. She was originally elected on a slate backed by Mayor Anthony Russo.
One example that Gilliard gave was the fact that she was the only member of the board to vote against head football coach Ed Stinson being promoted to principal of Hoboken High School. "A principal should be in the school walking the halls," she said. "In this case holding both positions [football coach and principal] created a disadvantage for the majority of students." Stinson was transferred to the position of director of district-wide athletics within a year.
If re-elected, Gilliard says she has many goals for Hoboken's public schools. "I want to make sure that computers are in every classroom," she said. "It's critical that today's students have the technical knowledge so that they can go out into the world after graduation."
She added that it is important to improve the after-school activities available to students. "We must move forward and implement programs that get children involved in learning after school," she said. "[We need] positive things like a reading club and an art club and a tennis club, activities that build leadership skills in our students."
When it comes to the HSPPE, Gilliard said that she is taking a wait-and-see attitude. "I embrace new concepts in education, but I have some reservations about the partnership," she said. "I want all children to have equal opportunities. My concern is that this program may not afford all Hoboken students equal opportunities when it comes to public education."
Robert Crespo
Nine-year board member Robert Crespo, 34, said Monday that it is the duty of the Board of Education to maintain fiscal responsibility while simultaneously effecting positive changes on the system's students. Crespo is currently employed as a real estate agent at Riverside Reality. Before that, he was one of former Mayor Anthony Russo's most trusted advisors. For eight years he served as a confidential advisor in City Hall. He attended Sts. Peter and Paul School in Hoboken and graduated from Fairleigh Dickinson University.
He said that it is important that board members go into the schools to interact with the students on a personal level. "It's been my goal, ever since I was first elected, to gain access to the schools and pick out one or two children," said Crespo. "They may be struggling or need a tutor or just someone to talk to. I give these students full access to myself and think it is very important to get personally involved in these students' education. I've been very lucky in my life and think it is imperative that I give something back."
He added that in his nine years on the board that one of the things that he is most proud of is that the board has not raised taxes. "Our goal is to not increase the taxes while still maintaining a high quality of education, and I truly believe we have done that," he said.
Crepso says that the Hoboken school system is much better off now than it was when he took office. "The whole perception of the school system has changed," he said. "[In '93] the people's perception of the schools was extremely negative and the morale of the teachers and employees was low. Now, test scores are up, enrollment is up and the way people look at the schools has changed significantly."
When it comes to the board partnering with Stevens, Crespo said he is cautiously optimistic. "It sounds like a great idea," he said, "but there are still plenty of logistical questions about how this is going to be funded and how it is going to work."
Carmelo G. Garcia
Garcia, 26, became the city's director of human services when Mayor David Roberts took office last summer. Now, he is running for election on the school board on Roberts' "Hoboken United for Education" ticket. The born-and-raised Hobokenite has two children who are currently enrolled in the Wallace Primary School.
Garcia is a graduate of Hoboken High School and Seton Hall University. He is the member and treasurer of the city's HOPES Head Start's Policy Council. He is also the current president of Hoboken's Puerto Rican Cultural Committee.
During his interview Thursday, one point he stressed repeatedly is the need to hold administrators and teachers accountable to parents and the city's taxpayers.
"Sixty percent of our residents' taxes go to our schools," said Garcia. "With only about 2,600 students and a $44 million budget, taxpayers and parents have the right to demand a top-notch education for Hoboken students. They have a right to demand accountability."
He added that being the city's director of human services would benefit the Board of Education. "It's a major advantage," he said. "I will be able to develop a bridge which I believe never exited before. There will be more communication and the opportunity to coordinate a variety of programs with the city."
According to Garcia, improving technology in the classrooms should be a priority. "We need to have a computer in every classroom," he said. "When I say we need accountability, this is what I'm talking about. They have for years promised that every classroom will have a computer, but they have not yet followed through."
Garcia also said that he supports the creation of new charter schools. "I totally believe in creating options when it comes to education," he said.
Part of creating options, he said, it to fully investigate what opportunities the Hoboken/ Stevens Partnership presents. "The mayor's idea to establish a partnership with Stevens and to create a model school is a phenomenal idea," he said, "that has the opportunity to greatly benefit our children."
Francis Rhodes Kearns
Kearns, 49, is running for the second time on David Roberts' ticket. The first time was in 2000 when he was just Councilman Roberts.
She has been the manager of Signore's Lounge since 1985. She has two children. One is currently enrolled at the Brandt Middle School and the other attends Hudson County Prep. She has served as president and is currently active in Brandt Parent Teacher Organization (PTO). She is also a member of Brandt's School Policy Management Team.
Kearns said that one area that needs improvement is the quality of communication between the board, parents and the community. "We need to reach out to parents and the community and tell them about some of the great programs that we do have," she said. "Right now, that communication is lacking."
Another issue that Kearns said is important is discipline and how suspensions are handled. "Instead of having students stay home when they are suspended, I suggest that we create space in one of the schools as a district-wide location for suspensions," she said. "This way, instead of them staying home watching daytime TV and wasting their learning time, they can spend a full day getting counseling and learning."
Kearns is also a strong advocate of reading programs in schools. One program in particular is called the "Accelerated Reader Program." In that program, students read books and are tested. They receive points for how well they do on those tests. Then at the end of the program they can purchase prizes with their points. "It's an incentive-based program that motivates students to read," she said.
She added that she is supportive thus far of the Hoboken Steven Partnership for Public Education. "What I have seen so far I have liked," she said. "As long as it does not exclude any Hoboken students, then I think it is wonderful idea."
Rose Marie Markle
Markle, 41, is a born-and-raised Hoboken resident who believes the Board of Education needs to communicate better with the district's parents. She is the mother of two school-aged children; one attends Hoboken High School and the other, Salvatore R. Calabro Primary School. She is running as an independent.
"I think we need more parent representation on the [Board of Education]," said the stay-home mother Tuesday. "We need to have more of a voice when it comes to the education of our children."
She said that sometimes the school board is not effective in informing parents of what is happening in the schools. She gave two examples of what she deemed was a lack in communication between parents and school administrators.
The first was the board's decision to move the city's 3-year-old students to Brandt Middle School. The move prompted a number of angry parents to voice their concerns at a recent school board meeting. According to Markle, the board should have been more diligent in getting the parents' opinion before making a decision on the matter.
The other example she gave was when the school overhauled its phone system at the beginning of March. The phone numbers to the all of the schools changed, but many of the parents were unaware of that, she said. Some parents became very concerned that they could not contact their children in case of an emergency. Markle said Tuesday that if the school board administration took the effort to communicate with parents, the entire situation could have been avoided.
An idea Markle has, if elected, is to look into hiring a nutritionist for the school district to possibly revamp the school's lunch program. She would also like to see the board bring back a "reading recovery" program that was discontinued. The program provided for one-on-one assistance for students who were having trouble reading. "Sometimes children need a little extra help," she said.
When it comes to the HSPPE, Markle is a harsh critic. "I don't think it's fair for all of the children of Hoboken," she said. She feared that the program might only help the city's best students, despite claims that the school will be inclusive and accessible to all Hoboken students. "It's not going to help all Hoboken students," she said. "It's only going to help a select few."
John Madigan
Madigan, 36, is a political newcomer to Hoboken and an independent running for a seat on the board. A born-and-raised resident, Madigan, who is currently going to school to become a certified computer technician, has two children who attend Salvatore R. Calabro Primary School.
Although this is the first time he is running for office, Madigan is not a new face to many Hoboken parents. He is the founder and director of the Calabro School Basketball league. The program, which is in its second year, began in 2000 as instructional clinic with more than 85 children taking part. This year the program blossomed into a full league with eight teams playing 11 weeks of basketball.
"Teaching basketball is a great way to keep these kids off the streets and show them what good sportsmanship is," said Madigan. "But in reality it doesn't matter if it's basketball, computers or art, as long as we get these students interested in learning something."
Madigan added that the main reason that he is running is because he is a parent. "I'm running for my children and for all of the children of Hoboken," he said. "I'm an independent thinker who is going to make sure that the taxpayers and children are looked after."
He added that it is imperative that the school follows through with its technology initiatives. "I think we are still lacking," said Madigan. "[The board] has made many promises about improving technology in schools. Now it is important that the school board is diligent and follows through."
Madigan also said that in the next three years, one issue that he would want to focus on is teacher hiring. Currently, the average Hoboken teacher has 26 years of experience. Madigan believes that in the next couple of years, there is going to be a substantial number of these older teachers retiring, meaning the hiring of new teachers is going to become a priority.
"It's going to be very important to me that we do a thorough search," Madigan said. "We can't just hire someone's sister or someone's friend. I want to be a part of seeing the resumes and overseeing exactly who is hired."
Madigan added that, if elected, he would also like to see the city's schools bolster their art and music programs.
On the topic of the Hoboken/Stevens Partnership, Madigan said that he is skeptical. "I want to see the final proposal before I make a decision," he said. "I want to make sure they are being honest and make sure that this isn't some deal to get Stevens some prime real estate on Hudson Street."
He added that it is also important to make sure that the program is truly all-inclusive and available to all Hoboken students.
John Raslowsky II
John Raslowsky II, 40, is running for the Hoboken Board of Education on Mayor Roberts' "Hoboken United for Education" ticket. He is currently employed as the principal at St. Peter's Prep in Jersey City. Raslowsky received an undergraduate degree from the University of Vermont and a masters in education from Harvard. He has three children, with the only school-aged child attending Steven Cooperative School in Hoboken.
"I bring an unique background with me," said Raslowsky Thursday morning. "It's a perspective that I think can be valuable to the Hoboken school board."
Of all the candidates interviewed, Raslowsky had the most positive take on the Hoboken/Steven Partnership for Public Education. "It's absolutely workable," he said about the initiative. "The most exciting part about it is that the topic of education has been put on the front burner. People are starting to think out of the box, and it's not just the school board and the handful of people who attend meetings. Non-educators and members of the community are talking about education and generating ideas."
Also, while several of the other candidates are concerned that the new school will leave some students behind, Raslowsky said that the HSPPE is a great opportunity to improve education for all students. "This program has the possibility of lifting everyone's pulley," he said. "If you are going to have a great new high school doing great things, it's going to create discussion in the other schools and give them a real opportunity to raise the bar and challenge all the district's children in all the district's schools."
Raslowsky said that there are several different areas that he wants to focus on if elected. One is to improve the district's communication between school administrators and parents as well as with members of the community.
Another area that he would like concentrate on is implementing programs that teach reading proficiency. "There has always an idea about education that says the most critically important years for learning are pre-k through fourth grade," he said. "A fourth grader that reads at or above their grade level can look forward to great things, but a fourth grader that is struggling with reading will be playing catch-up for the rest of their education. That's why we need to focus on programs that teach reading in the early years."
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