HTS BOE Gives Back to Taxpayers!!!

The Harding Township Board of Education completed its annual audit for the 2008-2009 school year. As a result of fiscal prudence during these economically challenging times, the District maintained an excess surplus of $146,066.51 from the general fund. This surplus will offset the tax levy for next year.

The Board of Education was extremely impressed with the results of last year’s budget election, 310-92 in favor of the proposed budget. More taxpayers voted yes than total votes in the last four years, yielding the largest turnout since 1998. The passing percentage was the highest margin in Harding since before 1995 and one of the highest in the state of New Jersey.

Hopefully this excess surplus to mitigate next year’s budget further illustrates our commitment to the Harding Township Community and demonstrates our fiscal diligence. I encourage you to share this information with your committee and the community at large. We will look for the community’s support again this April.

H1N1 Action Plan

Please take some time to read over the school's Action Plan for H1N1 (Click Here). I hosted a Stakeholder's Committee Forum on October 14, 2009. Members of the committee included Garry Annibal (Harding Township Health Administrator), Fred Valentino (All Clean – Night Custodial Services), Derek Gee (Peggnet – Technology Service), John Scoles (Cleaning Agent Supplier), Dee Klikier (Curriculum Director/Principal), Rita McArdle (School Nurse), Jim Minkewicz (Business Administrator), Joe Pitcher (Maintenance and Custodial Supervisor) and Christine Winow (A HTS Parent). Derek Gee will be posting a podcast with audio from the event this week.

Please feel free to provide any thoughts/concerns/feedback on the plan!

NJDOE = Maryland No Longer the Model

On Wednesday, October 28th at the NJSBA Convention, the Garden State Coalition hosted a session with Commissioner Lucille Davy. I asked the first question, inquiring about the NJDOE's comparison of Maryland and New Jersey public schools. Commissioner Davy indicated that the NJDOE is not using Maryland as a model for successful consolidation. I referenced her previous response at the NJASA Representative Assembly and mentioned that she was contradicting the Department's stance on successful comparisons. I cited New Jersey's NAEP scores compared to other states and asked why the Department was planning to restructure such a successful example, as indicated in former Governor's Corzine's campaign addresses. I reminded her of California's Proposition 13 and asked if the NJDOE used data to drive decisions... Furthermore, I asked her about her stance on forced consolidation and cited Joseph Cryan's response to my question. My concerns seemed to open a barrage of questions from my colleagues.

I will continue to keep you posted...