SCHOOL BOARD RACE 2008:

The "dumbing down" of public education in North Arlington!

A lack of educational leadership by Stringham & Marano leaves the school district looking foolish once again.

The uniform debate turns ugly and political for no apparent reason.

Who really runs North Arlington's schools?

It's an honest question in a dishonest atmosphere that surrounds public education here in the borough.  It's getting embarrassing as the "so called" leadership in the district tries to be all things to all people!

This week, the North Arlington Board of Education had to cut short a public discussion based on the issue of implementing school uniforms at the lower grade levels. Long considered a positive and constructive idea universally by educational leaders everywhere, even former President Bill Clinton touted the idea when he initially sought the presidency in 1992.

The board president is George McDermott, a borough police dispatcher and former candidate for council in 2004 & 2005. He was elected to the school board without opposition in 2006 and seemingly wants to fix the state of education in the borough.  A district short on educational accomplishment and long on excuses, public schools have been consistent in mediocrity and underachieving results.

Mr. McDermott seemed to go it alone as the board's educational and financial leadership sat in virtual silence as parents organized by a few school employees who took pot shots instead of seeking a reasonable dialogue on an important issue like reforming the district's dress code!

Despite a veteran instructional personnel where few leave and most stay through retirement, the district has few, if any relevant educational accomplishments it can point to while increasing taxes year in and year out!

This year's 6.6% school tax increase will be a bit easier to digest since the municipality isn't raising taxes at all. While North Arlington is receiving record infusions of state aid, nothing seems to change and taxes continue to climb! Instead of asking why Dr. Stringham and Mrs. Marano saw a need to seek educational CAP waivers that restrain unnecessary spending, a foolish debate about uniforms is dominating a race where the candidates themselves seem to have little to say!

This year, a small yet vocal group of parents led by two district employees oppose the pilot uniform policy. Short on facts and wild in rhetoric, one uniform hater commented in The Leader Newspapers, "let's just dye all of their hair blonde, give them blue contacts, and we can all be one little Aryan nation."

Comparing a uniform dress code proposal to the Hitler Youth Movement of Nazi Germany is despicable and has no place in an honest debate!

Just who in North Arlington would agree with such an outrageous and false premise?

Apparently the individual who made this ridiculous statement is an employee of the North Arlington school district!  Is this individual suggesting that anyone who wears a uniform is somehow militaristic or extreme? I'm sure our police force and firefighters would disagree with such an outrageous characterization! How about the football team? They wear uniforms.

Should we eliminate any sport that wears a uniform in the name of individual freedom?

Is this kind of extreme rhetoric helpful to anyone?

As board members left the chaos created by opponents of the uniform proposal, this same person yelled out, "How are we going to be able to vote on a budget and candidates when you didn't answer our questions?"

Is this person suggesting a "no" vote on the budget just to make a cheap political point?

Have we not heard for decades the horror and unthinkable reality of a failed school budget?

And what about the issue of cost?

Just how much would it cost in a $21M budget to purchase uniform shirts and blouses?

Are these people ready to vote no on what can be regarded as a $10,000 item in a $21M spending package? That's the equivalent of asking for a 10 cent reduction in spending in a $20,000 family budget!

Can this debate trickle any lower?

If we want to have an honest debate about spending and revenue, let's examine how much in raises, stipends and longevity payments each school employee is receiving year over year. How about we debate the cost of "free" health benefits and pensions courtesy of North Arlington homeowners?

How many NA homeowners will receive free health benefits and pensions at retirement?

Public meetings of the Board of Education are not the proper venue for political debates. They're public meetings paid for by tax dollars to conduct the business of the school district. Apparently all four candidates on the ballot were in attendance.  Again, this wasn't a political debate. It's a public meeting dealing with the business of the school board.

If someone wanted a reason to criticize our local schools, they should have attended this farce.

How any educator or parent would oppose a $20.5M school budget because several thousand dollars was dedicated to some tee shirts is beyond any rationale comprehension. Based on comparisons made by these people, one has to wonder why Dr. Stringham or Mrs. Marano have failed to make a comprehensive presentation to the board or the public on the merits of school uniforms?

Why haven't they done their job?

Have any vendors been contacted? Have bids or a bid process been implemented? Has any uniform vendor made a pitch for the district's business? Why would Stringham and Marano do so little to prepare the board to make the case for this uniform proposal that has many positive merits?

The North Arlington voter and homeowner needs to engage the status of public education and those elected to govern the school district.

Those appointed to operate and manage the district seem to care less about public opinion, cost or educational results. Instead, the district continues down this failed path of mediocrity and educational status quo while taxpayers flip the bill!

You have a leadership in place making well over $150,000 each respectively. They are in fact the highest paid public employees in North Arlington!

For these high salaries and generous benefits, what are we getting in return in terms of good schools and sound public policy? Those who serve on the board are volunteers who receive no compensation for service. Dr. Stringham and Mrs. Marano are paid handsomely for their services. It's time they be held accountable for the status of public education and the circus that took place Monday evening!

The election come April 15th will be very interesting.

You have incumbent Trustee Karen Palatella who has served nine years. It's hard to figure out what she's done in that near decade of service other than raise taxes. The same can be said of former NAHS principal and retired schools superintendent Anthony Blanco, who like Palatella routinely endorsed fat school budgets that yielded little in tangible results. Blanco probably hired half the employees of the district, how can he possibly be objective at the collective bargaining table? Mr. Blanco worked with Dr. Stringham and supported him through the ranks. How can anyone believe he'll be able to monitor rising educational costs that threaten every taxpayer's pocketbook?

How does Blanco objectively review Dr. Stringham when they've enjoyed a long relationship as professional colleagues?

In Mrs. Palatella and Mr. Blanco, you have two candidate for higher taxes and spending. You have two candidates who in our opinion based on their track record give away the store to teachers at the bargaining table while doing nothing to increase student achievement. Do they support school uniforms? Doesn't Mr. Blanco present a "conflict-of-interest" to sit on the school board when it comes to collective bargaining and reviewing promotions for employees he recommended during his tenure as principal and superintendent?

School uniforms should be the last issue our schools should be debating.

How about higher educational achievement in the form of SAT scores and a higher degree of academic excellence? How about a plan to upgrade curriculum and technology? How about a facilities plan that the voters will embrace and support at the polls?

The tough issues are ignored and the debate has denigrated while students suffer. 

Our schools are in dire straits and the time for serious people to serve as serious leaders is in order.

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