Mat-Ab candidates list key issues in board race
BY TOM CAIAZZA
Staff Writer
Aberdeen
ABERDEEN - This year's candidates for the Matawan-Aberdeen Board of Education are looking to make finance and community involvement the core issues in the April 18 election.
Michael Vail, 37, is looking to unseat incumbents John Barbato, 50, and Patricia Demarest, 42, for spots on the Board of Education. Gerald Donaghue, of Matawan, is running unopposed.
John Barbato
Barbato has sat on the board for 14 years and said that he has been around long enough to know that the board must act as one unit and not have individual goals.
"Collectively we need to set those objectives," Barbato said. "Once we agree on these goals, we all need to be proponents of them."
He said that the board's main priority should be providing academic opportunity for the students, and the board, and the community should be proud of the results.
Barbato said that by changing around the schedule at Matawan Avenue Middle School, the district is able to provide more academically enriching programs without added expense to the taxpayer. He also cited adding additional enrichment and basic skills classes at the elementary schools among the board's achievements.
Barbato said he is above all most proud of the results new Principal Michael D'Anna has had on the high school.
"He set the tone for the direction of that high school," Barbato said. "The community is reacting so positively."
Community support is very important to Barbato.
"Parents need to feel their children are sage and in an environment conducive for learning," Barbato said.
On the whole, Barbato said that communication between the parents and the board is essential, and that the board should act as liaison between the administration and the public, saying that it "can always be done better."
"Our goal should always be as an extension of the community," Barbato said.
Being an "extension of the community" also means keeping tabs of the finances. Barbato said that means looking at spending in the district and dealing with the state.
"We should always be cognizant of how much it will cost," Barbato said in regards to budgeting. But he said that the state, which he and Donaghue petitioned years earlier for more funding, must find a better way to help districts like Matawan-Aberdeen.
"It has always been a bone of contention," Barbato said. "Something has to be done at the state to rectify it."
Patricia Demarest
Demarest is seeking her second term on the board and said that her main concern is the way the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act has affected students most at risk of failure.
She said that she would like to fine tune some of the new programs in order to make sure that those students who are not doing as well as others are given better opportunity to excel. She said that NCLB focuses on the total number of students and not enough on those on the bottom tier of success.
Demarest also wants to promote greater levels of communication between the school and the parents. She suggested organizing workshops and more hands-on interaction between parents and students in school, such as parents coming into the classroom not just to observe their children but take part in their education.
It is all in an attempt to make education more of a priority in the home despite parent's busy lives.
"Life is busy," Demarest said. "If you don't stop and take a breath, time goes by and nothing gets done."
Demarest would also continue to make district finances a priority. She would like to see programs that create "positive cash flow," such as the privatizing of the cafeteria food that occurred recently. That move allowed enough money to be saved that the district purchased new cafeteria tables.
Demarest said that some of the new programs in the budget, such as the alternative school that is being proposed, would fall under positive cash flow because it allows other districts to pay for this service and save money for taxpayers because it is being handled in-house.
Demarest believes the board should put the hammer to the nail and get things done.
"People should stop complaining and put in programs that meet our programming needs and create cash flow," she said.
Demarest also has a plan to boost math skills by putting basic skills teachers into the regular classrooms to help students on a need-by-need basis instead of taking kids out of regular classes when they may only sometimes need basic skills. She feels that would be a way to allow basic-skills children the ability to catch up with the rest of the class.
Most of all, Demarest wants to create a climate conducive for education.
"Education is not like painting a house, where the next day, it looks beautiful," Demarest said. "It takes time for [programs] to bloom. I want to be there to fine tune them, and celebrate when we see the results."
Gerald Donaghue
Donaghue is running unopposed for his fourth term to fill one seat from the Matawan delegation to the board. His main concern is bringing back the human element into the school district and fostering it in students.
"I want to get kids more involved in the community," Donaghue said. "It will build up the kids' self-esteem, doing things for other people, if we can implement the human element a little more."
Donaghue said that outside elements have affected them more than previous generations citing security and a lack of state aid as large issues that affect every student across the board. As the chairman of the finance committee for his entire tenure on the board, Donaghue said that security measures in the schools are important as well.
He said that the district replaced old video cameras with new ones, increased outdoor lighting in parking lots and locked doors during school hours, all because the safety of the children is paramount.
"You don't want to fall asleep on anything," Donaghue said. "It's like drills - if you keep doing them every day, it becomes habit."
Donaghue wants kids to be able to be kids and make mistakes so that they learn from them.
"We have to remember we are dealing with kids and they are going to mess up," Donaghue said of the school's zero-tolerance policy. He said that he is not against it but feels that it does not always do the students justice.
"I just want to give the kids a chance," he said.
The other big issue is state aid, which has remained flat for several years. Donaghue feels that the state aid program, which was reconfigured in the early 1990s, made it harder for middle-income districts like Matawan-Aberdeen to keep up.
Donaghue said that when the state aid was changed, they began issuing money based on the affluence of particular ZIP codes. That would put the Matawan-Aberdeen District in the same financial bracket as more affluent towns like Lake Ridge and Cheesequake. Neither town pays into Matawan-Aberdeen, yet the state aid is the same.
"From jump street I think we got a raw deal," Donaghue said.
Donaghue said that the Abbott ruling hurt middle-income districts, essentially making state aid black and white. He would like the state to be more even.
"I don't see the consistency from the state," Donaghue said.
Michael Vail
Vail has two children in the district and is running for the first time for the school board.
Vail said that he would like to use his finance background to help create a more cost-effective budget, focusing on creative ways to save money. He said that he was not happy with the way the budget is put together, and feels that having someone on the board with a finance background would be an asset the board currently lacks.
Vail said he understood much of the budget is salary and benefits increases, but in terms of the discretionary spending, he feels the board can do more with less.
"I am not so sure how creative they are being in saving money," Vail said, adding that Aberdeen in particular is "a terribly expensive place to live."
If elected, Vail said that he would also like to curb poor academic performance early and fix it. This would mean a different approach of "being proactive in identifying weakness in academic performances earlier," he said.
Vail would also like to find ways to get the community more involved in the education of the students.
"We need to do a better job of enrolling the community in the process," Vail said.
In regards to the reason people are not involved, he said "I don't know if it is general apathy or helplessness."
The Board of Education elections will be held on April 18. Polls open at 1 p.m. and close at 9 p.m.
BY TOM CAIAZZA
Staff Writer
Aberdeen
ABERDEEN - This year's candidates for the Matawan-Aberdeen Board of Education are looking to make finance and community involvement the core issues in the April 18 election.
Michael Vail, 37, is looking to unseat incumbents John Barbato, 50, and Patricia Demarest, 42, for spots on the Board of Education. Gerald Donaghue, of Matawan, is running unopposed.
John Barbato
Barbato has sat on the board for 14 years and said that he has been around long enough to know that the board must act as one unit and not have individual goals.
"Collectively we need to set those objectives," Barbato said. "Once we agree on these goals, we all need to be proponents of them."
He said that the board's main priority should be providing academic opportunity for the students, and the board, and the community should be proud of the results.
Barbato said that by changing around the schedule at Matawan Avenue Middle School, the district is able to provide more academically enriching programs without added expense to the taxpayer. He also cited adding additional enrichment and basic skills classes at the elementary schools among the board's achievements.
Barbato said he is above all most proud of the results new Principal Michael D'Anna has had on the high school.
"He set the tone for the direction of that high school," Barbato said. "The community is reacting so positively."
Community support is very important to Barbato.
"Parents need to feel their children are sage and in an environment conducive for learning," Barbato said.
On the whole, Barbato said that communication between the parents and the board is essential, and that the board should act as liaison between the administration and the public, saying that it "can always be done better."
"Our goal should always be as an extension of the community," Barbato said.
Being an "extension of the community" also means keeping tabs of the finances. Barbato said that means looking at spending in the district and dealing with the state.
"We should always be cognizant of how much it will cost," Barbato said in regards to budgeting. But he said that the state, which he and Donaghue petitioned years earlier for more funding, must find a better way to help districts like Matawan-Aberdeen.
"It has always been a bone of contention," Barbato said. "Something has to be done at the state to rectify it."
Patricia Demarest
Demarest is seeking her second term on the board and said that her main concern is the way the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act has affected students most at risk of failure.
She said that she would like to fine tune some of the new programs in order to make sure that those students who are not doing as well as others are given better opportunity to excel. She said that NCLB focuses on the total number of students and not enough on those on the bottom tier of success.
Demarest also wants to promote greater levels of communication between the school and the parents. She suggested organizing workshops and more hands-on interaction between parents and students in school, such as parents coming into the classroom not just to observe their children but take part in their education.
It is all in an attempt to make education more of a priority in the home despite parent's busy lives.
"Life is busy," Demarest said. "If you don't stop and take a breath, time goes by and nothing gets done."
Demarest would also continue to make district finances a priority. She would like to see programs that create "positive cash flow," such as the privatizing of the cafeteria food that occurred recently. That move allowed enough money to be saved that the district purchased new cafeteria tables.
Demarest said that some of the new programs in the budget, such as the alternative school that is being proposed, would fall under positive cash flow because it allows other districts to pay for this service and save money for taxpayers because it is being handled in-house.
Demarest believes the board should put the hammer to the nail and get things done.
"People should stop complaining and put in programs that meet our programming needs and create cash flow," she said.
Demarest also has a plan to boost math skills by putting basic skills teachers into the regular classrooms to help students on a need-by-need basis instead of taking kids out of regular classes when they may only sometimes need basic skills. She feels that would be a way to allow basic-skills children the ability to catch up with the rest of the class.
Most of all, Demarest wants to create a climate conducive for education.
"Education is not like painting a house, where the next day, it looks beautiful," Demarest said. "It takes time for [programs] to bloom. I want to be there to fine tune them, and celebrate when we see the results."
Gerald Donaghue
Donaghue is running unopposed for his fourth term to fill one seat from the Matawan delegation to the board. His main concern is bringing back the human element into the school district and fostering it in students.
"I want to get kids more involved in the community," Donaghue said. "It will build up the kids' self-esteem, doing things for other people, if we can implement the human element a little more."
Donaghue said that outside elements have affected them more than previous generations citing security and a lack of state aid as large issues that affect every student across the board. As the chairman of the finance committee for his entire tenure on the board, Donaghue said that security measures in the schools are important as well.
He said that the district replaced old video cameras with new ones, increased outdoor lighting in parking lots and locked doors during school hours, all because the safety of the children is paramount.
"You don't want to fall asleep on anything," Donaghue said. "It's like drills - if you keep doing them every day, it becomes habit."
Donaghue wants kids to be able to be kids and make mistakes so that they learn from them.
"We have to remember we are dealing with kids and they are going to mess up," Donaghue said of the school's zero-tolerance policy. He said that he is not against it but feels that it does not always do the students justice.
"I just want to give the kids a chance," he said.
The other big issue is state aid, which has remained flat for several years. Donaghue feels that the state aid program, which was reconfigured in the early 1990s, made it harder for middle-income districts like Matawan-Aberdeen to keep up.
Donaghue said that when the state aid was changed, they began issuing money based on the affluence of particular ZIP codes. That would put the Matawan-Aberdeen District in the same financial bracket as more affluent towns like Lake Ridge and Cheesequake. Neither town pays into Matawan-Aberdeen, yet the state aid is the same.
"From jump street I think we got a raw deal," Donaghue said.
Donaghue said that the Abbott ruling hurt middle-income districts, essentially making state aid black and white. He would like the state to be more even.
"I don't see the consistency from the state," Donaghue said.
Michael Vail
Vail has two children in the district and is running for the first time for the school board.
Vail said that he would like to use his finance background to help create a more cost-effective budget, focusing on creative ways to save money. He said that he was not happy with the way the budget is put together, and feels that having someone on the board with a finance background would be an asset the board currently lacks.
Vail said he understood much of the budget is salary and benefits increases, but in terms of the discretionary spending, he feels the board can do more with less.
"I am not so sure how creative they are being in saving money," Vail said, adding that Aberdeen in particular is "a terribly expensive place to live."
If elected, Vail said that he would also like to curb poor academic performance early and fix it. This would mean a different approach of "being proactive in identifying weakness in academic performances earlier," he said.
Vail would also like to find ways to get the community more involved in the education of the students.
"We need to do a better job of enrolling the community in the process," Vail said.
In regards to the reason people are not involved, he said "I don't know if it is general apathy or helplessness."
The Board of Education elections will be held on April 18. Polls open at 1 p.m. and close at 9 p.m.
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