I don’t recall getting a sample ballot in the mail, like I do for general elections. Sample ballots for Monmouth County school board elections can be found here.
Polling hours vary by municipality. All polls close at 9PM. In Atlantic Highlands the polls are open all day, from 7 AM through 9PM. In Highlands, the polls open at 2 PM, Middletown, 3PM, Fair Haven 4 PM.
In Wall Township, Red Bank polls open at 2 PM. In Neptune Township and Manalapan the polls open at 3 PM.
You can find the polling hours for your town on your sample ballot, which is posted on the County website, here.
RBR Students Win the Air Force Association’s CyberPatriot III National Championship
Photo credit, Red Bank Regional High School
Little Silver: A team of six students from Red Bank Regional High School’s Academy of Information Technology out-performed 11 other teams from across the nation to win first place April 2nd in the nation’s largest and most prestigious high school cyber defense competition.
The CyberPatriot III National Championship is co-sponsored by government, non-profit and commercial sources under the direction of the non-profit Air Force Association (AFA), whose mission is to promote an understanding of cyber defense and its importance to our national security.
The RBR team was the only team from the entire Northeast region of the United States to have qualified to the championship finals, which were held in Washington, D.C. during a two-day program.The winning RBR team—nicknamed Team Mantrap, after an industrial term in cyber security lingo—includes Chris Barry of Bradley Beach; Jared Katzman of Little Silver; Adam Cotenoff, Josh Eddy, Jack Kelleher, and Colin Mahns of Shrewsbury. As finalists in the competition, Team Mantrap had already beat approximately 174 other teams from across the country.
In addition to bringing home The President’s Trophy, each of the winning students received a $2000 college scholarship from Northrop Grumman, the main sponsor of the final competition. Five of the team members will graduate high school in June, and all intend to pursue careers in cyber security. As their RBR teacher and advisor Mandy Galante says, the CyberPatriot Championship opened many new doors to these students.
“It means scholarship monies, eligibility for Honors Scholar status at their universities, prospects for job internships, and most of all, networking with industry leaders. It means a future for my students where their talents will be recognized and nurtured so that they can join the ranks of cyber leaders of their generation,” says Mrs. Galante.
The first wave of that recognition hit immediately after the competition, when the winners were announced at a celebration banquet attended by corporate executives, defense contractors and government officials, all of whom were vying to speak with members of Team Mantrap. Included among the cyber industry experts was Dr. Vincent Cerf, one of the founders of the Internet, a guest speaker at the program’s symposium—and a quasi-deity to computer wonks around the world.
The RBR students are still ebullient from their victory, but not necessarily surprised that they won. “We worked well as a team, and spent many hours preparing for it,” explains Adam Cotenoff.“I knew from the way our guys were working and the points that were registered on the board that we were ahead.”
They nearly drove their advisor out of her mind, when they started packing up their notes ten minutes before the actual end of the competition. “It’s cool,” they said to her, when they saw the panic on her face. “We did fine.”
The competition took place over a five-hour stretch in a large room where each team was ensconced in its own makeshift section. A scoreboard listed each team’s progress as the challenge evolved, but the identity of the teams was kept anonymous, so no one knew which team was actually in the lead. Throughout the competition, most of the teams’ scores tracked closely together, except for the still-anonymous winning team, which maintained a clear distance ahead of the others. Team Mantrap didn’t know it, but it was actually way ahead.
Adam Cotenoff had discovered the CyberPatriot III Competition early in the school year and asked Mrs. Galante if it might be something they could look into. The elimination process began six months ago with 186 teams registered from around the United States. Applicants included public, private and high technology focused high schools. The three qualifying competitions took place at the teams’ own high schools during all-day weekend sessions. The schools’ computers were tied into the AFA server, which provided software for the competition and real-time scoring, as students successfully identified and eliminated cyber threats against their computers within a specified time-frame. The resulting twelve national finalists were invited to the final event, with all expenses paid by the AFA sponsors.
As Team Captain Jack Kelleher comments, “Originally, Team Mantrap got involved because it sounded really cool and because we would always rather do hands-on applications of the stuff we learn in textbooks. As time went on we got better and better, we started to think, ‘Hey we could win this thing!’ Just like a sports team, we reviewed our last game to find areas for improvement. We documented game plans, and we did drills over and over again.”
The students had also recently been interviewed by German Public Radio while they competed in another competition. The German radio reporter was interested in showcasing the school’s program since cyber security has become a national priority for all industrialized nations.
In addition to her students’ hard work and preparation, Mrs. Galante believes Team Mantrap had beneficial advantages. RBR offers a very unique computer curriculum that is not available in many other schools. Students take specific courses which lead to certification in computer networking and computer security. The latter is directly applicable to the CyberPatriot III competition. They also had the guidance and mentorship of Herb Kelsey, an RBR parent who, at one point in his career, was the head of cyber security for IBM.
Mr. Kelseycommented, “Five years ago the government set out to see how they could get our young people involved in an industry that was rapidly becoming a national security priority. This competition is an outgrowth of that concern.”
Mrs. Galante agreed that there was a deeper meaning to the CyberPatriot event.
She explains, “At one point during the symposium, I heard General Lord, CIO US Air Force, speak about identifying the young people who will hold the tip of the spear in cyber defense for our nation. These students are not just geeks, with left-brains perfectly developed to speak code and manipulate bits. These young men and women are the ones who when they see a challenge, they will rise to meet it. When presented with a problem, they will strive to solve it. And when they hear a call to duty, they will answer it. These are the young men and women who will hold that cyber spear to keep our systems resilient, reliable and robust.”
Governor Stresses Community Input and Gives Overview of Ongoing Process of Selecting a New Superintendent
Trenton, NJ – In a visit to Ann Street School this morning, Governor Chris Christie engaged in a conversation with students and members of Newark’s education community, reaffirmed his commitment to bringing fundamental reform to Newark Public Schools and underscored the importance of community involvement in reform efforts and the process of selecting a new superintendent.
“It has been 15 years since the State of New Jersey took over public schools in Newark with the hope of transforming the district and ending its failure of so many of our children. But a decade and a half later, with the exception of a few bright spots of progress, we have yet to achieve our goals of providing a quality education to every child. The work of changing Newark’s education system did not begin the day I came into office, but I believe we have brought this issue into sharper focus in this Administration with our education reform efforts and partnership with the City and community at large,” said Governor Christie. “As we endeavor to change the status quo, cooperation at every level – the State, the City’s leadership, Education Task Force, School Advisory Board and the whole community – will be critical to replicate the bright spots and successful models in this school district, and improve the public schools across this city. In partnership, I believe we will finally accomplish meaningful change and reform for the children of this city, and in areas across the state where opportunity is not being delivered.”
The Christie Administration has taken numerous, proactive steps to ensure that every opportunity for reform and progress is seized and that progress continues in Newark, even while the selection of a new superintendent is underway. Rochelle Hendricks, who recently served as Acting Commissioner of the Department of Education, has assumed responsibility for the Newark Public Schools during this transition period. Hendricks is a dedicated, accomplished education professional with the knowledge and background necessary to achieve progress during this interim period. She is working closely with interim-superintendent Deborah Terrell to ensure that the district’s most pressing challenges are met with solutions as soon as possible. Both are working closely with the educational and community leadership in Newark to deal with the serious challenges facing the district today, most specifically the budget gap and the shortage of quality schools.
Governor Christie also outlined the process being undertaken by the State, in cooperation with the Newark community, in the selection of a new superintendent for Newark Public Schools:
The next Superintendent of the Newark Public School system will send a strong signal to the community that Governor Christie and the Administration are serious about real reform and real results. As a result, the process for choosing the next superintendent is built on transparency, community involvement and real input from educators. The selection process, already underway, for finding a qualified, dedicated superintendent has been set out to be broad, thorough and staged to allow for plenty of community input along the way.
·The first stage began in January when Acting Commissioner Cerf solicited names of top candidates in conversations with national reform leaders and local community leaders.
·The second stage was to seek sound input and guidance from members of the community on critical education reform issues, ongoing and emergent challenges that will face the incoming superintendent, and the qualifications demanded of the next superintendent. This began the process of engaging a wide swath of people who live and work in the Newark community:
oThe School Advisory Board, headed by Shavar Jeffries, is the body elected by the people of Newark to represent them in the schools and a critical source of advice and counsel;
oMayor Cory Booker, who is providing valuable leadership as an advisor in the process, offering input and guidance into the reform challenges facing Newark schools, and lending his perspective in the superintendent search process;
oThe Education Task Force, a group of Newark community leaders who provide guidance around education policy and consist of leaders from Newark Public Schools, higher education, parents, the non-profit community, and the charter school community;
oVarious educational leaders, including principals, parent representatives and teachers; and
oLocal representatives, including members of the city council and the legislature.
Each one of these groups represents a different part of the City of Newark and its education and civic community. As such, through each stage of the process, they have provided and will continue to provide counsel on the needs of the Newark Public School System and the qualifications necessary for the next superintendent.
·The final stage of this process, which is now beginning and will continue over the coming weeks, will allow for each of these groups to meet face to face with prospective candidates.
oFinding the next superintendent of the Newark Public Schools can and must integrate a high level of community involvement and investment in the process. Bringing real change to education in the public schools begins and ends with the community; the community’s input will inform the recommendations ultimately made to Governor Christie for this vitally important decision.
At that point, after sufficient time has been spent on soliciting community input and feedback, listening and considering all of the insights and recommendations of the aforementioned groups, Governor Christie will meet with each of the final candidates prior to the Education Commissioner’s final selection being made in May, ensuring that the new superintendent is in place by the end of the school year.
Top-to-Bottom Reform Leads to Responsible Planning, Spending of Public Dollars
Trenton, NJ – Governor Chris Christie today announced a complete revamping of the Schools Development Authority construction program and the first-ever statewide prioritization of SDA school construction projects to bring accountability to the spending of hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars annually for school improvements and expansion. The new program embodies the fundamental reforms taken at the SDA since Governor Christie took office. The recommendations will be presented to the SDA Board of Directors in the coming weeks for their review and approval.
The new approach is the result of a comprehensive review conducted over a six-month period by an internal working group consisting of SDA and Department of Education officials and reflects a wholesale strategy shift from the SDA’s earlier 2008 Capital Plan. The changes reflect a commitment to the efficient and proper use of public funds, an objective prioritization of statewide educational needs and the advancement of sound design and construction principles. For the first time ever, the reforms will allow the Authority to responsibly advance each project in the most efficient, cost-conscious manner – unlike the wasteful, hands-off-the-steering-wheel approach of the prior program.
“We all know that the prior program was associated with the absolute worst kind of government waste, mismanagement and lack of supervision, where much was promised, too much was spent, but too little was returned,” Governor Christie said. “I could not responsibly or in good conscience let that history repeat itself at this agency. We will move forward smartly and deliberatively to deliver value to the school districts and to our taxpayers.”
“The completion of the Capital Plan Review marks a new day for school construction in New Jersey,” said CEO Marc Larkins. “With a statewide prioritization in place, new project delivery processes planned, and a full understanding of the SDA’s capacity, the Authority is poised to move forward with an efficient, responsible school construction program that will address the needs of our students and communities statewide.”
Highlights of the 2011 Plan include:
·A carefully considered, objectively prioritized Capital Program rather than merely a list of 52 projects
·An annual selection of projects to be undertaken – starting with 10 in 2011
·A strategic approach to standardization in school projects, allowing for design replication on multiple projects, resulting in estimated savings of nearly $4 million per project over less efficient prior project delivery methods
·Allocation of $100 million for the advancement of additional emergent projects in the SDA Districts
·A statewide Prioritization Plan to be reviewed annually, providing a framework for project advancement so that only those projects most needed and most efficient will proceed into construction
The new approach and reforms represent a shift away from design excess, costly change orders and mismanagement, and will allow the SDA to responsibly advance each project in the most efficient manner. The present review evaluated all projects using the same factors, where prior reviews showed a bias in favor of certain types of projects, including, for example, early childhood centers.
The comprehensive review resulted in the recommendation to advance the following 10 projects in 2011, representing a state investment of almost $584 million:
·Bridgeton – Cherry Street Elementary School
·Elizabeth – Academic Magnet High School
·Long Branch – Catrambone Elementary School
·Jersey City – PS 20 Elementary School
·Jersey City – Elementary School 3
·New Brunswick – A. Chester Redshaw Elementary School
·Newark – Oliver Street Elementary School
·Paterson – Marshall & Hazel Elementary School
·Paterson – PS Number 16 Elementary School
·West New York – Harry L. Bain Elementary School
The SDA review yielded a consistent and fair analysis of projects statewide with all districts and all projects rated for the same factors. For the first time, the SDA considered total project cost, cost per student and efficiency of construction. Using the same uniform process and selection criteria, the SDA will identify the next group of school construction projects for 2012.
Governor Christie directed a comprehensive review of the SDA early in his administration. In addition, the State Auditor heavily criticized the SDA’s 2008 Capital Plan in June 2010. Among the criticisms raised by the State Auditor was the requirement that every SDA District receive a project and that certain projects included in the 2008 Plan had never been properly evaluated.
Since Governor Christie vetoed a change order proposed by the SDA in January of 2010 and Larkins was named CEO in March of last year, the agency has seen sweeping reforms. The highlights of the reforms are improvements in handling change orders, with a renewed emphasis on protecting state resources, and a structural overhaul of the agency. The new change order process affords more Board oversight of agency operations, and the new organizational structure moves away from a departmental model to a “team-based” approach. The SDA has also reduced staffing by almost 20% and made other operational changes, reducing the organization’s budget by more than $4 million per year.
With the completion of the Capital Program and the organizational structure needed to support the program in place, the SDA will continue to implement strategies to execute projects more efficiently. Through the annual advancement framework, the Authority will promote design standardization leading to design replication on multiple projects. In addition, the SDA will continue to identify alternate methods of project delivery including design-build, which allows for overlapping of design and construction schedules leading to faster project delivery.
Beginning in March last year, with Larkins’ appointment as CEO, the SDA has undergone a sweeping reorganization. The new structure moves away from a departmental model for the delivery of school projects to a “team-based” approach. This structure provides for greater continuity, better communication and supervision throughout the life cycle of a project. In short, the Authority can now deliver projects more efficiently and with the strictest adherence to cost controls.
The Authority fully funds and manages new construction and modernization of school facilities projects in SDA Districts. Other SDA District projects for which the Authority is responsible are renovations and repairs deemed emergent by the DOE due to health and safety reasons.
The SDA also makes grants available to the 574 Regular Operating Districts (RODs) throughout New Jersey for projects approved by the DOE. These grants fund at least 40 percent of eligible project costs, with the remaining share coming from local communities, contingent on budget or voter approval. The SDA portfolio contains more than 1,000 active ROD grants, 388 of which have been advanced since May of 2010, and total more than $126 million.
The Asbury Park shuffle continues, and taxpayers and students are continuing to bear the brunt. As some districts struggle to hold the line on spending and improve achievement, the worst performing district in the county has again established itself as the highest spending.
This month, the Asbury Park school district outshone all the others in Monmouth County. First, it shuffled school principals. After all, Antonio Lewis, the twice-suspended former superintendent needs a job. So says the court system. And thus the middle school principal, Howard Mednick, who had, in the opinion of many, been making positive changes there, has been moved to the Thurgood Marshall Elementary School to make room for Mr. Lewis to head the middle school because it seems that settlements and pension are apparently not enough for this guy. Regardless of his suspensions and track record, Mr. Lewis has retained his tenure rights (God help me, tenure is a right? But that’s a whole other discussion) and needs to be placed somewhere. Somehow, working the system is not the lesson I would want my child to learn from her school principal. And that’s the least of it.
In most other districts, if a school board spends money, they need to raise money through property tax levies. Not in Asbury Park, where Abbott dollars flow freely. After all, Asbury Park once again spent more per student than any other district in Monmouth County, according the state’s annual school report card, released this week. Last year, Asbury Park spent an average of over $24,000 per student. The state average for a similar district was $13,833. So what did Asbury Park get for the extra $10,000? Not achievement.
For $24,000 on average per student, the Asbury Park school system managed to attain the lowest average SAT scores in Monmouth County, an average of 1101 out of a possible 2400 points. How can we allow this to go on, year after year? How many more students will fail to achieve and how many districts will go broke sending money out of their own towns to subsidize this failure?
One can’t help but recognize, after years of similar spending and achievement reviews, that throwing money at the problem has never made a dent in it. SPENDING IS NOT PROPORTIONAL TO SUCCESS.
In Red Bank, our teachers and administrators did not ask for a raise last year. They stayed under the four percent cap. They felt that pain of the taxpayer and did a good job of holding the line. This meant real sacrifice. Our middle school had to cancel athletic programs. Parents have jumped in to keep these programs going, increasing the level of community involvement and putting their time where our money used to be. Good for them. And yet these same taxpayers are sending dollars, through Abbott, to Asbury Park. And while our schools improve and parental involvement is on an upswing, Asbury Park continues to fall well below average.
Shame on all of the folks who still don’t get it – SPENDING IS NOT PROPORTIONAL TO SUCCESS. We can not buy our way out of failure and we can not afford to keep losing kids to a system that is a proven failure.
In this video, NJEA and AFT leaders throughout New Jersey first bash Governor Christie, which is nothing new.
As the video progresses, the “star” of the video, a male voice with a real or faked British accent posing as a teacher, confesses to “kiddy fiddling” and sexual touching of students to union officials who say they’ve dealt with such circumstances before and that they will back him up. One union official advises the fake teacher to accuse students of coming on to him before the kids complain.
This video is sure to go viral. NJEA is sure to spin.
While municipalities and school boards throughout New Jersey are struggling with budget cuts and layoffs of teachers, police and other public workers, over in Rumson they’re fighting over whether the spring crew program will be administered by the Rumson Recreation Department or by Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School, according to a post this morning at RedBankGreen.
People who participate in crew are very passionate about it.
Growing up in Bergenfield, we didn’t have a crew team. Not one run by the Recreation Department or by the High School. The nearest river was the Hackensack. I guess it didn’t occur to anyone to row there.
At Georgetown I had some friends on the crew team. My roommate would get up before dawn and run, so he told me, like really run hard, down to the Potomac where the team would row for a couple of hours and then run up and down the stairs from the Exorcist movie for a while. I knew it was time to get up for my first class when I smelled him come back into our room and heard his groaning.
My girlfriend’s roommate was a coxswain. She was less than five feet tall and weighed less than 100 lbs. She got up before dawn too, did the running thing, and then sat on the back of the boat yelling at all of the guys through a bullhorn who did what she said. She loved it.
They all seemed very passionate about it. I didn’t get it, but I was happy for them. But I digress.
Why would smart adults be having a turf war over the crew team? That’s tougher for me to get my head around than trying to understand what my friends were so passionate about 35 years ago.
I don’t know the ins and outs of the issues is this controversy. The RBG article indicates it has something to do with which government entity owns the equipment. Doesn’t it all belong to the taxpayers? Ahh, but which taxpayers, Rumson’s or Fair Haven’s? Muncipal or School Board?
I suppose this is an opportunity to teach the kids a lesson in politics and red tape. Maybe they already mastered commitment, teamwork and the other character building lessons of scholastic athletics.
I never heard of an award winning Recreation Department sports team. I never heard of a kid earning a college scholarship based upon his or her performance on a Recreation Department team. But like I said, I’m not an expert on crew. Maybe somone from Princeton or the Philadephia Main Line could clear it up for me.
In the meantime, I bet that if the powers that be in Rumson and Fair Haven focused on what is best for the kids that the politics and red tape could be solved quickly. Wouldn’t that be a great lesson.
(Trenton)— Declaring that parents must be given tools to force changes in failing schools, Senator Joe Kyrillos (R- Monmouth) today announced that he has submitted groundbreaking education reform legislation to the Senate for consideration. The Parent Empowerment and Choice Act, known informally as the “parent trigger”, allows parents in chronically underperforming school districts to compel a variety of reforms be undertaken via petition.
“Children in dramatically underperforming school districts, many of which are in the poorest neighborhoods in New Jersey, report to class every day as unwilling actors in a modern tragedy,” said Senator Kyrillos. “These children are not afforded the education they need to make a better life for themselves, and are placed at a substantial disadvantage to their peers by government and the education establishment. Parents are given little choice but to look on as their children are failed in the most formative years of their lives. It is a moral imperative and an economic imperative that we not allow this to continue in New Jersey.”
Under the proposal, parents of children in a low performing school may petition to force the following reform measures at a particular school: (1) reopening as a charter school, (2) changes in school administrators including but not limited to the principal, (3) establishment of a tuition voucher program. The board of education or State district superintendent must grant the change if a majority of parents in the school in question sign the petition.
“The Parent Empowerment and Choice Act allows parents to take matters into their own hands when the system will not change on its own,” continued Kyrillos. “It allows for swift intervention to give children the educational opportunity state law requires, but all too often is not provided. While the refrain from defenders of the status quo is always to declare that change is difficult and takes time, that excuse does nothing for the children advancing through a troubled system. We cannot make time stand still in districts with severe shortcomings. Either we provide options to parents to effect rapid and wide ranging reforms, or children will continue to progress through an educational system that is not meeting their needs.”
The legislation is modeled after a grassroots initiative that originated in the Los Angeles Unified School District and was adopted statewide by the California Legislature in January 2010. It now moves to the Senate for a first reading and referral to the Senate Education Committee. For more information on parent-based school reforms, visit www.parentrevolution.org.
The following are excerpts of his prepared remarks:
Excerpted Remarks of Governor Chris Christie
to the Foundation for Excellence in Education
November 30, 2010
…
I know this…I would not be standing here today if it wasn’t for the fact that my parents had the opportunity to send me to the public schools that gave me the best possible education I could have.
In each one of us, there is a certain God-given ability, but that God-given ability will only take us so far.
We need someone to nurture it and draw it out of us. We see this happening today in the best schools, in the best homes and with the best teachers and parents.
But it also has to happen each and every day in what are now the worst schools by nurturing children who do not come from the best homes. We have to draw out and empower parents. And we have to demand that the teachers, the principals and the administrators put these children first.
Not themselves.
If we do not do this…If we do not change what is happening in our mediocre and poor performing schools, then we are failing our children. And continuing to play the blame game and to make excuses only makes the adults feel better.
It does nothing for our children.
…
I’m going to fight as hard as I can against those who believe that what we’re fighting for is the status quo.
Because it is not acceptable to let a teacher who can’t teach stay in the classroom. It is not acceptable that a child who is neglected in one of our schools must just accept it because of their zip code. It is not acceptable that parents who can’t afford to send their children to a private school, or aren’t lucky enough to draw a good lottery number, have no choice but to be resigned to the fact that the difference between a successful future for their child and prison has already been predetermined.
No parent should ever have to stand up in that awful moment, with their child’s future on the line, and be powerless to change the outcome. It is the terrible complacency of those who defend the status quo, those who accept these choices and circumstances for our children, that we must stand against.
This is the fight. It is not a Democratic fight. It is not a Republican fight.
This is a fight where Republicans and Democrats can stand united. One where President Obama, Mayor Booker, Bill Gates and I can all stand in agreement.
It is a fight for our children.
And yes, sometimes the fight will be angry. Sometimes the fight will be loud. Sometimes the fight will draw tears. And still, sometimes the fight will require embrace.
There is nothing more important to the future of our country than this fight, because this is the fight that will define all of the other fights. This is why we all must have the stomach and the strength to take it on.
…
We cannot let this moment pass us by. We cannot let the enthusiasm and the intensity with which our leaders have been discussing education reform diminish.
…
Failure is not an option. Which is why I would rather lose an election and lose my career, rather than look back and realize that I did not do enough, or that I put myself and my career ahead of the future lives of the children of New Jersey.
