It was a bittersweet moment for Lisa Wolff and Leigh Ann Peterson at the Hopewell Valley Regional School District Board of Education’s final meeting of the year.
That’s because the Dec. 10 meeting marked the final one for the two board members, whose terms are ending. Neither Peterson or Wolff sought re-election in November.
“This is a big loss for us as a district,” Superintendent of Schools Thomas Smith said.
He noted it was the last meeting for Peterson and Wolff, who have served 10 years and nine years, respectively.
Peterson was appointed to fill an unexpired term on the board in 2008 and then was re-elected to three three-year terms. Wolff served three three-year terms.
Peterson, who served several stints as vice president, is the only board member left from the group that hired him 10 years ago, Smith said.
Smith praised Peterson for her business acumen and for the guidance she provided to him as a new superintendent. She also reminded district administrators that many parents work, which had to be factored into scheduling meetings and other events, he said.
“I really think Leigh is leaving the district in a better place than she found it and we are all better because of it,” Smith said.
Turning to Wolff, who served six years as president and one year as vice president, Smith said he began work as superintendent just as Wolff was beginning her first term on the board.
“When we remember someone like Lisa Wolff, it’s because she cares,” Smith said, adding that Wolff’s passion for making the school district better is evident in everything she has done. She helped to organize the school board, make it function and to engage the members in discussion, he said.
Wolff changed the course of the district and laid an excellent foundation for the future, Smith said. Under her leadership, input and suggestions from the community were encouraged and sometimes implemented, he said.
“On a personal note, I consider Lisa Wolff to be a friend. We laughed, we cried, we shared and we were quoted, and misquoted, by the media, but what was always evident was her support of me and the district,” Smith said.
Hopewell Township Mayor Kevin Kuchinski, who is the president of the Hopewell Valley Education Foundation, thanked Peterson and Wolff for their service.
“One thing I think is a tribute to what the board and Lisa have done is a couple of years ago, Lisa said she would like to have me and Township Administrator Paul Pogorzelski join her, Tom Smith and Bob Colavita (the school district’s business administrator) down at a state board meeting in Trenton where all statewide education groups get together,” Kuchinski said.
When he asked Wolff about the topic she wanted them to speak to, she replied that she wanted them to talk about the strong partnership between the regional school district and Hopewell Borough, Hopewell Township and Pennington.
Kuchinski said he was surprised, because he assumed all towns and school districts had a good working relationship. Wolff assured him that was not the case and that what the school district and the three towns had achieved was very special.
“The leadership was have had on the school board, the leadership we have had in the schools and the leadership we have had with Dr. Smith coming on, thank you, Lisa Wolff, on behalf of all of us,” Kuchinski said.
Deputy Mayor Julie Blake, who is a long-time friend of Wolff’s, said that speaking as a friend and a Township Committee member, “it is sad beyond belief that you’re not here (on the board). That’s how much I appreciate your service.”
Wolff also received praise from New Jersey School Boards Association representative Ray Pinney, who presented her with a plaque. He pointed out that her work “has gone beyond this school board table,” as she had advocated for school districts and students at the state level.
In a short video played at the meeting, New Jersey Commissioner of Education Lamont Repollet congratulated Wolff for her service and said he was sure she had done a wonderful job.
