OLD BRIDGE – The Old Bridge School District Board of Education reorganized, with a focus on the challenges ahead.
Board member Jill Cali was nominated to serve as president at a reorganization meeting on Jan. 3, and board member Kelly Ellis-Foster was nominated to serve as vice president.
Cali thanked board members for their confidence in her to serve as president. Ellis-Foster said the board has a challenging year ahead, but if any team can do it, she said they can.
Board member Richard Dunn wished Cali and Ellis-Foster luck in their leadership roles.
“This coming year there will be trials and tribulations the Board of Education will be dealing with and hopefully we can work as a collective group to ensure the programs that we have afforded our children in the district,” he said.
With Gov. Phil Murphy’s revamp of the School Funding Formula, which was approved by the New Jersey Senate and the House of Representatives on July 21, Old Bridge Township Schools will receive an approximate $12 million reduction in state aid over the next seven years, from approximately $45 million to $33 million.
As the district puts together the 2019-20 school budget, Schools Superintendent David Cittadino said the district’s goal is to come out with the best case scenario and have the Old Bridge Township Schools continue to run efficiently.
Dunn said it is not going to be an easy task this year.
“I’m putting everyone on notice that this board is going to have a challenge and we will work collectively as a unit to find the best route possible and I’m looking forward to this board becoming one to preserve what is important in this town and that is our schools,” he said.
At the reorganization meeting, Dunn, Ellis-Foster and Salvatore DiPrima were sworn in as board members. In the November election, DiPrima and Dunn were elected to serve their third consecutive terms, and Ellis-Foster, who previously served on the board, was elected to serve her second term.
