Princeton voters returned only one of two incumbent Princeton Public Schools Board of Education members to the school board, choosing a former school board member and a newcomer to fill the other two seats on the board.
Incumbent school board member Deborah Bronfeld won her bid for re-election in the Nov. 5 general election, but incumbent school board member Gregory Stankiewicz lost his bid for another three-year term.
Bronfeld will be joined on the school board by former school board member Dafna Kendal and newcomer Susan Kanter. Kendal served from 2016 to 2018.
Kanter was the top vote-getter with 3,157 votes, followed by Kendal, who earned 2,948 votes and Bronfeld, who picked up 2,795 votes. Stankiewicz received 2,682 votes.
The results are unofficial and have not been certified by the Mercer County clerk.
Bronfeld has lived in Princeton for more than 20 years. Her sons are graduates of Princeton High School.
Bronfeld said she wants to make the schools better, but without burdening the taxpayers. She will focus on the school district budget, restoring its reserve account and working smarter with the money that the district has in place.
Bronfeld also wants to focus on improving students’ health, safety and welfare in areas such as vaping, smarter homework assignments, mental health, cheating, stress and life after high school.
Kanter has lived in Princeton for more than 20 years. Her children are graduates of Princeton High School.
Communication is key if the public is to have confidence in the school board’s decisions, Kanter said. Public confidence will be needed as the school board tackles issues of equity, achievement, budgets, facility planning and sustainability, she said.
The school board referendum process revealed to her the need for more communication, community partnerships, research and planning before proposing significant projects, she said.
Kendal, who has lived in Princeton for eight years, has two children enrolled in the Princeton Public Schools.
Kendal wants to focus on fiscal responsibility. She said the school board raised the property tax by the maximum amount allowed by law, and still had to cut staff by 3%. The result is increased class sizes.
Kendal said tough decisions need to be made, but not at the expense of the students and their education. Cuts that affect the classroom should be avoided.
