Four candidates, including two incumbent school board members, turned in nominating petitions to run for three open seats on the East Windsor Regional School District Board of Education by the July 31 deadline.
Two of the three open seats are set aside for East Windsor Township residents and one seat is earmarked for a Hightstown Borough resident. There are nine seats on the school board – seven for East Windsor residents and two for Hightstown residents.
Incumbent school board member Jeanne Bourjolly and challengers Paula Calia and Karen Salter turned in petitions to run for two seats set aside for East Windsor Township residents on the school board.
Incumbent school board member Michael Weeks is running unopposed for the seat earmarked for Hightstown Borough residents.
Bourjolly is seeking her second term on the school board. She was appointed to fill an unexpired term in January 2020 and won a full term in November 2020. She is running on the “Education Is First” ticket.
Bourjolly has one son who attends the Grace Norton Rogers Elementary School.
Bourjolly is seeking re-election because she wants to be “part of bridging the gap between the community and the school district.”
“If I am re-elected, I will continue to bring the same excitement and eagerness for improving our school district as a whole,” she said, adding she would like to continue to serve on the Curriculum Committee and the Wellness Committee.
“I chose to be part of these committees because they impact not only the education of all students and professional development of our staff, but also the mental health of both our students and staff.
“It is important to ensure that all students have a great learning environment and that the staff believes they are valued, respected and appreciated,” Bourjolly added.
Calia and Salter are running as a slate on the “We Care” ticket.
Calia has two children who have attended the East Windsor Regional School District since kindergarten. Her son graduated from Hightstown High School in 2021 and her daughter will be a freshman at the high school in September.
Calia said she decided to run for the school board for two reasons – observing the differences in the experiences her son had in the district as compared to what her daughter is experiencing, and the June 12 school board meeting where the teachers shared their frustrations with the current environment.
“I realized then that if I want change, voicing my concerns to the administration is not enough. I need to be in a position to effect the change that the district’s parents, students and teachers want and deserve,” she said.
Calia expressed frustration with the amount of state-mandated benchmark testing, but with no feedback to students. She said she is worried that declining test scores will impact property values and Hightstown High School’s profile for college admissions.
She is also concerned about violence in the schools.
“I want to emphasize that I am hopeful. We have a diverse community, high-quality teachers, expansive course offerings and strong extra-curricular activities,” she said.
Calia said she would address the issues, using her experiences in the various corporate positions that she has held in the pharmaceutical, banking and insurance industries and education.
She said she knows how to work with diverse groups to bring change, and how to measure the effectiveness of how policies are implemented and enforced.
Salter has three children. One child graduated from Hightstown High School two years ago. Her two younger children are a freshman and a junior at the high school.
Salter said she was motivated to run for the school board because she has observed a drastic change in the past few years. There has been an increase in district testing and benchmarks, yet test scores are plummeting, she said.
“This greatly affects our students’ learning, our high school ranking in regards to competitiveness in college applications, and our taxpayers’ property values,” Salter said.
Parents have voiced concerns about the lack of communication by the district, the lack of transparency by the administration and safety in the schools, she said.
Salter said she has listened to teachers and support staff speak at school board meetings, describing the work environment as toxic. They deserve better, she said.
“I am passionate about education and the well-being of our students and educators. For that reason, I am running for the school board,” Salter said. She is a former elementary school teacher.
She said that if elected, she will listen to students and parents and be their voice on the school board. She said she will research and discuss current policies, plus future policies as they are brought to the school board.
Weeks, who is the Hightstown Borough representative on the regional school board, is running unopposed for re-election.
Weeks has one child who attends the Grace Norton Rogers Elementary School and another child who attends the Melvin H. Kreps Middle School.
Weeks said he has learned a great deal about the work that it takes to run a school district during his first term. Managing through change and adversity is about showing up, doing the work and listening to stakeholders, he said.
He said he is active in community groups – even if it is only as a listener – and that he strives to bring the concerns that he sees to the school board and administration when necessary.
“My first term was a time to learn what it takes to be effective. My next term will be about ensuring our school board is able to proactively take action to keep the district on track and providing the absolute best education to our students,” Weeks said.
