The boards of Education for Highlands, Atlantic Highlands and Henry Hudson Regional School are meeting in a special session on Tuesday, Jan. 31 to discuss what is taking place in mediation on the question of regionalization.
Maybe the Public is Invited
The meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. and the boards will immediately go into executive session with their attorney to discuss the present status of the question. If the boards can come to an agreement on which way they want to proceed, they will come back into an open meeting and take action.
That was what School Superintendent Dr. Tara Beams said at last night’s meeting of the Henry Hudson Board of Education speaking for the board. In response to questions asked during the public portion of the meeting, Dr. Beams said the schools have not hired a mediator, just the two boroughs of Highlands and Atlantic Highlands have.
Who Can Speak on the Mediator?
Dr. Beams referred questions on the mediator being appointed to discuss cost sharing between the towns should regionalization take place and referred the question to the mayors and councils of both towns, saying they are the only ones who hired a mediator.
At a meeting of the Atlantic Highlands council last week, the borough administrator referred all questions to the boards of education.
“You’re here for the children”
Former teacher and former board member Tracy Abby-White chastised the board for their inaction on the regionalization question which has been ongoing for several years and urged them to endorse having the regionalization question go on the November ballot so the residents can decide. “You’re here for the children,” she told board members, “you are here to help them get to college, get on with a better life. ” She reminded board members that the borou9gh councils “don’t tell you how to run the schools.”
Yet, she continued, the regionalization question was put off last year waiting for a feasibility study promised in May, but not received until June. That study, she continued to point out, agreed with an earlier study commissioned by the boroughs, that regionalization with Sea Bright would be the correct way to go both for educational benefits and cost savings. Regardless of any action on Jan. 31, Abby-White said this “shouldn’t end without referendum.”
“Have a Referendum”
Charles Rooney, a former Councilman in Sea Bright who has been a strong advocate of regionalization among the three boroughs and has shown at several meetings why and how it would mean considerable additional income for the two other boroughs, showed board members a newspaper from 2017 when the regionalization question statewide was a major issue and he was urged to “get in on this early and have a referendum.” Rooney has working since that time to get the question on the ballot to let the voters decide what they want.
“That’s ridiculous”
Dr. Beams told Rooney last night it is the state Board of Education that is holding up the issues and “we can’t do anything without the state board of education approval to put this on the ballot.” She said legal action and questions before the state board have not yet been resolved and that is what is holding up action locally. Rooney countered there is no legal action before the state board, just a challenge from Oceanport that Sea Bright students cannot leave the Oceanport school district because there is no board of education in Sea Bright. “That’s ridiculous,” Rooney said, “and it would never stand up.”
Abby-White urged the school districts to leave the money issues at the municipal level and stick to their obligation to provide the education.
“It Doesn’t Matter what Tara Beams Thinks,”
When Ms Abby-White noted Dr. Beams appears to be against regionalization with Sea Bright, the superintendent went into a tirade saying several times “it doesn’t matter what Tara Beams thinks,” raising her voice and amplifying he mike. (see related story) She said any increase in funds from regionalization with Sea Bright would not go into the budget for education, but rather would go towards the taxes paid by the taxpayers for education.
Other Board Issues
Earlier in the meeting Business Administrator Janet Sherlock also told the board it does not appear the schools will be able to keep their tax increase under the 2 per cent allowed, due to increased costs for insurance. Worse, she said, it appears they will not be able to keep it less than two percent for two years, nor will they know before March what the tax increase would be.
During a lengthy explanation of the Start Strong Assessment results, Dr. Beams cited the areas where the results call for more attention to students primarily in the area of math, and the differences in programs between the two elementary schools in the regional district.
The Superintendent’s statistics also showed two students received one day suspensions each since December, one for insubordination to a staff member and one for being disruptive and disrespect. A third student received a four day suspension in December for confirmed substance abuse.
