By 4 o’clock yesterday afternoon, five residents had filed their petition to run for the three (3) available seats on the Board Of Education (BOE).
The five candidates are:
- Rodric Bowman
- Christopher Miller
- Mayda Sanchez
- Sundjata Sekou
- Jeof Vita
Two candidates – Christopher Miller and Jeof Vita – are currently on the Board and are looking to run for another term.
Rodric Bowman, who participated in the school district’s Three-Year Strategic Plan earlier this year, stated, regarding his run, “I saw a void that needed to be filled and felt that I needed to step up. I am a proponent of public education, I see its value, and understand the benefits of quality education to both student and community.”
“I’m happy to hear there are more candidates than available seats. It shows interest in our school system,” said Chris Miller, current BOE President, “I look forward to work with whomever serves on the Board. As for me, I still have work to do. The job’s not done. A lot of things are set in motion that I’d like to see through in order to make RP the best it can be.”
Mayda Sanchez, when reached for comment, said, “I have two children in the school system and want to become more active in the direction of education for all Roselle Park students. It’s my first attempt to join the Board and I look forward to helping the community.”
“I want to help students reach their educational goals,” Sundjata Sekou commented, “For example, I want to look into getting the State of New Jersey to pay for lunches and healthy snacks for the Roselle Park Summer Camp.”
Jeof Vita, the only other candidate who is currently serving, said, “In my short term, I’ve worked hard at opening up the avenues of communication to help foster a true dialogue. I’ve made some good strides, but, as always, there’s more to do. I’d like to see what we can build together if we can engage the students more deeply and better understand their perspective on things.”
The Board Of Education election is on November 4, 2014.