January 27, 2007. At the January meeting of the Kearny Board of Education, a statement was read outlining the board’s policy on separation of church and state and outlining how the board will handle such issues in the future. At the same meeting, the Board announced that it was moving to adopt an audio recording policy. To date, the Board has not published either policy to its website. It was announced at the Board meeting that the "separation of church and state" policy was sent to various media outlets but none of the local press have published the entire policy. It is not clear whether the proposed audio recording policy is still being drafted or if it has been finalized awaiting a vote by the Board.
At the January meeting, David Paszkiewicz supporters outnumbered the Matthew LaClair supporters. Several speakers spoke passionately about David Paszkiewicz with statements to the effect that he was a great teacher, a role model for children and young adults, and a Christian pastor who is passionate about his faith. Several of the speakers stated that David Paszkiewicz was being "persecuted"
February 19, 2007. The Kearny Board of Education will meet tomorrow in its regular monthly meeting. A press conference was held to announce the filing of a Tort Claim Notice to the Board that a lawsuit might be filed in the future. (click here for audio recording courtesy of the Observer) The President of the Kearny Board of Education, Bernadette MacDonald, reacted on behalf of the board stating in part that "As a result of this threaten lawsuit, it is unfortunate that public dollars will be spent in defending our school district when this matter is already being addressed through dialogue and action." (click here for complete press release)
On January 17, 2007, KOTW suggested that the Board not pass a no recording policy on the heals of an apparent violation of the separation of church and state by teacher David Paszkiewicz. Little did we know that the Board had passed the policy at its January meeting apparently after most if not all of the public had left.
April 12, 2007. KOTW's Discussion Board was temporarily unavailable as the Board was switched to an improved server.
KOTW is now back online.
April 17, 2007. The Kearny Board of Education election will be held today. On the ballot are six candidates seeking to fill three seats:
1A: Barbara Ann Banach
2A: Alan R. Doffont
3A: Bernadette McDonald
4A: John J. Campbell
5A: Michael Cicchino
6A: Joseph Weber
The Observer newspaper published candidate profiles which are available online at: candidate profiles.
In addition, voters can vote on a Public Question related to approving the proposed school budget: "Public Question #1. General Fund- Regular. Resolved, that there should be raised for the General Fund $43,537,336.00 for the ensuing School Year (2007-2008)."
Traditionally there is a low voter turnout for the school board election. In past years, elections have been decided by a single vote. So, every vote does count. The polls are open from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m. If you did not receive a sample ballot, you vote at your regular voting location.
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