School Board

The Board of Education on Jan. 7 voted to reduce the number of public meetings it holds in 2016, a move the school board president said  would streamline the decision-making process and allow staff to focus on things other than meetings. But one board member objected to the change, saying it may not allow for thorough discussions of policy issues. Starting …

The Board of Education voted to retain its top leadership, and the three winners in the November election were sworn in to their seats at the Jan. 7 reorganization meeting. Included in the swearing in was newest board member Laurie Merris, who won the seat vacated by former board member Betty Whalen. Also sworn in were returning board members Margaret …

The 2014-2015 school year violence and vandalism report contained a mixed bag of results. On the one hand, reported violence, weapon and drug infractions and harassment, intimidation and bullying by students decreased in the district as a whole. But the percentage of students suspended increased in six of the district’s nine schools, and incidents of vandalism rose slightly from the …

Two incumbents and a newcomer won election to the Board of Education in the Nov. 3 election. Board members Richard Seamon and Margaret Steele and first-time member Laurie Merris will start their new terms in January 2016. Seamon was appointed to fill the unexpired term of former member Richard Arline when he left the state. Seamon is a former board …

School uniforms and banning the student use of electronics in classrooms were two of the topics touched upon Oct. 26 in a candidates’ forum with the four Board of Education contenders. The forum was sponsored by the Franklin Township PTO/PTSO Presidents’ Council and held at Franklin Middle School. There are three, 3-year school board seats up for grabs. Contending for …

(Update: School district steps in to clarify that Potosnak is the school board’s representative to the Chamber. See update at bottom of story.) The legitimacy of last Spring’s Franklin Township Chamber of Commerce executive board election has a surprising challenger: the Board of Education’s president. School board president Ed Potosnak claims that he was purposely denied his position’s traditional seat on the Chamber’s …

The Board of Education member who recently called for the resignation of the board president is now the subject of an online petition seeking her resignation. Township resident Erik Ransom on July 25 launched a petition on the Change.org site calling for the resignation of board member Pat Stanley. Stanley recently called on board president Ed Potosnak to resign because …

The Board of Education member who called for the board president’s resignation over comments he made at the Franklin High School graduation underwent a barrage of criticism at the July 23 meeting, but maintained her position. “He overstepped his bounds,” board member Patricia Stanley said of board president Ed Potosnak at the meeting’s end.”Mr. Potosnak and I disagree  as to the rules …

Video courtesy Ed Potosnak. A Board of Education member is calling for the board president’s resignation over comments he made on same-sex marriage at the 2015 Franklin High School graduation. In a July 3 letter to board president Ed Potosnak and copied to the rest of the 9-member board, board member Pat Stanley said Potosnak “hijacked” the graduation ceremony at Trenton’s …

About 96 percent of township teachers are “effective” or “highly effective,” according to the state’s new educator evaluation system. The new system, called “AchieveNJ,” evaluated teachers and school leaders based on ” multiple measures of educator practice and student achievement,” according to a press release from the state Department of Education. According to the figures released on July 15 for …