Saddle River Valley November 13, 2013 THE VILLADOM TIMES III • Page 7 Pittman, Verducci win pair of seats on BOE Upper Saddle River voters have elected newcomers Elizabeth Pittman and Dr. David Verducci to the two avail- able seats on the board of education. Verducci received 715 ballots and Pittman received 658, while incumbent trustee Dante Ferrarie received 573 ballots. “I am thankful to my wonderful community, friends, and neighbors for their support and vote of confidence.” Pittman said. “I look forward to sitting down with the board and superintendent to take a deeper dive into their current initiatives and challenges. There is much to learn as a new board member and (I am) ready to begin getting up to speed so I can contribute to the continued success of our schools. I congratulate Mr. Verducci and, as a parent of a child in our schools, owe a great deal of thanks to outgo- ing President Dante Ferrarie for the many contributions he has made to our district over his six years of service on the BOE. He will be missed.” Verducci expressed his thanks to the borough’s residents. “I am deeply honored to have received the highest total in this race’s balloting and promise to do everything I am able to live up to this trust. As anyone who knows me will tell you, my personal and professional credo has always been ‘Every child. Every chance. Every day.’ This will continue to be my guiding principle, not just in my future service as a board trustee, but in all I do. “Next, in addition thanking Dante Ferrarie for his past service and congratulating Elizabeth Pittman on her suc- cessful bid for office, I offer to my future colleagues on the board of education my pledge to work with them, indi- vidually and collectively, to the best of my ability to help our school district actualize its fullest possible potential. I know we already have a good school system but I believe the stage is close to being set for us to take our schools to the next level; to go from good to great. All the necessary ingredients are present: a high quality faculty, knowledge- able administrators, and a level of community support as strong as any I’ve ever seen in my four decades in public education. I think that, someday, we will look back at this period of time in the school district’s history and recognize it for what it is: our collective ‘tipping point.’ By working together, planning well, and carefully managing both our financial and human resources, I truly believe that ‘the sky,’ as the saying goes, ‘is the limit.’” Pittman said she moved to Upper Saddle River with her husband Neil 12 years ago due to the outstanding school system. Her daughter Amanda is currently a student at the Bogert School. Pittman said she is committed to keeping Upper Saddle Rivers’ schools among the best in the county. She said she wants to continue to introduce innovative educational pro- grams while being fiscally responsible. Pittman has spent her professional career in the retail industry where she gained experience working as a team member and managing budgets. She holds an undergradu- ate degree from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and has been employed as a corporate sales executive for 15 years. She has been active with the Parent Teacher Orga- nization and the Junior Woman’s Club. She is an 11-year member of the JCO, which she served as a trustee for seven years. She has also served two years on the board of the local after school program. She served as treasurer of the local Brownie Troop and is now a co-leader for Juniors. Dr. Verducci is a 10-year resident who said he wants to use his skills and knowledge to help the school district achieve its “as of yet untapped full potential.” Having retired last year after 38 years as a professional educator, he believes his extensive experience both in and out of the classroom has given him the ability and insight to deal with current issues. Verducci says he has a proven ability to provide quality educational experiences at an affordable cost. (continued on page 17) Senger, Feldsott elected to board Saddle River voters re-elected incumbent board of edu- cation trustees Henry Senger and Irene Feldsott on Nov. 5. Senger received 201 votes and Feldsott received 175 to edge out Emily Jane Kaufman, who challenged the incumbents for one of the two available seats on the board. Feldsott has resided in Saddle River for 11 years. She has been a school trustee for seven years, having served a one-year term followed by two three-year terms. She helped organize the first Upper Saddle River Day, and is a fund- raiser for the Northern Highlands Regional High School Scholarship Committee. As a trustee, she has served on the Budget Committee and now serves on the Middle School Committee. She also helped hire a new superintendent for the district. Feldsott is retired from a 24-year career as a Wall Street bond broker. She and her husband Robert have two chil- dren: a junior at Northern Highlands and a sophomore at Purdue University. Senger was born and raised in Ridgewood. He attended Bergen Catholic High School and received his bachelor’s degree in accounting from Fairfield University. He is a senior vice president, wealth management at UBS Finan- cial Services and a member of the Saddle River Environ- mental Commission. He is an active parishioner of Church of the Presentation. In 2006, he was appointed to the Saddle River School Board, and was re-elected in 2007 and 2010. He has been a member of the Finance, Negotiations and Middle School committees and the Saddle River liaison to Northern High- lands High School. He was named board president in January 2013 after having working with Board President Keith Pennell as vice president for six years. Last year, the New Jersey School Board Member Acad- emy designated Senger as a Certificated Board Member. To receive this certification, experienced board members must attend academy programs in areas that include finance, labor relations, student achievement, and governance.