October 29, 2014 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • Page 21 Letters to the Editor (continued from page 20) from agendas, free from baggage and free from misplaced activism. Peter Koulikourdis, Vicki Holst, and Randy Dixon, regardless of their baking talents, are all profession- als and dedicated community members who will bring a fresh perspective to the school board. I urge you to join me in supporting them in this year’s election. David S. Catuogno Franklin Lakes McGowan has effected positive change Dear Editor: I am writing on behalf of my wife, Susan McGowan, who is running for re-election to the Franklin Lakes Board of Education. In her four years on the board, she has served with distinction and has demonstrated an unwavering com- mitment to taking actions that are in the best interests of our children’s education while being a responsible steward for you, the taxpayers. She has played a major role putting our district in a position to realize our high performing poten- tial. She has shown the ability to make tough decisions to get us there. Some of those decisions were made in the face of very sharp and, at times, highly disrespectful personal criticism by a vocal minority. She ignored the vitriol, and we are a better district for it. During Susan’s tenure, she played a key role securing a highly talented new superintendent who is making strides in bringing our district together, reversing the divisiveness that existed under her predecessor. Susan displayed leader- ship in deciding to replace the previous curriculum director with a well-respected, home grown individual who under- stands this district and enjoys overwhelming support from our educators. Because of this decision, our district is in a better place. Susan’s only agenda is the excellence of this district. Her dedication was recognized by being awarded the pres- tigious Janet S. Lobsenz Award for excellence. She takes her responsibilities seriously and has spent time serving on the Legislative Committee of New Jersey School Boards Association in order to bring a broader perspective to our board. We should all be proud to have someone as passionate and caring as Susan is, serving them. Susan has effected positive change for our district. I ask that you join with me and re-elect her so she can finish the job she started. P.J. McGowan Franklin Lakes Support for Dixon Dear Editor: I am a former Franklin Lakes neighbor of Randy Dixon and I was not surprised that he is running for the Franklin Lakes Board of Education. I have known Dixon for many years and have had four children go through the Franklin Lakes school system. I know he has been concerned about some of the issues swirling around the board. And I know that he is the type of person who will know just how to impact the board is a very positive way. I think we can trust Dixon to bring his heart and intel- ligence to unite the board. He will help the board focus on the facts, not emotion. Dixon is not egotistical. He will not bring a personal agenda to the conversation. Rather he is level-headed, smart, focused, and big-hearted. When I think of the type of person I want sitting at the table that decides critical issues related to our schools, I want someone who will work effectively with administra- tors. I believe Dixon will help support the administration and teachers, listening to the best ways to provide them the necessary resources to ensure our children have the best education possible. On Nov. 4, please vote for my friend Randy Dixon. Beth O’Connor Wayne Children need McGowan Dear Editor: As a private citizen and borough resident since 1976, I’m impressed by dedicated and effective board members who advance our children’s standard of excellence and achieve- ment in cooperative partnerships with our teachers and administrators. Susan McGowan embodies this tradition and I will vote for her re-election to the board of education. She is a proven effective leader with good listening skills, a commitment to cooperative governance and fiscal responsibility, plus a passion for continuous improvement. I’m impressed with her analytical, planning, problem solving, decision making, team building, and interpersonal skills. She avoids distrac- tive and divisive preoccupation with mundane slogans focusing instead on defining key issues and developing effective programs. Susan’s experience portfolio will advance the continu- ing success of our schools. Her accomplishments are also recognized by the Bergen County School Boards Associa- tion. She received their prestigious Janet S. Lobsenz award and was selected to serve on the New Jersey School Boards Association’s Legislative Committee in Trenton. Susan works to ensure effective use of our tax dollars by supporting budgets saving taxpayers over $1.1 million and operating under the two percent cap with 0% net tax increase for 2014-15. She champions small class sizes, professional development, and meaningful technology ini- tiatives. Sue helped guide the board to select a new superin- tendent with impressive performance-oriented credentials to achieve these objectives. We need to continue our board’s performance and devel- opment initiatives. Please join me in voting on Nov. 4 for Sue McGowan, Board President Larry Loprete, and Dr. Jennifer Marcus to bring expended operational vision and program direction to a unified and forward looking board of education. Peter M. Swist Franklin Lakes Re-elect McGowan to BOE Dear Editor: BOE elections are sometimes about issues, sometimes about people, and sometimes about finances. What they should almost always be is about qualifications (i.e. educa- tion, life and work experiences) and, whenever available, information and data. Susan McGowan was unanimously selected by mem- bers of the BOE to fill a one-year vacancy in 2010. The following year, Susan was elected by the voters of Franklin Lakes to a three-year term. Susan was the top vote-getter in that election. In the three years since her election, Susan was selected by her fellow BOE members to serve as board president, chair of the Policy Committee, and a member of the Tech- nology, Personnel, Curriculum, and Negotiations commit- tees. Among her many contributions to the BOE, Susan was instrumental in the identification and appointment of our new superintendent, voted to support the middle school’s 1:1 laptop initiative, and worked to ensure that the K-8 dis- trict operated under the two percent cap levy with a 0% net tax increase in 2014-15. In recognition of her work and expertise at the board level, Susan was appointed to the New Jersey School Board Association’s Legislative Committee in Trenton and was awarded the Janet S. Lobsenz Award by the Bergen County School Boards Association for her commitment to profes- sional development and school governance on the local, county, and state levels. Susan McGowan as has proven to be an outstanding advocate for education in Franklin Lakes. Her re-election to the K-8 BOE makes sense on all fronts. Michael Ben-David J.D., M.Ed. Franklin Lakes (Please know that, as I am a current member of the Franklin Lakes BOE, these opinions are my own and do not represent those of the Franklin Lakes BOE.) Lucky to have McGowan Dear Editor: I first met Susan McGowan in 2011 when I was running against her for the Franklin Lakes K-8 Board of Education. Since then, I have had the pleasure to work with her as a trustee representing our community. As a resident of Franklin Lakes, I would like to thank Susan for the countless hours she has dedicated to our chil- dren. Not only does she serve as a trustee for our schools, but she regularly attends New Jersey School Board Asso- ciation meetings to stay abreast of current events, as well as serves as a representative on its Legislative Committee. Over the last three years, our board has learned a tremen- dous amount from Susan. The information she has provided on the current landscape of education from the prospective of school boards around the state, including, but not limited to, best practices, policy, as well as updates from Trenton, has been so valuable. As impressed as I have been working with Susan, it was substantiated when I attended a recent NJSBA event that honored her. Listening to the compliments and accolades from board members across Bergen County, as well as rep- resentatives from NJSBA - I was so proud to be working with her, and I know that our community would feel the same if they heard this for themselves. Nobody who lives in our town has more knowledge and is more dedicated to improving education for our children than Susan McGowan. We are so fortunate to have some- one like her representing us. Please join me on Nov. 4 in voting for Ms. McGowan for Franklin Lakes K-8 School Board Trustee. Craig Urciuoli Franklin Lakes (The opinions above are my own, and are not those of the Franklin Lakes K-8 School Board.) Support for Dixon, Holst, & Koulikourdis Dear Editor: Please join me in supporting Randy Dixon, Vicki Holst, and Peter Koulikourdis for the Franklin Lakes Board of Education. As a current board member, I have watched in dismay some of the decisions made by the majority board members this past year and a half, decisions that were made with little public discussion or reasons given to support those decisions. I believe in transparency, collaborative engagement, respectful discourse, and deliberate conver- sation amongst all board members and the public. There has not been enough of that going on and it is time for a change. Dixon, Holst, and Koulikourdis each bring assets that will benefit the board. They are all successful business people who have been involved in their communities, churches, and schools as well as having sat on other boards. They each have defined platforms that will move us into the future to focus on the welfare of our students, academic needs, being fiscally minded and working collaboratively with other board members. We need people like Dixon, Holst, and Koulikourdis representing our district. They are the people with whom I want to serve on the board over the next couple of years and I am confident that they will be assets to the Franklin Lakes Board of Education with their unique capabilities and their dedication to our community. In the best interests of the students, school district, and Franklin Lakes community as a whole, I urge you to join me in voting for Randy Dixon, Vicki Holst, and Peter Koulikourdis on Nov. 4. Jackie Veliky Franklin Lakes (The opinions expressed in this letter are mine and do not represent the board of education.)