I had the pleasure of participating in a conference call with other presidents of Boards of Education from throughout New Jersey last evening. This call reassured me that we are not alone in our demand for state funding for our students. We started a movement, right here in the Lenape region, a movement now which consists of 100 school districts! The Support our Students (NJSOS) group is conducting another phone and email blitz. Our calls bombarded the Governor’s office, and today, our calls will inform Senator Sweeney we are not going away, and we will be heard!

Please take two minutes out of your day to call and be heard, as the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee is holding their public hearings on the budget this week.

Those who participate should be calling Senator Sweeney’s West Deptford Office at: (856) 251-9801.  To send an email, visit the Contact Your Legislator(s) link on Senate President Sweeney’s legislative biography page.

Here are some talking points for your brief phone call and email – pick one, say them all or create your own:

• “We have an allocation issue in NJ by sending dollars to programs other than all of our K-12 public schools. The students in New Jersey need to hear the Senator say he is going to shift funding to address the inequities created by the implementation of S2.”
  
  
• “I am concerned about the negative impact S2 will have on our students. I urge the members of the Senate work with the Governor and take a positive action to address the critical issue of school funding by allocating full and fair funding for all.”
  
  
• “NJ is known for producing graduates prepared to succeed, the LRHSD is one of those districts which help NJ boast its recent #1 National Ranking. If Senator Sweeney and the Governor don’t find a better way to create revenue and to fix the flawed school funding formula, our district’s and our state’s great reputation for student success is at risk.”
  
  
• “The Senator has stated that it was never the intent of S2 to negatively impact students, but that is exactly what is happening to half a million children in New Jersey.”
  
  
• “S2 will not advance public education, it will not promote the achievement of all students and it is certainly not effective governance. Helping some students at the expense of others is wrong.”

LRHSD Family, we need your help. Please invest a few minutes of your day TODAY and send an email and make a call.

Sincerely,

Barry Fitzgerald
President of the Board of Education
Lenape Regional High School District