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Garden State Coalition of Schools
Trustee Board Meeting Minutes
April 28, 2011
East Brunswick, Board Conference Room
GSCS Business
• President David Abbott (Marlboro) welcomed Trustee representatives and reviewed the
agenda for this meeting. Attendees introduced themselves.
• Treasurer Judy Wilson (Princeton) reported the organization would finish the fiscal year
in the black because of a significant push to collect dues, plus a $5,000 gift from the
Bergen County Roundtable and a gift of $2,500 from John DeLiso, a supporter of GSCS’
mission who wishes to be a sponsor. The projected closing balance is $3,200.
The proposed 2011-12 budget of $180,210 assumes that all salaries are flat for the third
year in a row and that the organization grows by 11 new member districts. Besides
member dues, the proposed budget includes revenue of $4,000 from each of two GSCS sponsored conferences and $10,000 from paid adverting on the GSCS website. An
informal opinion from a tax attorney advises us that as a 501(c) 4 organization, GSCS can
seek revenue from sponsorships and advertising, as long as the funds support the basic
mission of the organization.
Meredith Shaw (East Brunswick) moved approval of the budget as proposed for
2011‐12, and Mary Sudiak (Cranford) seconded. The motion passed unanimously.
Membership: Potential new or returning member districts include Mendham,
Lincoln Park, Avon, Eastern Regional, Freehold Township, Freehold Regional,
Hillsborough and South Brunswick. It is vital that Trustee Districts reach out to
neighboring nonmember districts that benefit from GSCS’ efforts to encourage them
to join. As there is turnover in superintendents, it is also important that their fellow
County Roundtable members educate new superintendents about the goals and
work of GSCS and the work that GSCS does daily in Trenton to represent them. As
the founding generation of GSCS members retires, the current Trustees must take on
these roles in order for GSCS to stay strong and effective.
• Nominating Committee Report: Committee chair and GSCS vice president Betsy
Ginsburg (Glen Ridge) reported that all Trustee districts whose three‐year terms are
expiring in June 2011 have indicated their intention to continue as GSCS Trustees, so
the Trustee Board will stay the same for the coming school year. In addition, the
committee proposes the following slate of officers:
President: David Abbott (Marlboro)
President‐Elect: Judy Wilson (Princeton)
Treasurer: Jim Crisfield (Millburn)
Vice President: Betsy Ginsburg (Glen Ridge)
Vice President: Merry Shaw (East Brunswick)
Past President: Dan Fishbein (Ridgewood)
Betsy moved Trustee Board acceptance of the officers, and Nathan Parker (Summit)
seconded. The motion passed unanimously.
• May 18 Annual Meeting: GSCS’ 20th annual meeting will be held at the Forsgate
Country Club from 9:00 to 11:30 a.m. The theme is “New Jersey Public School
Students: Standing at the Crossroads of Change.” The legislative panel, which will be
moderated by Richard Lee of the Hall Institute, will include Sen. Tom Kean and
Assemblypeople Patrick Deignan, Mila Jasey and Declan O’Scanlon. The second
panel—“Another Perspective: A Reporter’s Point of View”—will present Lisa Fleisher,
Wall Street Journal; Jason Method, NJ Press Media / Gannett; John Mooney, NJ
Spotlight; and Charles Stiles, The Record / The Herald News.
• Recent GSCS Testimonies: GSCS is working hard in Trenton to bring our message to
decision makers concerning such important topics as the impact of state aid loss, charter
school reform and the proposed FY’12 state budget. Lynne Strickland discussed three
charts that were prepared and given to legislators: Instructional Spending for Special
Education Compared to Regular & Other Instructional Spending as a Percentage of Total Instructional Spending for all regular operating districts; the same comparison for GSCS districts; and Total Amounts Taken from Local District General Fund Budgets and Transferred to Charter Schools 2001-2011.
Executive Director’s Report and Trustee Discussion –
Lynne Strickland
• Supreme Court / School Funding: GSCS attended the hearing. The Court’s decision
will have a big impact on school funding and the FY’12 state budget that may lead to a
constitutional crisis. A question posed by the Court regarding who the plaintiff (ELC) is
representing in this matter points to the Court’s dilemma: previous decisions have only
interpreted the SFRA as it impacts the Abbott districts, and there is uncertainty whether
the Court can apply their decision to other districts, although David Sciara, arguing the
case for the plaintiffs, noted that the matter was no longer just about Abbott. It is GSCS’
concern that if the Court widens the case, will other non-Abbott districts be allowed to
present testimony? Will the Court use adequacy as a benchmark for district spending,
and how will that impact on the approximately 400 districts with spending over
adequacy? Adequacy levels set in stone as a benchmark would set a dangerous
precedent.
• State Aid FY’12: Will be greatly impacted by projected state revenue levels.
• Issues Impacting School Funding: The governor’s “tool kit” package of bills has been
stymied in the Legislature, although it is generally known that bi-partisan discussions are
taking place behind the scenes and there may be some movement soon. Areas still to be
dealt with include health care, pension and last-best offer.
• Charter School Reform: Assm Deignan’s bill calls for a local vote before a charter
school can be established if the charter is depending on 51% or more of its funding to
come from local taxes. Gov. Christie has stated he won’t sign such a law into effect, a
stand that can lead to political horse-trading. There is a companion bill in the Senate
sponsored by Shirley Turner and Theresa Ruiz. Assw. Jasey has introduced a bill that
targets authorizer questions. The bill tries to support charters in the right way and solve
problems that have developed so that they do not damage local districts. If the Deignan
bills gets posted, the Jasey bill will also.
The Opportunity Scholarship Act, known as the voucher bill, has been rewritten
three times, each narrowing its impact, but it has not been posted.
• Education Transformation Task Force: Not much has been heard about this group since
its formation was announced.
• GSCS Meetings: The GSCS leadership met with Acting Commissioner of Education
Chris Cerf in his Trenton office in March. One outcome of this meeting was a suggestion
from Commissioner Cerf that GSCS put together an event or a plan to provide support for
English-Language Learners and the DOE will try to work with us on this issue to provide
support for providers.
Future meetings include one with Assm. Declan O’Scanlon (minority budget officer) on
April 29, as well as public forums in Ridgewood, Millburn and Summit.
Board Discussion
• Charter Schools: should be made to comply to the same state requirements on
such areas as safety, environment, Board policies and public agendas and minutes as
are public school districts.
• Approval of superintendent contracts seems to be moving along. The current
contract restrictions will sunset when this governor leaves.
• Nathan Parker (Summit) requested for a future agenda a discussion of how to
respond to current attacks on public education. Local districts need talking points
to use in defense of pubic education. Could this be a topic for a future GSCS
workshop?
