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$8 million shortfall must be resolved. |
A last-minute move of the Plainfield Board of Ed's work/study session from the PHS conference room to the cafeteria caught many people by surprise (including me, guided by the location on the online agenda).
By the time I got from Park Avenue to the Kenyon Avenue lot, found a space, and hoofed it to the cafeteria, Business Administrator Gary Ottman was just finishing up on the budget presentation.
Walking in, it was clear why the meeting had been moved. The entire cafeteria was packed, with only a few spaces at tables in the rear of the room. My estimate: between 500 and 600 attendees.
Ottman was ending with the growing bite out of the district's resources taken by charter schools, basically concluding that without legislative or structural relief by the state, the fiscal picture for the Plainfield school district was grim indeed.
This year's shortfall is $8 million and is projected to grow each year.
When the public was given an opportunity to speak, there were about a dozen or so questions and comments. Among the most powerful was that of Plainfield Education Association (PEA) president Eric Jones, that "if things keep going the way they are, we'll be broke in four or five years."
The District has hired a consultant, who spoke briefly, outlining the approach they are going to take with the state: to appeal to the state through what is called a "waiver request" for relief from the burdens put upon the district by the city's charter schools.
When one speaker criticized the Board for not having taken stronger action against the charter schools, Board President Emily Morgan reminded the audience that last year, her first as President, she had signed a strong letter to the state urging the denial of a charter to yet another school slated for Plainfield -- and that Plainfield prevailed when the State denied that application.
Ottman said that a balanced budget proposal must be submitted to the County Superintendent of Schools by next Tuesday. The District will have to make that document available to the public.
The final budget must be adopted by the June business meeting. Look for more information on the district's website here.
Theresa Ann Moroney Teacher and Plainfield bookstore
owner was an avid reader and adventurous cook Theresa Ann Moroney
of Plainfield, N.J., died on Jan. 19, 2017, from complications of
breast cancer. Family and friends are invited to join together to
honor Terry's life at The Landing, 311 Amwell Rd., Hillsborough,
N.J., on Sunday, Jan. 22, for brunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Terry
was born on March 24, 1944, in Summit, N.J., to Mary Gallagher and
David Moroney, the seventh of nine children. She graduated from
St. Teresa's Grammar School, Summit, in 1958, and attended three
high schools: Summit High for two years, followed by a year at
Madison High, before graduating from South Plainfield High in
1962. Terry attended Fairleigh Dickinson University while working
night shifts at her sister Catherine's diner, becoming the first
member of her family to graduate from college with a B.A. in
English in 1967. While at FDU she served as editor for the school
newspaper. After graduation, Terry and her sister Grace travelled
across the country. Terry began her teaching career at Westfield
High in 1967 and continued at Plainfield High. In 1972 the call of
the highway beckoned once more, and she and Grace continued their
cross-country exploration. Upon returning to New Jersey, Terry met
and married the love of her life, David Beck, and soon welcomed
two sons into her world. In 1980 she reentered the work force,
teaching adult education in Plainfield and New Brunswick, N.J., a
vocation in which she took tremendous pride. In 1992 Terry
returned to high school, teaching at North Plainfield until her
retirement in 2009. In 1997 Terry opened "Another Look Books" in
Plainfield. A labor of love, the used book store served the
downtown community until closing its doors in the early 2000's.
Terry was active in the Cook School PTA, and while at North
Plainfield she served as advisor for the school newspaper and lent
her aid to countless students; she took particular joy in helping
her ESL students apply to college. She was an active member of the
Plainfield Historical Society and the Democratic Committee in
Plainfield. Terry was an avid reader and adventurous cook; the two
pursuits birthed an extensive and lovingly used library of
cookbooks and personal recipes. Terry was predeceased by her
husband, David Michael Beck, in 2014. She is survived by her sons,
Andrew David and Richard Evelyn; her daughter-in-law, Christine
Beck, and grandsons, Damien Carter and Alexander David. The
seventh of nine children, Terry is survived by her sister,
Constance Costello Rooney. She was predeceased by her brothers,
David, Richard, and James, and her sisters, Margaret, Catherine,
Rosemary, and Grace. In New Jersey, Terry will be missed by her
sister-in-law, Kathleen Moroney; nephews, Charles Femminella and
his wife, Charlotte Ryden, Christopher (Gretchen), Sean (Karen),
and Mark Moroney (Kelly); nieces, Regina and Renee Femminella,
Maureen Pena (Joseph), Sandra Roberts (Steve Kosciolek), and
Jennifer McBride (Sean); in Virginia, by Moyra Moroney; in
Arizona, by her brother-in-law, Paul Beck and, in Hawaii, by John
Beck; and many grand-nephews and grand-nieces. - See more at: http://obits.nj.com/obituaries/starledger/obituary.aspx?n=theresa-moroney&pid=183660148#sthash.mSuRxaeS.dpuf
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