Election 2023: Barnegat School Board Candidate Summer Spagnuolo

BARNEGAT, NJ —Election Day is nearing, and Barnegat voters will head to the polls to cast their votes for three Board of Education members.

Patch sent questionnaires to all candidates seeking their responses. Here is the response from candidate Summer Spagnuolo.

Editor's Note: Patch sent out emails to all candidates to the email addresses listed for their campaign provided to the office of the clerk. The responses received will be published between now and the Nov. 7 general election. These responses will be published edited only for style. Candidates who would like to participate but did not receive one (for whatever reason) can contact veronica.flesher@patch.com.

1. Summer Lynn Spagnuolo

2. 40

3. Graduated high school, has attended several colleges, including Georgian Court University and currently working towards a degree in History and Anthropology. I’m also a graduate of the Ocean County Police Academy , Basic Class #81

4. Currently I’m disabled due to a heart condition. Prior to that, I was a law enforcement officer for close to 18 years, retiring at the rank of lieutenant. I’m also an executive board member of the Barnegat elementary PTA, a position which has become like a full-time job. I also currently work with group of at-risk, young women recovering from substance abuses issues as a mentor.

5. I’ve been married to my husband, Joshua Spagnuolo for 13 years and have an elementary age son in the Barnegat School District. Please forgive me as I wish to try and keep our son’s personal information private.

6. I have not held public office, but working for the public as a police officer has allowed me
To develop important skills and experience in areas of budgeting, conflict-resolution, leadership, problem-solving and critical thinking.

7. I am running for a position on the Board of Education for a few reasons. The biggest reason is the lack of professionalism and arguments/fighting that transpires with several members of the board. You cannot be working for the betterment of our school system when you’re constantly picking fights amongst yourselves. Secondly, I was tired of seeing my taxes going up each year. It appears most of our board members are trying To be fiscally responsible , but the straw that broke the camels back was when candidates Churney and Washburn were 2 of 4 members that voted down an ENTIRE curriculum which cost the school district $15k in further overtime to redo the entire curriculum. This was just after the board had to vote yea to increase the taxes by 6 cents on every $100 dollars assessed , which did prevent class sizes from soaring and prevented several staff members from losing their jobs.

Finally , I wanted to be a part of a school board and district that is working hard to improve test scores, the lives of their students and a district working towards being a blue Ribbon School District, which is a district that shows exemplary high performance as well as exemplary achievement gap closing.

8. One thing that sets me apart from the opposing candidates is that I can put national political agendas aside and use My conscience and common sense to make choices and decisions on what my district actually needs , opposed to what political parties are telling me I should do or believe.

9 & 10. One of the most pressing issues in the district is regarding the rights of parents. To address this, I would work to Make sure that all of our parents continue to be provided with the necessary information that they need in order to make choice that fit their morals
And values when it comes to sensitive topics and curriculum. First and foremost , parents should ALWAYS have a say when it comes to what their children are being taught. I would ask that any and all video, dittos or course material regarding these topics, be available for review at anytime when requested by the parent.

11. If elected I hope to be able to work towards making our district one that is an example of excellence not only in Ocean County , but the state while also looking for cost-effective and fiscally responsible ways to prevent taxes from rising. Barnegat has a large senior community, many of whom are on a fixed income and in retirements. These increases can dramatically affect their quality of lives, especially with the current state of inflation. I can feel that burden myself as a disabled retiree who is also on a fixed income.