Election 2022: Haddon Board Of Education Candidate Christopher Cook

HADDON TOWNSHIP, NJ — In the 2022 general election, residents of South Jersey will be voting for state and local officials. Patch has asked candidates in contested races to answer profiles about their campaigns.

Here is the candidate profile of Christopher Cook, who is running for another term on the Haddon Township Board of Education.

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 Nov. 8 general election. Local candidates who would like to participate but did not receive one (for whatever reason) can contact Michelle.Rotuno-Johnson@patch.com.

Name: Christopher (Chris) Cook

Age: 52

Town of residence: Haddon Township

Position sought: Haddon Township Board of Education

Family: Wife, Laura Matey. Daughter, Chloe Cook (13 y/o)

Education: University of Pennsylvania

Occupation: IT Consultant

What previous or current elected/appointed offices have you held?

Currently finishing my first 3 year term on the HT Board of Education. Also Trustee of the Haddon Township Education Foundation and Camden Coundy Democratic Committee member representing Haddon Township.

Why are you seeking to run for the school board?

To continue my service to the community and the students of Haddon Township.

What sets you apart from the other candidates?

3 years of experience as a Board of Education member including 1 year as Board President. Serving on the Board is great privlidge. It is also often complex and having experience on the board helps. We work as a group to support the entire district.

What is your stance on the sexual education curriculum that Gov. Murphy put forth earlier this year?

To be clear, the NJ Department of Education doesn't put out curriculum. They updated the Student Learning Standards for Health and Physical Education. Those standards specify what NJ studnets should know and when they should know it. Each individual school district in NJ then develops the curriculum to achieve those standards and the Board of Education doens't play a role in developing that curriculum. Having a 7th grade daughter, my opinion on the state standards is that they're good and age appropriate.

What is the most important issue in your district and how do you intend to address it?

In my experience on the Board of Education, there's never a single 'most important' issue in the district. We need to focus on the learning gaps left from remote schooling during COVID. That means more basic skills teachers and aids. There's more we can do to try to increase enrollment, which in turn increases State financial aid for Haddon Township. We can expand our tuition program and add high-demand programs that attract students and families. Our athletic complex at the High School is dated and things like the stadium bathrooms aren't ADA accessible. We should repair the stands, renovate the bathrooms and add lights and turf to the field for the benefit of the whole community.

What other issues do you feel must be tackled in your school district that have not been discussed already and how would you tackle these?

We have an opportunity to expand our Pre-K and Kindergarten instructional programs. Beyond the benefit of doing more with our youngest learners, bringing students into the district earlier means getting help to those that need some extra help even sooner. However such expansion will require more classrooms which comes at a cost to the community.

What else would you like to share about yourself or your campaign?

Only that I'm running with two other outstanding and vetran Board of Education members. Renee Billingsley and Marie Dezii. Both are public school teachers with decades of experience and have been excellent Board members for Haddon Township.