Aren't Sure Of Your Picks For Hoboken School Board? Look Here

HOBOKEN, NJ — A lot's at stake in this year's Hoboken school board election.

More than 3,000 kids attend the local district public schools, including pre-K. The students in other schools (public charter and private) are affected by their programs, facilities, and by the school board members' decisions.

Even if you don't have an interest in local children, or education, the school budget is one of three main components of local property taxes (county and municipal budgets make up the rest).

There are eight candidates running for three open seats on the nine-member Hoboken Board of Education, including only one incumbent.

One slate has members who vocally backed a $241M project to reconfigure and renovate the school buildings earlier this year, and one does not. But there's much more going on.

The city schools are adjusting to the "new normal" with health guidelines still evolving and the possibility of remote learning always looming.

Discussion has raged recently about the political affiliation and beliefs of the candidates and school officials, with education issues such as book banning in the national news.

(In fact, a flyer arrived in Hoboken residents' mailboxes on Wednesday, noting a concerted national effort for "extremists" to add members to local school boards. With 19 days left until the election, there will likely be more mailers — and readers should watch for fact-checks on the claims.)

[SEE UPDATE: School Slates Trade Barbs After 'Extremists' Mailer]

Student test scores, extracurricular activities, and even use of the high school pool have been part of the debates over the last year.

To add to the available information, Patch emailed each candidate eight questions. Their profiles and answers will be posted here in the order in which they were received, followed by a final post with a link to each one.

Some of the questions are serious, some more offbeat, but it's important to consider: Do they simply rephrase the question, but decline to give specifics?

Do the candidates have vague ideas, or actual thoughts and plans? Are they afraid to make their beliefs known?

The first profile is Pavel Sokolov (read it here).

Running for three seats on the board this Nov. 8 are:

• The "Leadership That Listens" slate, consisting of incumbent Alejandro (Alex) De La Torre Jr. along with Leslie Norwood and Antonio Graña;
• "Kids First" consisting of Pavel Sokolov, Donna Magen, and Cindy Wiegand, and
• Independent John Madigan (a former board member) and
• Independent Patricia Waiters (a former candidate).

Do you have questions? You can post letters about the election for free, any time, here at Patch using these instructions.

READ MORE: School Board Clashes Over Whether To Livestream Meetings