Election 2022: Lacey Board Of Education Candidate Cheryl Armato

LACEY, NJ — Next month, Lacey residents will head to the polls to vote for local and state officials. Patch has asked candidates to answer profiles on their campaigns.

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. 8 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.

Name: Cheryl Armato

Age: 53

Education: Graduated Florida Atlantic University in 1992 with a Bachelor of Business Administration, Major in Marketing

Occupation: Owner /Head Fit Coach BEFITNJ, 555 Lacey Rd., Forked River, NJ 08734. Established in 2013

Family: Mom of 4 children: Francesco 27, Isabella 19, Rocco 17 and Vito 14. Francesco and Isabella are Lacey High School graduates, Rocco and Vito are current students in the Lacey Township district. Married 22 years to Salvatore Armato.

Previous public office experience: None

Why are you running for this position?

I decided to run for the Lacey Township Board of Education for several reasons but first I will tell you when I decided to run.

I decided to run while I was sitting at a BOE meeting this year and during public comment one of the current BOE members said numerous times to all the members of the community in attendance “if you think you can do a better job than put your name on the ballot and run.” At that moment I thought if I wanted to see change, I needed to be part of the change. We need to build a bridge to the community and welcome open dialogue by listening to the concerns and ideas of the students, parents, faculty, taxpayers and implement change as needed.

My goal is to inspire parents to take an active leadership role as future board members. Currently, we only have one parent on the board with school age children. More parents with children in the district are needed so they can be involved in implementing change in policies, curriculum and finance that will have a positive impact on their children as well as current and future Lacey students.

My vision is to bring back a positive learning experience with the focus on academic excellence. Teachers have been tasked with teaching to standardized testing yet we do not have standardized children. One test does not fit all. We need to start teaching fundamentals again.

School should be exciting and fun for both the students and the teachers. Classrooms should be free from all toxic, radical, political trendy agendas plaguing ours schools.

When our students graduate Lacey Township High School they should be well educated, productive members of society ready to enroll in college, enroll in trade school, enroll in the military or seek employment.

If elected, I will bring my 30 years of successful business experience in sales, operations, leadership, marketing and entrepreneurship to the board of education.

What separates you from the other candidates? What separates me from the other candidates is I have no conflicts that prevent me from voting on all matters that pertain to the district. I also have school age children currently in the district that gives me firsthand experience on how policy effects our children and our families.

What do you think is the most pressing issue in the school district and how do you intend to address it?

There are many pressing issues currently in our school district. The ones that have been brought to my attention by talking to Lacey residents are the curriculum, the moral and the overall academic experience meaning to much focus on standardized testing and not enough focus on much needed fundamentals.

In order to address these issues, I intend to foster a relationship with my colleagues as it takes 4 votes to implement any policy change.

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

My stance on the sexual education curriculum that Gov. Murphy put forth earlier this year is that is has no place in our public school.

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?

The other issue I feel must be tackled in our school is bullying (HIBS- Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying) from leadership roles to students.

I have personally experienced first hand bullying, harassment and intimidation last year by our Board President who served me with frivolous civil charges which were unfounded and dropped by the prosecutor.

I have had a teacher tell me if the board President did that a member of the community they did not feel comfortable going to the board with any issues in fear of retaliation. This should never be. No organization can rise above its leadership. In regards to students, I am alarmed by the number of HIBS in our school district.

Children need to feel welcomed when they attend school. An idea I really love is implementing a BIG program in our schools. An upper classmate welcomes a student into the new year and guides and mentors them the first few weeks of school. A buddy system of sorts where we spread kindness and respect which can change the course of your academic life.

Another program I would like to see implemented is similar to National Honor Society where students perform a community service or at home service (in line with their own capabilities) and signed off by the local business, church, parent, grandparents, etc.) as a yearly requirement. Good deeds develop good habits.

Is there anything else you would like voters to know?

16 years ago my husband and I chose to move to Lacey Township and raise our family here because we love this community and all it offers. To date, we still agree it’s one of the best decisions we ever made for our family.

My hope is the next generation of families will feel the same and their children will be proud graduates and alumni of Lacey Township High school.

Vote your values this November!

Vote Cheryl Armato for Lacey Township BOE ~Line 2.