Livingston BOE Candidate James Calderón Launches New Campaign

LIVINGSTON, NJ — A former Livingston Board of Education candidate is taking another swing at landing a seat: James Calderón.

Calderón, who also ran for a slot on the board last year, is among three candidates vying for two open seats in the 2021 general election, which takes place Tuesday, Nov. 2. Read More: 3 Candidates Running For Livingston School Board

Calderón recently reached out to Patch with a statement about the launch of his latest school board campaign. Learn about his platform and qualifications here.

He wrote:

"It was Monday morning on July 26, the last day to hand in a petition to run for a seat on the Board of Education, again. My intention was to not run, but my conscious would not let the idea rest that possibly only two people would run and no real dialogue would occur during this campaign season. As I introduced my campaign 'Change for Our Future in 2020,' I focused on the need to embrace this moment in history to evolutionize our school system and adapt to the new reality of not only a pandemic but a new generation of students. I put forth ideas of change for our future, a platform that was embraced by 2,277 voters, I formally thank them today. My conviction that change is what we need for our children has not faltered. So I ask my supporters of all ages and of all backgrounds to retake the task of sharing our platform for change again in 2021.

"Change begins with applauding what is going well, calling out what is going wrong and admitting where we are failing our children. I applaud every constituent in Livingston for their hard work and sacrifice to fund our schools $125,000,000 budget. Year after year since I have been in Livingston (since 2009) as a community we have accepted an increase in taxes to fund the future. But, those increases come from the sacrifice of time at home and I recognize that sacrifice from each of you. I applaud our students for their dedication, perseverance and resiliency as they achieve recognition by organizations, accolades by institutions and work through a rigorous education experience.

"Our district falls short on many measures that are often overlooked by the accolades and recognition, and these negatives must also be recognized so they can be addressed. We have lost children in our town to mental distraught. Our schools are the center of our community as we are diverse in cultures and religions; school is what unifies us and when we lose children it is a reflection on our community. The consistent rigor on our students has created ill effects, including the prominent lack of academic integrity at the high school. This is because as a district we offer a blind focus on college-bound students. We need to adapt to a global focus and admit we should be offering our students more than one option, maybe an option 2.

"Livingston has become a brand that is associated with 'top' schools as the high school was a Blue Ribbon school in the 1990s and we continue to boast all the 'top' students, while often forgetting some of our students. But, factually we have one in six students 'not meeting or exceeding expectations' in English proficiency tests and two in six 'not meeting or exceeding expectations' on mathematics proficiency tests (cited from NJSLA Spring 2019 results, latest available, Google: njsla 2019 scores). Some would try to substitute the SATs, provided by ETS, as an alternate measurement of proficiency, it is not. In the past 15 months, the Board of Education missed an opportunity to direct our district into the future with a hybrid learning system built on technology and in-class instruction. Instead they waited for the next 'pivot' and failed to prepare for a new reality. So today we have not advanced from a year ago, instead the plan is to fill the school buildings and see what happens. COVID-19 is here for now and our district is not ready.

"I feel strong that our community is filled with people of goodwill, people that want to see the best for our children, want to see a diverse community filled with passionate ideas and conviction on what is right and what is not. But, it is disheartening when only three people step forward to be part of such an important institution as the BOE. Yet, as an experienced candidate and recognizing my 2021 fellow candidates, I tend to believe that it is not so much a lack of interest to serve as a lack of interest to campaign and experience the slights of a handful of constituents. My discussion with fellow candidates always has the common thread of nasty encounters, whether virtual or in person, that leave a mark on anyone. I am the first to remind them, and you, that those people do not represent Livingston. Livingston is a diverse town, opened to evolve and open to see progress. I hope to be able to make change and ask for your support during this campaign www.changeforourfuture.org."

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