Letter to the Editor: from James Ruban, President, Mountainside BOE

The responsibilities and duties of the President of the Board of Education focus on seven specific items dictated by policy. The first and foremost is to preside at all meetings of the Board. This does not give the President the right to tell the other members what to think, how to act or what to say. The President should strive to foster communication among Board members; promote and create an atmosphere of spirited and public debate on the issues; and, respect dissent while working and talking through it. These goals cannot be achieved without transparency. But transparency does not discriminate between the good and the bad, the desired and the unwanted.  For the Board to be truly transparent the Public must be allowed to see the discussions and formation of such positive programs  as the community roundtable. But they must also accept the unscripted reaction and criticism following a prepared statement that surprises the majority of the members who were not privy to the charade. The Board and the Public have to be willing to accept the inconveniences of too much transparency rather than suffer the consequences of too little.

Transparency only works if you are willing to speak your mind and not sit idly by when you see Board members being excluded and not being able to voice their opinions, or when information is not being shared with the full Board or the community. You have to be willing to fight for what you think is right, in public, for all to see and judge.  You must hold on to your principles and beliefs. You must stay engaged and be a part of the process, not quit and walk away.

Which action serves the community better, reacting passionately to a perceived injustice or attempting to orchestrate a spectacle on the night the CSA finalists are to be selected and turned over to the interview committee? Which action is more professional, reaching out and including those on the Board with whom you do not always agree but respect for their experience and knowledge, or resigning and simultaneously issuing a scripted, inflammatory and false letter to the editor the night before the start of a new and challenging school year? Let the astute decide.

I am proud of the things this Board of Education has accomplished. Rest assured that the Board is working hard on the issues that truly matter: hiring a CSA to lead the District forward and shape both the administrative team and the district's educational vision; finding ways to further involve the parents and the community in the Schools and curriculum; and, striving to provide the resources and tools necessary for our incredible teaching staff to succeed. All of these are being done with one goal in mind, the development, nurture and education of the children of Mountainside.

Thank you,

James W. Ruban, Jr.
President, Mountainside Board of Education