Warren Township School Board Election 2022: Patricia Zohn

WARREN, NJ — Warren Township Board of Education general election on Nov. 8 has seven candidates running for three open seats.

Patricia Zohn is running for one of the three, three-year full-term seats on the school board. Opposing candidates include Natalie Feuchtbaum, Stephen Toor, Ned Bolcar, Eric Winch, Mark Bisci, and Scott Otto.

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(All of the candidates were given the same questions)

Patricia Zohn

Age: 59

Town of residence: Warren

Position sought: Member, Board of Education

Family: My husband and I have three children. All three children attended the Warren School District from K-8 and my youngest two children also attended pre-school in the District. My eldest child graduated from the Warren School District in 2014 and is a college graduate. My two younger children both graduated from the Warren School District in 2019 and are seniors in High School.

Education:

• 1985, B.A. Business Administration and French
• 1998, J.D. Law

Occupation: Retired

Previous or current elected appointed office:

• Current Member, Board of Education
• 1 st term – Jan. 2017 through Dec. 2019
• 2 nd term –Jan. 2020 through Dec. 2022
• Seeking 3 rd term

Campaign website: None

Why are you seeking to run for School Board?

I am seeking my third term as a member of the Warren Board of Education. My commitment to Warren Schools dates back to 2004 and has included volunteering across the schools in a variety of ways as well as a dozen years of attendance at Board of Education meetings before seeking my first term in 2016. Warren is known for its high level of volunteerism as so many citizens seek to match their skills with community need. I have regularly volunteered in other roles in the community, but I believe that I fit best with the Board of Education where my experience, diligence and commitment to education best serve my community.

How do you feel about the current sex-ed curriculum in the district?

At the time of this writing (and possible publication) the “current” sex-education curriculam is last year’s curriculum. This old curriculum does not comply with current NJ State standards. As the readers may know, the revised and compliant curriculum was voted down at the August 29 Board of Education meeting.

As I stated at the August 29 meeting (2:32:45), I support a Parent’s right to opt their child out of the health curriculum at any time. I stand alone among my fellow board members and most Warren families as a parent who has chosen the “opt-out” option in the past. The choice to “opt-out” of portions of the health curriculum was personal to our family and received full accommodation from the Warren School District.

Further, in order to ensure meaningful protection of a Parent’s rights, I support parental access to all lessons, resources and materials in advance of introduction in the classroom.

Finally, I support a District-drafted curriculum that reflects community standards, provides age-appropriate content and complies with State standards.

On August 29, the District Administration proposed curriculum revisions that met all of these criteria. The proposed curriculum was largely unchanged from the previous curriculum. However, the few changes were in keeping with community standards and provided a process for transparency that met the promise of ensuring Parent’s rights. It did this for 100% of families.

I voted in favor of the revised curriculum. As a parent, I would undoubtedly opt-out of portions of the Health curriculum, as I have in the past. But as an elected official, I discharged my duty to the families and children of this district and sought to ensure the highest quality curriculum was available to all students.

I urge every concerned member of the public to read the proposed Health/PE Curriculum prepared by the professionals of our District. Members of the Curriculum writing team did the hard work to propose modest revisions to the curriculum that comply with State standards and omit offensive, profane or age inappropriate content.

Would you be in favor of a later school start time for students?

There are many high quality studies that support later start times for high schools. The Warren School District is a PreK-8 district. In theory, I support later start times for Watchung Hills Regional High School students, however, that may result in earlier start times for Warren School District as we serve younger grades and stack our busing routes with the regional high school. I am not opposed to a cooperative discussion with Watchung Hills Regional High School about start times.

What other issues do you feel need to be tackled in the school district?

Warren is currently expanding at a rapid rate. With new construction, the District expects an immediate and steady increase in enrollment over the next few years. This increase in enrollment presents challenges and opportunities as we all welcome and integrate new neighbors into community life. The schools will need to be re-districted to balance enrollment across our four K-5 schools. The schools will also need to identify and provide services to students who may be English language learners or need other support. At all times, we must meet the mission of the Warren Township School District “to provide, through a safe, nurturing yet challenging environment, all students with an outstanding education that engages students and fosters academic excellence, healthy social and emotional development, and a lifelong passion for learning.”

As the schools adapt, so too the overall community will need to adapt. This requires a close, professional working relationship between the Warren School District and the Township Committee so that the financial burden of running our schools is equitably shared throughout the community and is managed in a fiscally responsible way.

What sets you apart from the other challenging candidates?

I am the most experienced candidate. I have faithfully served six years on the Board of Education and have the additional background of regular Board of Education attendance for a dozen years prior to my first term. I have worked hard for the residents of Warren to build a fiscally responsible school district that is known for academic excellence. I have served as the Chair of the Personnel Committee, Chair of the Finance Committee, Chair of various Ad Hoc Committees and as Vice President of the Board. I have worked to form a relationship with members of the Township Committee as we all navigate the fiscal and social changes brought by new development. I can provide the continuity of leadership that is so necessary as we experience change.

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

For a dozen years I sat in the audience at Board meetings. I was “that parent.” I appreciate the frustration parents can experience when approaching the Board of Education about deeply held concerns for their children’s education. I also appreciate the frustration of community members who have lived in Warren for decades and struggle to afford staying. I am a parent. I am also someone who wants to live out my days in the home where I raised my children. I want excellent schools and affordable taxes. I stand by my voting record on both issues – and I have a record you can check.

I support transparency at the Board level, but importantly, I also practice personal transparency. All emails and contact directed to me individually receive a prompt personal response. I read every communication sent to the Board and actively seek community input. When taking important votes, I always speak in public session to explain my position. And through it all, I endeavor to treat all with respect. I hope that I have earned the support and trust of my fellow Warren citizens.