Franklin Lakes BOE Candidate: Shirley Hermansen O'Reilly

Shirley Hermansen O’Reilly is running for a seat on the Board of Education in Franklin Lakes, where she and her husband Bob have lived for 9 years.

They have four children who have attended the Franklin Lakes Public Schools System: Ashley a recent college graduate; Molly and Robert, who attend Indian Hills High School; and daughter Peyton a third grader at Woodside Avenue School.

O'Reilly is currently director of compliance at Standard & Poors in New York City.

"During my 29 years at S&P I have served in many managerial and supervisory roles, most dealing with financial and regulatory issues," O'Reilly said.

O'Reilly has been an active volunteer in the Franklin Lakes School District for several years, as well as a member of the PTA, a class mother, class trip chaperon, and chaired the holiday lunch at the middle school. 

"Most recently, I served as a volunteer on the Franklin Lakes Efficiency Committee, and unlike the majority of the committee, I voted in favor of maintaining our neighborhood schools," O'Reilly said.

O'Reilly is also currently involved in a PENCIL partnership with a K-8 school in Brooklyn, NY.

"The PENCIL Partnership provides innovative solutions to the challenges facing New York City Public Schools by building a supporting, customized relationship between business leaders and principals, thus engaging the community to assist the schools with the challenge of doing more with less," she said. "On Oct. 18, I will be the 'Principal for The Day' at my PENCIL Partner and will experience firsthand some of the challenges facing our public schools today."

Why do you believe you are a good fit for the Franklin Lakes Board of Education? 

I believe that I am a strong candidate for the Board of Education for several reasons. My business background at S&P has not only taught me how to manage people, but also how to deal with different personalities and varying opinions. We often work together as a team to come up with the most viable solution for our client.  As an independent thinker, I believe that I will bring a fresh new outlook to the board.  I have raised my children to be well rounded, respectful, intelligent, caring members of society and I am cognizant of how the schools have assisted or challenged the process.  I have personally witnessed where this district has been, where it is now, and I am not unsophisticated to the challenges that lie ahead. I feel all my experience and knowledge of what makes students successful in High School and beyond is invaluable.

If you could commend the current board on one thing they've recently done, what would it be?

 I have spoken with countless members of our community.  The residents of Franklin Lakes expect measurable results, through data, for their tax dollars. The current board has embraced so many of the mandates regarding The Common Core and budget caps but their process lacks vision and is not transparent. 

Has the Franklin Lakes BOE done anything recently of which you feel it is appropriate to be critical?

They have missed the opportunity to engage the stakeholders, the highly qualified teachers of Franklin Lakes, and have, for the most part, also excluded the parents from the process. If elected, I will seek ways to establish mechanisms for community involvement in setting the vision for the district and representing the values of the community.

As a Board Member, I will focus on student achievement, allocate resources to needs, and analyze, through data, our return on the investment of tax payer money. 

If you could commend the current board on one thing they've recently done, what would it be?

In some areas our current School Board is effective and is heading in the right direction, but there is still much to be done. 

Should you be elected, what is on the top of your list of goals for the board of education?

If elected on November 6th, 2012 I would immediately begin work in the areas that I feel need improvement, such as teacher morale, fiscal responsibility and transparency. 

This has been a successful district for some time. Our students have consistently outperformed those in like districts due to their own hard work coupled with the dedication of a dedicated and talented teaching staff. We need to take into account the opinions and ideas of our parents and teachers as well as the needs of our students before we implement any new program that will have a direct impact on our kids. Through transparency, I will put the public back in our public schools.

Why should Franklin Lakes residents should vote for you on Nov. 6? 

I am a high energy individual and wish to serve the entire community of Franklin Lakes as a trustee of the Franklin Lakes K-8 School Board.  

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