All Around Pennsauken

Welcome to Board Bits. The Pennsauken Board of Education feels it is important to inform the public about our work on behalf of our school district and our community. Our school district has had many positive changes over the past six months. Our interim superintendent, Dr. James Chapman, our interim business administrator, Mr. John Deserable, and the entire district staff are working diligently with one central goal in mind: student success.

Understanding The Structure Of The Board Of Education

• The Pennsauken Board of Education is an elected, unpaid, group of nine citizens.
• Members of the Board work together and serve in a leadership role for our school district on behalf of the residents of Pennsauken Township.
• At the Board’s annual re-organization meeting in January, members nominate and vote on one member to serve as president and one member to serve as vice-president for that year.
• Nick Perry will serve as president and Mr. Dung Nguyen will serve as vice-president for 2015.
• The Board thanks outgoing president, Mr. Danny O’Brien, for his leadership during 2014.

The Role Of The Board Of Education

• The role of the Board of Education is governance. By that we mean that the Board develops policies, goals, and objectives that direct how the schools function and achieving student success.
• Policies cover every area of school district function; for example, the organization of the district, finance and budget matters, and academics.
• It is through policy making, or governance, by the Board of Education that the superintendent then directs the day to day operations of the schools.

What Are We Working On?

• The Board of Education recognized in 2014 that our policies were incomplete and some were outdated.
• To date, the Board has adopted over 150 new and revised bylaws, policies and regulations that are in line with the laws in our state. We have many more to write and expect to complete the entire district’s policies by spring, 2015.
• The Board is developing a new vision statement and new goals and objectives for our district for the coming year.
• Work is beginning now on the budget for the upcoming school year. This is a very important and time intensive process. The Board and administration cannot realize the goals and objectives for our district without a responsible budget.
• Beginning this month, the Board has meetings scheduled specifically for this purpose. The public is invited to attend these meetings to gain an understanding of how our tax dollars, state aid, and state and federal grants are used to support the education goals of our students in Pennsauken. Check our website at www.pennsauken.net for the dates and times of these budget meetings and all meetings of the Board.

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