Wednesday night’s Guttenberg Board of Education meeting covered several issues but was adjourned before the board could discuss the proposed 2001-2002 school budget, which features a tax increase of $1.16 per $1,000 of assessed property. The owner of a $150,000 home will pay $174 extra in school taxes next year, should the budget pass a public vote during the April 17 board elections.
But the budget first must be discussed and voted on at a future Board of Education meeting before the election.
Board member Michael Baruch left Wednesday night’s meeting to attend to personal business, meaning that only four board members were present, so essentially, the meeting came to an official end at that time.
There were some people on hand to ask questions about the budget or offer concerns. Those comments will be heard and addressed at a later date.
“That bothered me a little,” one woman said. “I was hoping to get some questions answered about the budget.” The board did cover other important issues before the adjournment, however.
So long, farewell
There was a report from the Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Robert Penna, about the student enrollment at the district’s lone elementary school, Anna L. Klein. Enrollment has reached 918 students, a large amount for a small community.
Penna proudly pointed out that five students who were found to be living out of town, yet attending Klein School, were identified and subsequently removed.
“Two were from Fairview, two from North Bergen and one was from West New York,” said Penna, revealing the findings of his investigation. “We will continue to make sure that the kids who go here belong here. We will not tolerate outsiders.”
Also at the meeting, Penna announced that the school had received several donations in recent months, including a host of paperback books, textbooks and supplies.
“A company went out of business, so we were able to secure 80,000 pencils and 40,000 pens,” Penna said. “It’s safe to say that we won’t be needing pencils and pens for quite some time.”
The teacher of the year, third grade teacher Ruth Ann Perry, was recognized, as were the STAR student and STAR teacher of the year, courtesy of the program established by Time Warner cable.
Eighth grader Shabab Naqvi was introduced as the STAR student, who, in turn, read a beautifully-written essay about her choice for STAR teacher, her homeroom teacher, Donna Gryzbowski.
Naqvi also told the audience about the fund-raising efforts the school’s Student Council has been organizing, like collecting pennies to help the Leukemia Society and selling daffodils to raise money for the American Cancer Society.
No fireworks
There were no fireworks at the meeting, despite some rumors to the contrary. In fact, there had been six messages left on a reporter’s voicemail about a supposed ongoing controversy between a parent and a teacher.
When the meeting broke up, Penna was approached and asked about the rumors.
“There’s nothing like that whatsoever,” Penna said. “I don’t know why anyone would have called and told you those things. It’s not right.”
Penna said that if there were any differences between a parent and a teacher, he would address the problem on his own, behind closed doors in his office. It would not be addressed at a Board of Education meeting, for all to hear.
But if there was a problem, Penna seemed to clear it up before it ever reached a boiling point. Or where fireworks would be set off.