Dear Editor:
Like most of Hoboken, I’d like to see quick progress on reducing the Board of Education budget. However, I don’t believe this is a reasonable expectation for several reasons. Firstly, a “slash & burn” mentality is not the proper approach when dealing with the education of our children, nor is it advised with regards to unionized employees. It can be quite counter-productive, in fact. The Board needs to makes staff cuts where it can, following the processes necessary in order to avoid hefty severance packages and multi-million dollar lawsuits. The second issue is that the Board must work with a superintendent who is also on board with scaling down the staff. I think interim Superintendent Carter is doing a fantastic job holding the educational side accountable for making progress, but he is not tasked with streamlining the education system, nor should he be. A lot more progress will be made once a superintendent is on board.
In fact, I applaud the Kids First Board members for making as much progress on the budget and in identifying the fiscal waste they have in the past year. They have clearly made steps in the right direction. The Kids First Board members are using the right approach. In cases where we are dealing with layoffs or staff reductions, slow and steady wins the race. I’m not advocating “nibbling” in the cuts, I agree that bigger cuts must be made. But they must be done in a manner that avoids extra costs, are focused on areas that are least disruptive to the education our children receive, and follow the proper process in doing so. Progress has been made, and progress will continue to be made. We will find ourselves marching backwards if the “Real Results” candidates are voted in. They want to “slash & burn”, cutting first and dealing with the consequences later. I think the best option is the stay the course with Kid’s First. They have invested the time, resources, and energy to get the job started, so let’s give them the chance to continue doing it.
Sincerely,
Greg Lincoln