To the Editor:
My name is Leonard R. Kantor of 102 W. 3rd St. and a lifelong resident of Bayonne. I am running for school board trustee for a three-year term with the Bayonne Board of Education on Nov. 8, Row 4 J. I have no family member employed in the Bayonne school system.
I am seeking this position because I, like many other city residents, know very little about our public schools. School administrators tell city residents that our schools, 11 elementary and one high school with 10,030 students are being run at a high quality of instruction and standards. They may say this but the public never sees these figures printed publicly. They give us no transparency or accountability! Why?
I have checked the last school year and found out that Bayonne High School was not listed in the 100 top high schools in New Jersey. I believe that there are 354 high schools in New Jersey, but where is Bayonne High School ranked? There were two years where the passing mark was 70. That was lowered to 65! They told us that this did not affect the standards of education? Are they for real? They reinstated the passing mark back to 70 because of an elected school board from a political appointed school board.
I strongly believe that the people responsible for running our public schools should show transparency and accountability at all times by publicly putting it in our local newspapers. Residents of our city need a good housecleaning of our schools with transparency and accountability. It is time to do away with smoke and mirror propaganda. More letters to follow. Thank you for voting line 4J on Election Day Nov. 8.
LEONARD KANTOR