Dear Editor:
We would like to announce our candidacy for the four seats on the Hoboken school board and ask you, our neighbors, for your vote. Running under the banner “Real Results,” we promise quick and effective action to improve our schools and get the system’s bloated budget under control.
We believe that Hoboken’s traditionally low expectations for its schools must be dramatically raised so each student has the chance to reach his or her full potential. At the same time we will tackle the system’s enormous waste – money that never reaches a classroom but instead goes to employees with little to do, and benefits that are far out of line with the real world. At nearly $25,000, Hoboken still spends the second-highest amount of money per student of any K-12 district in the state and almost twice the state average.
Despite this, the current board is not making any meaningful budget cuts for next year and is not planning any tax cut. This year’s tax levy – the amount of revenue raised from Hoboken property owners – was $36,764,796. The expected tax levy for next year is: $36,761,743. That’s right – the expected levy is only $3,053 less than last year’s. “Real Results” promises to cut more than $3,000 out of a $60 million budget.
Together, we will bring a wealth of business and management experience to a board that’s now woefully short of real-world knowhow. Hiring executives, negotiating multimillion-dollar contracts and overseeing top administrators are what a school board does, and the board needs people with the skills for these crucial tasks.
Leading our ticket is Elizabeth Markevitch, who’s lived in Hoboken 20 years and has attended school-board meetings since 1995. Her daughter will go to Hoboken High in September. Liz is a former director of the Boys and Girls Club of Hoboken and the founder and president of a firm that recruits staff to fill technical jobs.
Perry Lin, a graduate of the Millburn public schools, moved here in 2004 and bought a home a year later. He is the northeast regional manager of a medical device company and has 10 years of experience in sales and management in health care and technology.
Kathleen Tucker grew up in Chester and has been a Hoboken resident since 2004; she and her husband purchased their home in 2007. She works as a designer for a New York marketing and media agency, where she focuses on how customers interact with health care industry websites.
John Forsman has called Hoboken home for five years. He and his wife became homeowners three years ago and plan to raise their family here. They’re members of St. Francis Church and he’s helped organize the Hoboken Rotary Club’s spelling bee for fourth-graders. A Monmouth County native, John is a financial adviser and health care specialist for a major financial institution.
Voters deserve a real choice on Election Day and “Real Results” will give them that choice. We ask for your vote on April 20.
Elizabeth Markevitch
Perry Lin
Kathleen Tucker
John Forsman