Dear PS16 Families,
An important issue concerning our public schools will be voted on by City Council at tomorrow’s Council meeting at 6PM. You can learn some background facts in the article below:
NJ.com: Jersey City mayor wants power to appoint school board members, ‘fix’ school system.
In the wake of recent controversies surrounding one former and one current school board members Mayor Fulop tweeted on Jan 3 of his intent to move the BOE to an appointed board, calling the current JCBOE a “national embarrassment”.
This Resolution is scheduled to come before the Council for a vote Tomorrow, Wednesday, January 8. If it is voted on and approved by the Council there will be a referendum – a question on the ballot of the November 3, 2020 election, that will ultimately decide the issue.
Councilman at Large Rolando Lavarro, who initially favored the change has issued a public response today, along with a Q & A, opting to abstain from the vote.
We believe that electing our representatives is a fundamental right and a vital part of the democratic process. Presently in Jersey City the majority of the boards are already appointed by the Mayor (Planning, Zoning, Library, Historic Preservation, JCETP, JCRA to name a few). School Board is one of the few elected offices in which the general public has a voting right.
Last year as PS16 community we learned how powerful our voices can be when we were fighting to protect our teachers from layoffs. Your voices are extremely important and impactful.
That is why we urge you to join us at the City Council meeting tomorrow at 6PM to be held in City Hall, Caucus Room and provide your input during public comments (To sign up please call City Clerk at (201) 547-5150). Public comments will be heard after 1st and 2nd readings of ordinances. *To save you time we can send “whatsapp” notifications via class parents, alerting you of the start of public comments so you can arrive later.
If you are unable to attend, but would like to state your opinion on the subject, email the council members prior to the meeting:
- Joyce Watterman (Council President, Councilwoman at Large) –jwatterman@jcnj.org
- Rolando Lavarro (Councilman at Large) – rlavarro@jcnj.org
- Daniel Rivera (Councilman at Large) – drivera@jcnj.org
- Denise Ridley (Councilwoman Ward A) – dridley@jcnj.org
- Mira Prinz-Arey (Councilwoman Ward B) – mprinz-arey@jcnj.org
- Richard Boggiano (Councilman Ward C) – rboggiano@jcnj.org
- Michael Yun (Councilman Ward D) – myun@jcnj.org
- James Solomon (Councilman Ward E) – jsolomon@jcnj.org
- Jermaine Robinson (Councilman Ward F) – jrobinson@jcnj.org