Will the Committee Chair Change Course Before it is too Late?
A third Berkeley Heights Board of Education member has replied to BHCW’s questions about the Policy Committee’s transportation policy and the process surrounding its development with concerns.
As indicated in prior articles, BHCW emailed the BOE the following questions:
Are there plans to share the rubric and data driving the scoring that led to the hazardous road designations by the consultants-with the public?
Will there be a period of time when public input is sought on those designations?
Can you provide clarity on the assertion that specific homes were indicated while the streets they were on were not designated?
Dr. Foregger provided the following response:
Mr. Migueis,
I do not understand how I can support this policy without seeing the information driving the recommendations. It is unfortunate that this meeting occurred in a closed-door session, and no new information was provided to the Board or public.
I hope the policy committee figures out a way to provide the information and opportunity for community input needed to make this policy a viable consideration.
These are my thoughts and opinions as an individual and do not represent the opinion of the Berkeley Heights Board of Education.
tom foregger
It is unclear why Ms. Stanley (the Policy Committee chair) continues to move forward in this manner, as the District has had over a year to answer questions and correct what has led to the strange and controversial practice of providing some families with free transportation while charging other families $1,000.
The sequence of events is incredibly confusing as four members of the BOE and the public have asked for the data driving this specific policy since its introduction and, per the Transportation Coordinator’s report, continued delays as a result of unanswered questions can lead to significant issues in planning for next years transportation needs.
In order to mitigate the potential damage, the policy committee chair may need to release the data to the BOE and the public before the next meeting, as the BOE and the public will need time to evaluate it and make further recommendations. Whether this is possible remains a question mark as the Transportation Consultancy firm hired by last year’s BOE refuses to release the data, prompting further questions as to why it was selected by last year’s BOE majority in the first place.
Read Sai Akiri’s Response to BHCW’s Questions on Transportation
Read Natasha Joly’s Response to BHCW’s Questions
To Understand the context of this issue quickly:
