Teachers union puts stamp of approval on referendum

Residents will have

their say on $49M
building plan Sept. 30

BY DAVE BENJAMIN

Staff Writer

MANALAPAN — The Manalapan-Englishtown Education Association has announced its support of a Sept. 30 construction referendum. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sept. 30.

During a Sept. 8 meeting of the association, the MEEA’s 35-member representative council, which represents 441 staff members in the Manalapan-Englishtown Regional School District, voted to back the $49 million building plan.

"The residents of Manalapan and Englishtown expect the very best from the district’s students, teachers and staff," said MEEA President Ken Weber. "The quality and condition of our school buildings must match those expectations."

The planned improvements will benefit generations of students to come, Weber said.

With 722 additional students expected in the next four years, the association president noted that the district is growing by leaps and bounds, and said something must be done to alleviate the overcrowded conditions in some schools.

The Board of Education has proposed a $49 million construction plan. If the project is approved by voters on Sept. 30, residents of Manalapan and Englishtown will pay $34.5 million and the state will pay slightly more than $14 million.

The projected tax increase for residents in Manalapan for the first four years will be $149 per year based on a home with an assessed value of $250,000. For Englishtown residents the tax increase will be $109 per year for a home assessed at $180,000.

From year five through year 25, the payments will change. The referendum payment for Manalapan residents will move to $256 per year for a home assessed at $250,000, and the payment for an Englishtown resident will move to $187 for a home assessed at $180,000.

The construction plan calls for the addition of 22 classrooms at the Manalapan Englishtown Middle School, while expanding the school’s gym and cafeteria, and replacing roofs, heating systems, and/or windows in five of the district’s elementary schools, according to a press release from the MEEA.

"The MEEA is strongly supporting this referendum, because we are committed to the long-term stability and quality of this district," Weber said. "Everyone knows the most important investment a district can make is its teaching force, since quality teachers have the most immediate and powerful impact on student achievement."

Weber said a quality school environ­ment also sends a strong message to students that what goes on at school is important.

"These renovations and repairs are a wise investment for district taxpayers for two reasons," said Weber. "First, they will ensure that our growing student population has a quality learning envi­ronment, which is a major contributor to academic success. Secondly, by keeping our public schools strong, they will en­hance property values in the district, which is in everyone’s interest.

Weber said taxpayers have an addi­tional incentive to pass the referendum: the state has offered to provide more than $14 million (approximately 29.35 percent of the total cost) for the project.

"Given the state financial crisis, we would be wise to take advantage of the funding that is available from the state, because it’s impossible to predict what revenues might be available in the fu­ture," Weber said. "We simply want to let the communities of Manalapan and Englishtown know that their teachers are squarely behind this referendum, be­cause its passage will have a major posi­tive impact on the students we teach."

The present class size at MEMS ranges from 30 to 34 students. After the new construction is completed, it is ex­pected that class size will be reduced to 24 students. There will also be exten­sions to the physical education facilities, expansion of the cafeteria and air condi­tioning.

The other major component of the project will be the construction of a new wing at the Clark Mills School that will house all of the district’s preschool handicapped pupils and kindergarten pupils. The planned assignment of all kindergarten pupils to Clark Mills will allow administrators to create four more classrooms in each K-3 building in the district, according to the board.

The construction project also proposes improvements and upgrades at Taylor Mills School, Milford Brook School, Pine Brook School and Lafayette Mills School.

"It looks like the administration and the board did a comprehensive job eval­u­ating the needs of the district," Weber said. "This plan serves these needs in the most economic way feasible and we’re behind the plan 100 percent. We urge all residents to come out to vote for it."