Meet The Candidate: Bruno Iamonte For Barnegat Board Of Education

BARNEGAT, NJ — Barnegat Township will head to the polls on Tuesday to cast their votes for three open seats on the board of education. Patch has asked the candidates to share their thoughts before the Nov. 2 General Election.

This year, 10 candidates are running for three three-year terms.

Patch sent out emails to all candidates to the email addresses listed for their campaign provided to the office of the clerk. The responses received will get published between now and Election Day.

Here is the response from Bruno Iamonte who is running for election.

Age (as of Election Day): 77

Party Affiliation: Non -Partisan

Family: Widower — 2 daughters, Tina and Trish, 6 grandchildren

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government? No

Education: Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of Charleston and a Master of Arts Degree in Administration and Supervision from New Jersey City University.

Occupation: 8th Grade Science Teacher - 36 years of experience

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office: None

Campaign website: : One Barnegat Together

Why are you seeking elective office?

Most of my life was spent teaching and helping children prepare for a successful life. Because of my experience I feel that I can work with teachers and administrators to improve our district and help our students by providing the best education possible.

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

The single most pressing issue facing our board and district is test scores. I will support any program that I think will benefit the students and improve the scores. I'm also a strong proponent of parental involvement in a child's education. I would support the use of community resources to serve the needs of students and teachers. This would contribute to the improvement of test scores.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

36 years of classroom experience - the understanding of how children learn - strong desire to serve the community for the betterment of the school district- use of the many skills I developed during my teaching career.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)

Communication with the community members should be a priority. Barnegat residents should be made aware of what is going on in our schools.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

Parental involvement - As a parent and grandparent, I am a strong proponent of parental involvement. Sending a child to school every day is only one part of the child experience. An equal and important part, is parental and community involvement. What transpires outside of school hours at home and in the neighborhood is as important as what take place in the classroom.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

During my teaching career I learned good listening and communication skills that gave me the ability to make sound decisions based on facts, to interview personnel and evaluate teaching credentials and aptitude.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

Be fair and listen to ALL of your students and treat ALL of them with respect.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I am an Educator, community volunteer, parent, grandparent and friend. I listen to both sides of the story and respect everyone's opinion.