Watch Group to Keep Close Eye on BOE

With more than 50 members ranging from retired educators, parents and grandparents all from around the community, B-R Ed Watch is preparing to keep a close eye on the moves of the board of education.

The organization was created over the past year by residents who have expressed concerns about the educational quality of the Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District, including such issues as class size, the need to expand preschool education to the west side of town and providing more educational opportunities for students to help them compete in the world.

“This is to provide a grassroots watchdog coalition for the constant improvement and expansion of educational programs for all our students,” said Laura Spector, spokeswoman for the organization. “As the community changes in its demographic base, we need a board of education that understands these needs and provides for greater student outcomes.”

The organization, according to Spector and members of the group who chose to remain anonymous, is looking for any community residents with similar concerns to join the movement itself.

Spector said the goal of the group is to create an educational coalition that oversees the work of the board of education, and investigates what they do to ensure that the educational product developed in the district is still a high point in the township.

“We see that over the last decade, we have lost ground to other school districts in the areas of class size, program offerings and test scores,” she said.

For the future of the organization, Spector said, they are focusing on reviewing the positions of the current board of education members, particularly before and after the upcoming elections.

“We are very concerned of possible political interference as this year’s candidate election occurs on general election day, a historic first,” she said.

What do you think of this new organization? Will it be helpful to have a watchful eye on the board of education?