Meet The Cherry Hill School Board Candidate: Jen Fleisher

CHERRY HILL, NJ — Jen Fleisher is one of seven candidates running for three open seats on the Cherry Hill Public School District Board of Education.

Patch sent questions to all candidates in the race, and is running profiles for each candidate that returned a response. Responses run exactly as they were submitted, with minor edits for grammatical errors.

Read below to learn more about Jen Fleisher and her platform for the upcoming election, which takes place Nov. 2:

Name: Jen Fleisher

Age (as of Election Day): 51

Town of residence: Cherry Hill, NJ

Position sought: Cherry Hill Board of Education Member

Family: Husband, Dave- 3 Children, ages 24, 21, 17 and Rosie, our dog

Does anyone in your family work or attend school in the district?: Yes, I have a son who is a Senior at Cherry Hill High School East.

Education: B.S.- Exercise Physiology, Ithaca College

Occupation: Health Education Consultant

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office: None

Why are you seeking elective office?
As the daughter of a teacher and school nurse, I am an unwavering believer in the value of public education and the impact that a role in educational leadership can have on peoples’ lives. For the past 18+ years, I have focused on improving Cherry Hill Public Schools for our kids. I was honored to serve as the Chair of the Cherry Hill Zone PTA, been the PTA President at both Stockton Elementary and Rosa Middle Schools and a member on the PTA Executive Board at Beck Middle School while also sitting on multiple district-wide committees. Known as a collaborative leader, I believe in treating people with dignity and respect. While realistic, I am optimistic about the future and prepared to roll up my sleeves for the students and families of Cherry Hill.

The single most pressing issue facing our board is the upcoming Bond Referendum, and this is what I intend to do about it.
We need 21st Century school facilities in Cherry Hill, and right now we have a long way to go. I believe we need a comprehensive bond to make a major impact on our facilities. However, before going out with a bond, we owe it to the community to make a compelling case on why this is good for the schools, and good for our town. I’ve found over the years that our community is willing to rally around a cause, but it’s incumbent on the Superintendent and the Board to present an engaging and exciting vision and a plan to our residents and taxpayers. If we’ve learned anything from the pandemic, it’s that technology isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity. All of us in the district, have seen first-hand the degrading conditions of our buildings and the need for basic construction improvements. The facilities used for our extra-curricular activities matter, too. We also need to help our residents appreciate the impact good schools have on property values. So, in the end, if it’s good for our schools and kids, it’s good for every Cherry Hill resident, too.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?
For over 18 years, I have worked with the past 5 Cherry Hill Superintendents, numerous Board of Education members, multitude of people in the Cherry Hill District Administration, our principals and our amazing teachers. Whether we are working on a national education program, a district-wide initiative or a fun school event, I appreciated collaborating with many types of people around our diverse district. I believe this unique perspective and experience will help me immensely if elected to the Board of Education.

Experience: In addition to the leadership positions mentioned above, I also led the Zone PTA’s District Committees on Character Education, Health and Safety and helped create the Fair Funding Committee. As a community leader, I collaborated on Stockton’s, East’s and the Cherry Hill District’s successful bids for the State and National Schools and District of Character. I am the former director of the Cherry Hill Drug and Alcohol Alliance, current member of the Camden County Addiction Task Force, and I sit on the Ithaca College Alumni Association Board of Directors. I also have had the honor to serve on the National Advisory Board of Foundations, Inc.—a non-profit committed to improving education and supporting educators in disadvantaged communities.

Equality in education: The Board of Education can support many ways to help create a district that is fully engaged in bridging opportunity gaps. This can be done by encouraging innovative curriculum approaches or being proponents of differentiated instruction for students. Supporting the teachers with strong, creative and outside resources can also help bolster the classroom engagement. Lastly, we must look at the health of our students in helping them achieve. Student voice in Cherry Hill led to the creation of a School Start Time Committee that will convene this year. I fully support student voice and applaud researching and instituting new start times. Overall, we need to acknowledge all students being at various levels and learning differently, but a more unique, personalized curriculum-based approach may help bridge the opportunity gap and create equity amongst the students throughout our district.

School funding: Fighting for complete funding of the Cherry Hill school district is top priority for me. I helped support the creation of the Cherry Hill Fair Funding Committee and have met with local and state legislators and with the Department of Education Commissioner to help stand up for the Cherry Hill District. Though we are beginning to see our state funding return, so far to the tune of $19.5 million this year, we have lost more than 200 million in funding over the years. We need to hold the NJ Legislature to its promise that Cherry Hill will receive its full funding of $29.5 million by 2023-24. If elected, I will remain a Fair Funding champion for our children and our district.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?
One of the areas that was most gratifying to me during my tenure as Zone PTA Chair, was the productive and close working relationship with the leadership of CHSEPTA- the Cherry Hill Special Education PTA.

With 20-25 percent of our students having a 504 or IEP, we need to ensure Special Education remains a top priority. In fact, I applaud the District for recently hiring a Director of Special Education.

One of the areas that I believe that can still be improved is playgrounds in our schools. All 13 playgrounds in our schools need to be ADA accessible, whether paid through grants or capital improvements.

Another inclusive way Special Ed can be helped is by making sure there are Honors and AP classes with ICR- In Class Resources - for special needs students with learning challenges such as dyslexia to allow them to help them prepare for college.

Working with the amazing families of Special Needs children, they have taught me, whether it is a school event, communications or when creating new curriculum, to be sure and look through their lens also. It is a wonderful way to get to know the needs of our entire community.

The best advice ever shared with me was: “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” -Mahatma Gandhi

During this time of unprecedented challenges for our schools, students & community in the midst of this pandemic, strength can come from building bridges, communication and teamwork, not from focusing on our differences. We must remember our common goal of making Cherry Hill a strong, vibrant and wonderful town in which to live and send our children to school. That is strength. That is what I want our kids to see.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?
If elected, my priorities are fiscal responsibility, equity and inclusion, and dedicating the resources to develop the District of the Future. But ideas alone won’t get us there. I believe we need leaders with the temperament and tenacity to build consensus, and get things done.

I’ve dedicated the last 18 years to volunteer leadership to improve the educational experience of our kids and our district. But my candidacy is about the future. I believe we have our work cut out for us on many fronts—navigating through COVID, bringing people together, fighting for fair funding, and sharpening our vision for what Cherry Hill Schools can be. I’m all-in. I ask for your support, and hope to have the opportunity to serve the residents of Cherry Hill and to move our schools forward.