Fair Lawn BOE: Nine Candidates Vie For Three Seats

FAIR LAWN, NJ - In Fair Lawn, nine candidates are vying for three seats on the local board of education this year.

Incumbents Cindy Jo Quackenbush, Michael Rosenberg and Mary Monahan Wallace are seeking re-election on Nov. 5. Their seats are being challenged by newcomers Vladimir Itkin, Rita Fayvelevich, Humza Yousuf, David Tratner, Neha Kapoor Baxi and Lisa MacClements.

Each candidate was asked to fill out a profile in advance of Election Day for publication. See below for their answers.

Cindy Jo Quackenbush

• Age: Not provided
• Years in town: 25 years
• Occupation:Administrative Assistant for accounting firm, which includes audits of public and private schools
• Public offices held: Board of Education member for the last 12 years, including two years as president
• Family:Two children, Joseph V. Yuskaitis, Jr., 29, a graduate of Fair Lawn school district and currently deployed with Army National Guard, and Jessica Yuskaitis Messin, 28, also a Fair Lawn school district graduate.
• Community activities:Fair Lawn Sunrise Rotarian 1 year of service.
• Why are you running: I have served on the Fair Lawn Board of Education for 12 years, 2 years as past president. I have had the best interest of ALL CHILDREN at heart and wish to continue to contribute to the future of ALL CHILDREN. We have a district with a special education program that is known around the country. I am so proud of all our programs in Fair Lawn and can say that we prepare our youth as they go out into the world. I am dedicated, passionate and work tremendously hard for our town because I love Fair Lawn and our community. I believe that we need diverse perspectives on the board so we can make decisions based on all points of view. I have worked for an accounting firm for the past 28 years that audits school finances. I bring my knowledge of the audits to the table and share with my colleagues the many aspects of a school district audit. I have been involved in the district since 1995. My love for the district keeps me focused and working hard.

Neha Baxi

• Age: 37
• Years in town: Not provided
• Occupation: Manager, HR Compliance
• Public offices held: None
• Family: Married, with two children, whom attend Lyncrest school
• Community activities: Girl Scouts, Lyncrest PTO member, Fair Lawn All Indian Moms, Class Parent, National Co-Chair of Women’s Innovation Network (WIN), an employee resource group focused on attracting and developing female professionals and achieving a healthy work balance for all employees.
• Why are you running: I am looking to bring a fresh and diverse perspective to the board. Well-versed in policy creation, conflict management and organizational culture initiatives, I offer a unique leadership skill set to our district. The key concerns today are the district’s growing pains, including student placement, health and safety. I have over 15 years of experience managing human resources compliance programs for technology, finance and academic organizations.

Michael Rosenberg

• Age: 54
• Years in town: 46
• Occupation Middle School Social Studies Teacher
• Public offices held: Served for 12 years on the Fair Lawn school board
• Family: Married wife Ellen, two sons Anthony and Dan, 5 grandchildren;1 attends FLHS, 3 attend Forrest School
• Community activities: Life member Fair Lawn Rescue squad, CERT, Fair Lawn Sunrise Rotary, Scout leader for over 35 years,
• Why are you running: I am running to continue the work I have done for the past 12 years and to see the expansion of our school system through. I have 4 generations of family living here, in this town that I love and grew up in. My in-laws are Seniors, my wife and I live here, and now my son lives here with his wife and five children. I am an educator and public education is not only a job for me but my passion. We pay high taxes in Bergen County and I am able to see it from every perspective. Our town has grown. There are over 1000 more students than when I started and Fair Lawn has become increasingly more divided. We are a diverse community and I think my leadership, service, and most of all experience will serve Fair Lawn well. I understand and I am able to have an objective view.

Mary Monahan Wallace

• Age: Not provided
• Years in town: 41 years
• Occupation: Retired educator. Worked for 29 years a teacher in Fair Lawn and overall 45 years in education.
• Public offices held: Has served for the last 15 years on the Fair Lawn school board
• Family: Widow, with one 38-year-old-daughter, a Fair Lawn school district graduate, and three grandchildren, ages 9, 11 and 13.
• Why are you running: I’m running for reelection to the Board of Education because I strongly belief that education is the most important gift we can give to ALL CHILDREN. It is our responsibility to see that ALL CHILDREN have the tools and the opportunity to become productive members of society whether in a profession or a trade. I have committed my life to that belief. I have brought a unique and multifaceted perspective to the board in the 15 years I have served including 2 ½ years as president. I have 40 years in education, 29 years teaching grades 7 – 12 here in Fair Lawn. I spent many years involved in training teacher both in the classroom and at University level. I am a parent, grandparent, taxpayer and senior citizen. We need diverse perspectives on the board so we can make decisions based on all points of view.

Vladimir Itkin

• Age: 47
• Years in town: 16 years
• Occupation: Actuary
• Public offices held: None
• Family: Married; three children, aged 14, 13, and 4. The oldest goes to Bergen County Academies High School, the 13-year old goes to TJ Middle School, and the youngest will go to Radburn next year.
• Community activities: Member of PTA
• Why are you running: 1. I am a financial professional. With the school budget being over $110M a year, I believe the Board needs somebody with the financial knowledge. 2. I have three daughters. The youngest is just 4 years old. I want to make sure that the excellent schools of our town maintain their quality for the years to come.

Rita Fayvelevich

• Age:33
• Years in town: 19 years
• Occupation: High School Mathematics teacher
• Public offices held: None
• Family: Not provided
• Community activities: Not provided
• Why are you running: I want to create free SAT prep classes which increase students’ SAT scores, leading to scholarships and better college admissions. This is currently not offered for free as an elective in the high school, and could be taught by current teachers without additional spending Students in grades K-8 who are within 2 miles and grades 9-12 who are within 2.5 miles of the school should be provided an opportunity to have safe transportation to school at the parents’ expense to increase safety and accessibility. The board's budget currently can only be seen in the library for one school year. I plan to have the budget for the past 10 years be on the district website and an annual comparison between our school and other nearby districts to see how our spending compares and analyze areas we are not spending efficiently. The Board should be posting the Board of Education (BOE) meeting agenda a week before the meeting. In addition, members of our community should be able to write any questions or concerns, with the option to be anonymous. They will be able to submit these questions to the board through a website submission form which will be answered during the meetings for those community members that can't attend. For communication about meeting times and major board votes, I want to create a twitter account for the BOE. This will along with the district website, provide real time updates to the community of Fair Lawn on major board updates and decisions. Any votes that have a major increase to spending or impact to students should be available immediately to our parents and the public. Increased fiscal transparency starts with making all of this information easily accessible.

David Tratner

• Age: 50
• Years in town: 11 years
• Occupation: public relations/marketing/social media consultant
• Public offices held: Fair Lawn Board of Education, 2014
• Family: Married with two children, 14 and 9, in 9th and 4th grade, respectively in the Fair Lawn School District
• Community activities: Fair Lawn Library Board of Directors; Fair Lawn Recreation Fields Committee; Fair Lawn All Sports Coach (soccer, basketball, baseball); Fair Lawn High School Marching Band Roadie; PTO volunteer; former member of the Fair Lawn Jewish Center Board of Directors.
• Why are you running: I'm running because I want to be part of #newleadership for Fair Lawn schools during this era of great change. Fair Lawn needs more Board Trustees who are active parents with children currently in Fair Lawn schools. As a communications professional with experience in both non-profit and advocacy, I will lean on my expertise to facilitate more effective engagement with the community. That includes a better understanding of the budgeting process and a higher level of accountability for the administration in all areas. I will fully support improving key district programs such as REACH and Beforecare/Aftercare and plan on leading the way to constantly confirm their progress. I'm genuinely excited about Fair Lawn's transition to a 21st century "Future Ready" learning environment and will look to push our administration to strive to be ahead of the curve. My goal is to carry the torch of district excellence for the next generation of Fair Lawn students by fostering a culture that allows our schools to maximize every child's academic potential in a secure, friendly environment. Communication Leadership Engagement Accountability Responsibility. The choice is CLEAR. I have been your advocate, and now I'm asking for your vote on Nov. 5.

Lisa MacClements

• Age: 49
• Years in town: 25
• Occupation: Event & Business Manager for Meals on Wheels North Jersey
• Public offices held: None
• Family: Married to Scott for 15 years, with a 13-year-old son and 11-year-old daughter - both attend Memorial Middle School in Fair Lawn.
• Community activities: PTA President (2 terms; 2015-2019), Recreation and Travel Softball Coach (5 years), Co-founder, FLHS Class of 1988 alumni charity group (since 2015), Vice President, PTA Council (current)
• Why are you running: I have two children in middle school and I am running because I want to be part of new leadership that will focus on the reality-based needs of moving the district forward. I was a two-term PTA President of an elementary school 501(c)(3) non-profit, managing a budget that maintained funds to provide annual educational enhancement programs, assemblies and social events to a student population of approximately 300 students for four consecutive years. I have an exceptional understanding of the day-to-day operations inside our school buildings and can identify opportunities to improve operational efficiencies and explore ways to supplement our primary budget. I am the VP of the district PTA Council and have long-standing partnerships with the PTA/PTO leaders from all ten district schools, sharing information about the needs and challenges that face each individual school and their respective student/parent communities. I will bring this invaluable insight to the Board. I have an extensive communications background and as a trustee, I will promote positive and productive exchanges of ideas and concerns among the trustees and more comprehensive intercommunication between the Board, the administration, and the community.