Election 2022: Renata Brand, Freehold Twp. Board of Education

FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP, NJ — Renata Brand is one of six candidates seeking three full-term seats on the Freehold Township Board of Education in the Nov. 8 general electi0n.

In these profiles, candidates provide voters with background about themselves and their positions on the issues, as they see them. Patch is publishing individual profiles leading up to the election and allows candidates to express their views with little editing.

Brand says the school district should "bring the classroom back to basics," and she also proposes weekly updates on a student's progress to address learning issues early on. As a mother of grown children and grandmother of nine, she brings personal experience with children to the race, she says. She is also a retired Certified Public Accountant with expertise in budgeting.

Read more from candidate Renata Brand:

Name: Renata Brand

Age: 68

Town of residence: Freehold Township

Position Sought: Freehold Township School Board K-8 Grade

Previous experience in office: None

Campaign designation: Parental Knowledge and Consent

Family: Four adult sons; grandmother to nine grandchildren

Education: B.S. in Accounting, graduated Summa Cum Laude, Brooklyn College; Certified Public Accountant, 1981

Occupation: Retired Certified Public Accountant

Why do you want to run for the school board and what in your experience or background prepares you for election:

My priorities for this election are to bring the classroom back to basics. Education must
focus on teaching our children reading, writing, arithmetic and S.T.E.M. (Science, Technology,
Engineering and Math).

Government should not be imposing moral, ethical social or economic values on children. That job belongs to the parent. Parents have Rights that must be respected and promoted. Schools must return to being a place of knowledge and facts not of ideology or politics.

I have raised 4 adult sons as well as being a grandmother and caregiver to nine grandchildren. I have 40 + years of experience with children and know how they feel and react to situations.

In addition, I have 30+ years in public and private accounting. I will bring a fresh set of eyes to the budget review and approval process. I am independent and come to the school board with the good of the children as my first and only priority. The future belongs to our children and they must be given the best opportunities available.

In addition, since I have always worked in non-government sectors it am not influenced by the cronyism and favoritism that can exists at the government level.

Name what you see as the top issues currently facing your district and how you plan to address them. These can be local issues and/or statewide issues:

The central issue that I see facing my district as well as the state of New Jersey is the
government hijacking of the curriculum. The government has taken an active and dominating
role in imposing its own version of social, ethical, moral and economic values in the classroom.

Teaching values should be done by the parents not the government. We should have “public
schools,” meaning all children having the right to a good education. We should not have
“government schools,” meaning the government teaching only the values that are controlled
by the government.

I believe education should relate facts and data, then teach how to analyze the information so that children can make an intelligent decision. Example, “Climate Change” has evolved from “Global Warming." There are thousands of scientists worldwide that do not subscribe to “Climate Change” as a cause of hurricanes or tornados. Their position is that the climate is always changing. Parents that object to government interference are labelled as “domestic terrorists.” Parental Rights are superior to Governmental Authority.

What changes or improvements do you see for the district that could enhance educational life and is there a way you might accomplish that:

The changes or improvements that I see for the district that could enhance educational life would be a weekly assessment of the students’ performance in order to address any academic problems early on in the year and address them with strong intervention. Any student flagged as being at risk should immediately be given individual attention and support.

This process can be best accomplished with the participation of the parent/caregiver. Their
knowledge of the issues and close cooperation with the school faculty is a winning
collaboration for student success.

In order to accomplish this goal I would encourage parental communication with the
teaching staff. We should organize and maintain an outreach program to parents either
through text or email or both.

Parents are the ultimate caregivers and by necessity should be the ultimate go-to person. In addition, I would work closely with the other members of the school board in order to promote communication and conversation on the issues raised by the parents and faculty.

Candidates for Freehold Township Board of Education:

Full Term - Vote for Three

• Renata Brand, Parental Knowledge Consent
• Jeffrey D. Williams, Students Before Politics
• Faith Edwards
• Michael Matthews
• Elena S. O'Sullivan, Educator for Education
• Jennifer K. Patten

Candidates who have not received their request for profile information from Patch should check their spam folders or can contact Pat McDaniel at patricia.mcdaniel@patch.com for another email of our candidate questions.