Hillsborough Board Of Education General Election 2025: John Fluet

HILLSBOROUGH, NJ — Hillsborough's general election on Nov. 4 has six candidates running for three open seats on the Township Board of Education.

Board members Jean Trujillo, Joel Davis, and Danny Lee are all running for re-election to the board.

The candidate field includes three challengers: John Fluet, N. Jannah Hameed, and Marc Ehrenkrantz.

Are you running for office in Hillsborough? Contact Alexis Tarrazi at alexis.tarrazi@patch.com for information on being featured in a candidate's profile and submitting campaign announcements to Bridgewater Patch.

John Fluet

Age: 19

Town of residence: Hillsborough

Position sought: Board of Education

Family: I live with my parents, one of my older brothers, and our adopted dog named J.J. who's breed we're currently unsure of. My other older brother lives in Plainfield.

Education: Hillsborough High School graduate, class of 2025, and currently an education major at Raritan Valley Community College.

Occupation: Full time student

Previous or current elected appointed office: N/A

Campaign website:

• Website: votefluet.com
• Facebook: facebook.com/profile.php?id=61579693894120

Why are you seeking election for the Hillsborough Township Board of Education?

I'm seeking a seat on the Board of Ed. because, as a graduate of our school system from just a few months ago, I've seen everything Hillsborough schools have to offer, but I've also seen a number of issues that were present. Fights are on the rise, our physical education is lackluster, the administration greatly failed some of our brightest and best students in AP French just last year, and English teachers are wholly underpaid for the critical work they do.

Furthermore, as a former Boy Scout, an Eagle Scouts, and a devout Christian, I firmly believe in serving my fellow man in any capacity that I can. I feel that my firsthand experience in Hillsborough schools has put me in a better position to serve on the Board than any of my opponents in this race, and that's exactly what I intend to do if elected this November.

School finances have been continuously discussed in the district. The district recently took advantage of the state's tax Incentive Aid program which increases the tax levy. What did you think of this decision?

I strongly opposed this decision, and would oppose further increases if elected. Property taxes are already high enough in NJ as it is, especially in Hillsborough. I personally know some people that have plans to move out because of this increase, some of which are close personal friends that I'm saddened to see go.

However, my main concern with the tax increase is not the severing of friendships. It is instead the risk of being entirely counterproductive, and actually worsening our budget issues. If the property taxes are too high, both residents and small businesses will begin to leave, which will shrink the amount of taxpayers, and ultimately reduce tax revenue.

Do you have any comments or suggestions on how the district could handle its budget?

We must try more cost saving measures before immediately resorting to a tax increase. For instance, my platform, which can be viewed on my website, has a number of provisions that would demand an increase in spending. Still, at no point do I advocate for an increase in taxes.

I believe the Board should recommend a number of cost saving measures to the Township Committee. These measures would include expanding shared services with neighboring towns, creating a Government Energy Aggregation, taking advantage of the free energy audits from NJ's Clean Energy Program, and refinancing our debt. Through these measures, my platform wouldn't require any kind of tax increase. If elected, I would bring this cost saving mindset to the Board.

The district is preparing to move forward with redistricting of students due to rising student enrollment. What do you think about this?

I wholeheartedly support this measure. Many of the high school hallways came to total standstills on a number of occasions. Our schools are far, far too crowded to provide the proper learning experience that is due from them.

I would support this measure even if enrollment was stagnant, as our schools are already too crowded. The fact that enrollment is on the rise means we have to act right now on this issue, and the redistricting does just that.

What other issues do you feel need to be tackled in the school district?

There are a number of issues that I'd like to address as a Board member. The first is the increase in physical altercations, which I have a two pronged solution to. Firstly, we need a drastic increase in security presence and patrolling, with an officer on every hundred section of the high school. I would also advocate for a more proactive approach to student mental health, with an increase in counseling staff and screenings. This uptick in fights is not a disease, it is a symptom of the larger mental health crisis our nations children face today.

Secondly, our physical education is simply not up to snuff. The two models I've experienced have been grading on athletic ability, and grading on participation, which were both ineffective. Participation was an easy 100%, and athletic ability simply wasn't fair to students who simply don't have athletic interests or body types. What we instead need is an effort based grading system. Regardless of whether or not a student is athletic to begins with, if they exhibit genuine signs of improvement, they will be given a grade that reflects that. Furthermore, many students would deliberately not wear sneakers to get out of gym, and would take the hit on their grade. This rule must be done away with. We must also tighten our health curriculum with lessons on hygiene and nutrition, and we must except student athletes from gym classes that would be redundant and unnecessary for them.

Third, we need to make sure the AP French incident never occurs again. Last year's AP French class was completely let down by the administration. For the first two months or so of class, there was no teacher, and we were given easy A busywork by the language department. When we finally did get a teacher, he was entirely unqualified, and we learned hardly anything. Just about all he did was read a French article to us, and have us read it back to him. We had one test per Marking Period that was around French I or French II level, and barely any other grades. To make matter worse, he completely vanished after Spring Break. We weren't even given the dignity of busywork then, and nearly half the class opted out of the AP Exam, with half of those who took it probably not even getting a 3/5. We were then left to our own devices for the remainder of the year, and were given free 100's for the Marking Period. This is bad enough in a normal CP class, but this was an Advanced Placement class, with the high stakes of the AP test. To make matters worse, good parents that were concerned for their children's education and sent a number of emails weren't even getting timely replies. We need several measures to ensure this never happens again, including but not limited to performance reviews of administrators and incompetent teachers, transparent hiring and firing practices, and response standard and deadlines.

Finally, we need to better compensate our English teachers. I've known many English teachers over the course of my education in Hillsborough, and a good number of them have to work second jobs make ends meet. This is disgraceful. English teachers are some of the most important, heavily worked, and underpaid teachers in the country. Their grading process is much more personal and attentive, and they teach what is arguably the most important subject for an English speaking county. We must pay them more, as well as lighten their workload through smaller class sizes.

What sets you apart from the challenging candidates?

I have the most recent experience with Hillsborough schools than any other candidate, and I even have a number of close friends still in our schools. I am even currently studying education to one day be a teacher myself. This course of study is invaluable to serving on the Board. Finally, I've been dedicated to serving my community through my Boy Scout Troop for as long as I can remember. For my Eagle Scout project, I built a new sign for the Flagtown Firehouse. I was the Assistant Senior Patrol Leader of Service for my Troop, and ran all of our service projects for the entire year of 2022. In 2023, I was elected the Senior Patrol Leader of the Troop, which is the highest Scout leadership role. In my time with the Scouts, I've amassed over 200 hours of community service, and being elected to the Board would be a continuation of my service to this town.

Is there anything else you would like to share about yourself or your campaign?

More than anything else, I want to serve my fellow man, and leave the world a better place than I found it. As a graduate of our schools, an education major, and a long time active member of this community through my record of community service and my membership with Neshanic Reformed Church, I stand firm in the belief that serving on your Board of Education is the best possible way for me to fulfill this goal. With our schools currently at a crossroads and in a crisis of leadership, I am the best possible candidate to return our schools to sensibility, sensitivity, and security. Now let's Break the Mold!