5 vying for 3 seats on Stanhope school board

Five candidates will compete for three seats on the Stanhope Board of Education in the Nov. 7 election.

Mattia Scharfstein, the board vice president, is seeking re-election to a three-year term. Also running for the two seats with three-year terms are Avery Quayle Badolato and Carmen Pico.

Yacoub Yaghnam, who was appointed to the board in February, faces Lana Leguia in a contest for one seat with a two-year term.

Here are the candidates’ statements:

AVERY QUAYLE BADOLATO

Why are you running for the Board of Education?

I am currently serving on the Board of Education, having been appointed to fill a vacant seat earlier this year.

When I initially submitted my name to the board for consideration, I did so because to me, there’s nothing more important than helping our young people learn, grow and reach their full potential. I believe that a high-quality education is necessary to achieve this.

I wanted to play a part in helping our students succeed and creating an environment where every student can thrive.

While all of that still holds true, my motivation for wanting to continue to be a board member is rooted in a genuine desire to contribute to the efficient management of our district and the betterment of our community.

Serving on the Board of Education provides a way to actively contribute to the enhancement of our schools while ensuring that each student receives the finest education possible.

What are the top three things you aim to accomplish if elected?

Prioritizing students: Always placing the needs and well-being of students at the forefront of all decision-making processes. This includes striving to enhance the overall standard of education and fostering an inclusive and equitable environment that promotes student achievement while providing equal access to education opportunities and support.

Cultivating school-community relationships: Actively working to strengthen partnerships between the school district and the local community for mutual benefit. This includes engaging with students, parents, educators and the broader community and seeking their input and feedback to make well-informed decisions that benefit everyone involved.

Ensuring accountability and transparency: Advocating for a culture of responsibility and openness in all board actions and decisions. This includes ensuring that taxpayer funds are being used efficiently and effectively; ensuring that board decisions are made with careful consideration of diverse perspectives; promoting transparent communication by providing easy access to information about board activities, policies and decisions; and identifying ways to collect feedback from students, parents and community members so that it can be used to inform board decisions and help address concerns promptly.

What makes you the best candidate for this position?

My daughter is currently a student at Stanhope’s Valley Road School. As a parent, I have first-hand knowledge of the experiences of students and parents in the school system. I believe I’m the best candidate for this position for several reasons:

Community dedication: I have been a proud member of the Stanhope community for over 13 years during which time I’ve actively engaged in various community initiatives.

My involvement with the Stanhope HSA, my tenure as a class parent multiple times and my role on the Stanhope Recreation Commission demonstrate my commitment to the betterment of our local community.

Additionally, my long-term membership and current position as vice president of the Stanhope Fire Department Ladies Auxiliary underline my dedication to serving our town.

Professional expertise: As the head of marketing for a technology solutions provider, I have a wealth of experience that qualifies me for a position on the Stanhope Board of Education.

My professional background has helped me hone crucial skills, including effective communication, strategic thinking and an understanding of diverse audiences. These skills directly align with the responsibilities of a board member, where listening to and representing the interests of students, parents and teachers are paramount.

Stakeholder advocacy: My professional experience has taught me how to actively listen to the needs and concerns of various stakeholders, a skill that is invaluable when advocating for the best interests of Stanhope’s students.

I understand the importance of representing the voices of students, parents and teachers to make well-informed decisions that positively impact our educational community.

CARMEN PICO

Why are you running for the Board of Education?

With my experience in education, I can bring a new perspective to the district.

What are the top three things you aim to accomplish if elected?

1. To have more parent involvement.

2. Ensure every child gets the quality education they deserve.

3. Have an open dialogue between faculty and parents.

What makes you the best candidate for this position?

I feel that my years of community service make me the perfect fit to serve on the school board. I have two grandchildren in Valley Road School.

Background and qualifications

Here are some of my community service activities:

• Member of Moms for Liberty

• U.S. Army veteran

• Member, Stanhope Board of Health

• Past member, Randolph Board of Education

• Former member, Stanhope Board of Adjustment

• Past member, Randolph Fire Department

• Little League umpire for 50 years

MATTIA SCHARFSTEIN

I am an incumbent running for the Board of Education in Stanhope, where I have been serving for eight years.

During the past few years, our board has worked with our community to accomplish amazing things for our children, including completing a strategic plan and passing a referendum, all without raising the school portion of our taxes.

We have almost completed construction on an Innovation Lab, which offers our students amazing hands-on educational experiences with a green-screen broadcasting booth, 3D printing and a maker space.

We renovated our bathrooms and roof, upgraded our classroom technology to include smart boards, and continued our one-to-one Chromebook program, which was essential during the pandemic.

Still to come is a new HVAC system and renovation of our science lab for the middle school students!

In partnership with our other sending districts and with Lenape Valley Regional High School, we are in our first year of a program that allows our eighth-graders to take a high school-level class at Lenape as a “0” period before their day at Valley Road School begins.

I am excited about everything our school has to offer and hope to continue to increase the educational opportunities and experiences for our students during the next three years.

I am a certified Master Board Member, having completed designation through the New Jersey School Boards Association programs.

I have served in many capacities in my time on the board so far, including as a chairwoman of each of our committees, as a member of the negotiations committee twice, as the county president of the Sussex County School Board Association and as a member of the board of directors of the New Jersey School Board Association.

I am the current vice president of our Board of Education and plan to continue to serve in any capacity I can!

LANA LEGUIA

Why are you running for the Board of Education?

It is important to serve. It is important to give back to your community. What greater place is there to have an impact than with the future of the children in your community?

Where we are right now as a society, it is vital to know who your school board members are and to engage with them. I think it’s key to the well-being of the children for there to be diversity of thought in school boards.

I want to help maintain implementations that have proven to be working and change things that aren’t for the better.

What are the top three things you aim to accomplish if elected?

Educate, empower and transparency. Those have always been my goals with everything I do.

I would like to educate the community on the purpose of a Board of Education and empower parents, tax payers and citizens of all ages to participate in their local BOE.

As elected officials, we are the community’s voice in the matters of budget, curriculum, policy standards, picking a superintendent and overall implementation of the vision for the school district’s future.

Who is on your school district’s board affects everyone in the community whether you have children attending public school or not.

I would like to activate parents to start attending school board meetings as well as social media outreach from the school board to keep the community updated on board decisions and future issues being discussed.

School board decisions should absolutely prioritize the children and their well-being.

I think it can be easy to forget BOE decisions also affect citizens who may not have children attending public school: the taxpayer, the homeschooler and the student. I want to hear everyone’s voice.

What makes you the best candidate for this position?

My skills for communication and problem-solving coupled with my unique perspective and eagerness to leave a positive impact in my community make me an excellent candidate for school board.

I am transparent in my motivations and will go to the ends of the earth to follow through on my promises.

I care very deeply about children, their safety, their access to tools for success and their future.

YACOUB YAGHNAM

One of the many reasons for my candidacy is to give back to the community that I call home.

I am running to make a positive impact on all children in the community, not solely on my own.

As an incumbent, championing transparency and communication, it falls on the board to provide a rigorous learning environment that will seamlessly propel students to the next level.

If elected, I am committed to be an advocate for the public.

Topics such as politics should have no place in our educational system. My decision-making process is firmly rooted in facts, data and feedback. Every decision will revolve around creating the optimal learning environment for each child.

Three objectives I aspire to achieve if elected are extending the current superintendent’s contract, successfully negotiating the upcoming teacher’s agreement and assisting in the implementation of a modern curriculum that integrates the new STEAM lab.

My extensive professional experience, coupled with my tenure on the board, instills in me the confidence that I am the most qualified candidate.

I have been employed at a senior level for more than a decade by the nation’s largest multifamily real-estate owner, managing a work force of 22 employees, serving more than 2,000 residents and overseeing assets exceeding $200 million.

My robust background in project management, budgeting, execution and forecasting will continue to be an asset for the district.

My love for Stanhope and its people runs deep. I am a proud alum of Valley Road and Lenape Valley. Stanhope is a place my parents call home and where I met my wife in high school.

Relocating back to Stanhope was a lifelong goal, wanting to ensure my children are surrounded by the positive environment the community embodies.