Open Letter to Community

By Jeffrey Mester

Letter to friends and neighbors detailing my decision to run.

As many of you know by now, I am running for a seat on the Board of Education. I am asking for your vote. The election is on Tuesday May 15th at Greeley High School. I also need you to spread the word to your friends, neighbors and fellow Chappaquidians to vote for me. Typically, there are approximately 1,200-1,500 votes registered for the election. Every vote counts.

I have chosen to run for four fundamental reasons. I am passionate about education and its importance to our future. I believe in the obligation to serve or contribute to your community. I believe my life experience, professional experience, and education give me a unique but fundamentally important viewpoint needed on the Board. Most important, I want to give a voice to the silent majority; to those who are not part of the 1,200 who typically vote for the Board.

I choose to run now because I can run without an agenda other than serving the entire community's needs. I share the community's agenda of providing our children the best opportunity to learn, to grow, and to mature. I also respect the need for fiscal efficiency and restraint.

I recognize the significant burden of being responsible for a community's desire to have a local educational infrastructure that not only seeks to educate academically, but also to instill in our children a sense of civic responsibility. Our children must learn to act ethically and to accept differences in others. The schools must guide social development, foster critical thinking, and inspire a love for learning.

I recognize the need for accountability. The Board of Education is accountable to the community. The Board must set policy and plan for the long-run. It must create an atmosphere that encourages learning as well as responsibility. In setting policy, the Board must ensure a culture of openness. The education process must be a partnership among the administrators, educators, parents and students. Communication is critical.

Quite frankly, a lot of what a Board member does is financial. Budgeting and allocating resources consumes a majority of the time spent as a Board member. The job requires a person with business and Board experience. It requires a person who can make practical, logical and reasoned decisions. The job requires a person who has extensive experience with budgeting; a person who has had bottom line fiscal responsibility. A Board member must work well with others.

I enter this race with the goal of ensuring that all the community's opinions are heard and considered prior to decision making. I would seek out your advice and counsel. I welcome your input.

So again, I ask for your help. Please vote for me on May 15th. Please feel free to forward this email to anyone you feel it appropriate. Your vote counts. Exercise your right to be heard.

Sincerely,

Jeff

Jeffrey Mester