Stacy Gray For Board Of Education

Experience is defined in two ways. Experience is knowledge or skill in a particular job or activity. Experience is also something that you do or that happens to you, especially something important that affects you. It is something personally encountered, undergone, or lived through. Let’s first talk knowledge and skill.

• I am currently a teacher in a K-6 district interacting with students and staff daily (since 1995)
• I have a child currently attending Deptford Township Schools
• I was elected and served 2 terms on the BOE (2013-2015, 2017-2019)
• I was Vice President of the BOE in 2014
• I have served on every committee of the board and was the chair of curriculum throughout my tenure
• During my tenure the STEM, BioMed and Business Academy were implemented
• I most recently served on my district’s Restart/Road Back Committee in response to the reopening of schools
• I have experience in curriculum writing, strategic planning, technology integration, and am very fluent in policy and board functions
• I have advocated for a research based character education and anti-bullying program
• I will speak up, ask questions, and make informed decisions
• I am currently a member of the district’s SEPAG and Parents of Progress committees

I have experience! I work hard, am dedicated, passionate about education, and am goal/results oriented. Each candidate has experience. There are no candidates that haven’t served on the school board. However, the difference is in clearly communicating, setting specific goals, and true transparency with all stakeholders. That difference is why you should vote for me! If you have seen my posts here or on social media you know that I rarely miss a BOE meeting and try to provide updates to our community regularly. I am approachable and will respond to your email, follow up, and seek answers. I am not beholden to any political group and will always vote for the most qualified and cost effective professionals and contracts. In my previous posts you can see my vision and goals and I am open minded to suggestions and ideas from the staff, parents and community at large. I truly want our school district to offer as many opportunities as possible to ALL students and for our community to speak of our schools with pride.

Now, let’s talk about the experience, how I have felt after attending board meetings. Sadly, the experience has not met my expectations as a stakeholder. As a former board member, I cringe every meeting when I see an executive session (closed to the public) scheduled before the board even addresses the public agenda. There is rarely a need to enter into an executive session at the beginning of a meeting. If there is an emergent or last minute matter, then yes. However, if the board is holding their committee meetings and keeping up to date with communications with the administration it is not necessary, not common in other districts, nor is it best practice. The worst part is that it truly discourages parents or even public participation and leads to feelings of mistrust. The purpose of the meeting itself is for the public to be privy to board decisions and goals. The board stills has goals from last year on the district website! Perhaps these goals have been discussed in committees or can be OPRA requested from emails, but why the secrecy? The public should not be made to sit LITERALLY for hours before being allowed to observe the board’s decision making process. Additionally, there is no conversation, comments, or very little questions among the board members. The closed session has been about 2 hours lately, while the actual agenda is about 10 minutes. There is little transparency. It is truly inconsiderate and unwelcoming to have parents sit in an empty cafeteria for hours before being able to address the board, when the board can and should handle its closed session business at the end of the meeting. So, although I have confidence and trust in many of the administrators (much more than in the past) the meetings belong to the board and they need to be accountable to how they run THEIR meetings. These experiences with the board and how they conduct business has left parents and me frustrated, disappointed, and shut out. If elected, I will protest this process until it changes back to the way it should be. I will communicate, ask questions and explain my stance on issues. I will also share minutes from committees rather than shelter the public from the progress of and vision for the district. Attendees should leave a board meeting feeling heard, acknowledged, welcomed, relevant, and validated.

Yes, EXPERIENCE matters…..both the skills and knowledge to be an effective board member as well as the personal affect and feeling people encounter when they attend a board meeting.

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