Finally, an Interesting Election for Glassboro Board of Ed
The most contested in a decade.
Every year, 3 of the 9 seats on the Glassboro Board of Education (a.k.a. the “school board”) are up for election. This year we have 8 candidates, more than any election in over a decade. But as usual, there isn’t much information out there on the candidates. Only The Whit, Rowan University’s student newspaper, covered this election so far. But I want more, so I sent some basic questions to each candidate and researched them a bit. I’m a bit late, as voting by mail has already begun and early voting begins this week, but nevertheless.
2024’s Glassboro BoE candidates are (in alphabetical order by last name, not the order in which they’ll appear on your ballot):
Natasha Briggs, tasha.briggs@yahoo.com
Mary Cedrone, msjg4@comcast.net
Lori Dempster, partieofeight@yahoo.com (incumbent)
Kathleen Frangos, kathy.frangos@icloud.com
Ryan C. Hughes, rhughes@rcsj.edu (incumbent, current Vice President)
Stephen Kudless, kudless1976@gmail.com
Antoine Sabb, asabb@gcbgc.org
Andy Savicky, coasavi@gmail.com
Or, if you like, here are the groups of candidates who either appear on yard signs together or otherwise support each others’ campaigns:
Building Bright Futures: Natasha Briggs, Antoine Sabb
Mary Cedrone, Kathleen Frangos
Lori Dempster, Ryan Hughes, Stephen Kudless
Andy Savicky
Now for some context.1
The Board of Ed Matters
The performance of public education in New Jersey stars several actors:
The State legislature passes laws with broad (perhaps vague) language on how to run schools in NJ.
The NJ Department of Education (DoE) writes the regulations that actually detail how districts should follow the law in practice, day-to-day.
Local boards of ed (BoE) adopt policies and sets goals for whatever Federal/State law and DoE regulations don’t cover.
The Superintendent is the chief executive of the school district, responsible for day-to-day school operations, advising the BoE on school/district needs, and implementing BoE policies. They’re accountable to the BoE.
There are other important figures—the Federal government, State Board of Ed, County Superintendent, Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO), teacher and staff unions—but I’ll stop there. Save it for another article. Let’s focus on Glassboro’s BoE.
The BoE is the governing body of the Glassboro Public School District (GPSD) district, that, according to the NJ School Boards Association:
has a dual role: To represent the concerns of the citizens, taxpayers and parents to the school administrators, and to represent the needs of the students and school district to the citizens, taxpayers and parents of the community.
In New Jersey and most states, BoE members are unpaid volunteers, each serving 3-year terms. BoE elections are non-partisan: Candidates have no label indicating any party affiliation on your ballot.2 They may choose slogans to appear next to their name, and those slogans may riff on well-known party slogans, but they probably can’t be exact.
Again, the BoE sets policies that fill in the blanks that Federal/state laws/regulations don’t cover or detail, like dress code and discipline. They also approve the district budget, which in part determines your District School (Property) Tax bill—or your landlord’s, which they likely pass in part along to you.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, school boards have been making national news for controversial decisions regarding history curricula, sex ed, LGBTQ students, and books. For instance: School boards can decide to remove a book from a course or school library after a resident challenges it. According to the American Library Association, challenges to school library books rose 11% in 2023.3 Right next door the Washington Township BoE, voted to remove Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye from a high school freshman honors English course. The Board said they may consider moving it to a higher grade, but I can’t find much info on whether they actually did so. A separate challenge to remove it from the school library failed.
All of this is to say, public interest in school boards has risen exponentially across the country in just a few years—and now it’s Glassboro’s turn.
The Hottest Year On Record
Unsurprisingly, voter turnout is much higher in even-numbered years with Federal elections, like in 2020 when 78.8% of New Jersey’s registered voters voted, or 2022 during Congressional midterms (45.3%). Turnout is typically lower in odd-numbered years, when NJ holds elections for state office, like the last Governors race in 2021 (44.2%) or the state legislature election last year (35.6%).
Obviously, 2024 is quite a high-profile Presidential election year, so one might expect similar turnout to 2020. But what’s especially interesting this year is the how contested our BoE election is: Eight candidates, more than any election in recent memory. (Online records only go back to 2013. See this spreadsheet for some quick info about every BoE election since then.)
Contrast that with 2018, 2020, and 2022, when the BoE elections were uncontested: Each time, 3 candidates ran for 3 seats, and incumbents coasted to reelection. Low competition in school board elections isn’t unique to Glassboro or even New Jersey; a Ballotpedia analysis of 5,400 school board elections held in 2023 found 53% were uncontested.
Meet the Candidates
Thanks for hanging in there. And without further ado.
The “Building Bright Futures” Slate
Natasha Briggs and Antoine Sabb are supporting each others’ campaigns, have a joint Facebook page for their campaign, and share an official slogan that will appear on your ballot—”Building Bright Futures”—so I’m calling them a “slate.”
Neither Briggs nor Sabb responded to requests for comment.
Sabb is the Center Director of the Glassboro Club for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Gloucester County. He posted this statement on Facebook:
Hello Glassboro,
My name is Antoine Sabb and I am running to be a member of the Glassboro school board. Many of you know me as Coach Sabb, and some of you know me as the director of the Boys and Girls Club, but above all else I have been a member of the Glassboro community for over 30 years.
Throughout my life I have always found myself in roles where I can make a difference in the lives of children. This is what drew me to coaching. For the past 25 years I have been coaching youth sports, both football and basketball. I also serve as the director for the Glassboro Boys and Girls club. I am passionate about empowering our youth. I spend my days and most evenings helping the kids in our community. — with Natasha Briggs.
I am running to be a member of the school board because I believe I can lend my voice and experience to help improve our children’s futures. I believe every child is deserving of a great education, a safe school environment and opportunities to explore their dreams and goals. They deserve the support of people who believe in them and want to see them succeed. Leaders who push them and have high expectations for them.
As a member of the school board I want to help chart a course for our schools to be the best they can be. I want our community to have pride in our schools, in our sports and the accomplishments of our youth.
This is why I am asking you to vote for me and my running mate Natasha Briggs this November 5th.
Thank you so much for your support!
Antoine Sabb
Building bright futures, pathways for success and growing opportunities.
As far as policy goes, according to The Whit:
[Antoine Sabb] aims to teach students habits for studying at younger ages and open them up to post-high school opportunities besides college, like trade and tech schools.
The Cedrone-Frangos Slate
In our conversations, Mary Cedrone and Kathleen Frangos expressed support for each others’ campaigns. But because they have no joint campaign social media pages or yard signs, I won’t consider them a “slate” here. [Update 10/28/2024] Because Cedrone posted a flyer in The Everything Glassboro Page with both her and Frangos’s names, I now consider them a slate.
Mary Cedrone
Why are you running for Glassboro Board of Ed?
Although retired for the last 8 years, I did enjoy a 37-year career in education. I began as a classroom teacher (both in general and special education) for 24 years then a School Principal and finally the Director of Special Education for the last 7 years of my tenure. As a member of the Administrative team I worked closely with School Board and community members to inform, educate, and provide evidence for requested programming, teacher and administrative training, as well as infrastructure needs throughout the district. I understand the responsibility the district has in using tax payer money in the most efficient and effective manner.
Therefore, when approached by a member of the county to run for a position on the Board, I thought it was a good time to give back to my community. I believe my past experience in education will allow me the opportunity to offer helpful advice or at the very least ask questions of District Administrators that will lead to opportunities for students and teachers alike to experience success.
What’s going well with Glassboro Public Schools (GPS) today?
I am not intimately involved at the moment as my children graduated years ago, but I do review the district’s website and see that a lot of really good things are happening with programming particularly in Special Education, the curriculum is well rounded, and there are an array of activities and sports for students to enjoy. The student to teacher ratio is outstanding, even though I understand that does not necessarily represent every class size, but it is still impressive.
What are the major issues affecting GPS today?
The one thing that stands out and causes concern for me is our ranking as a district in NJ as well as the proficiency levels of students in reading and math across all schools in the district. I am interested in what is happening with teacher training, use of collected researched based data when instructionally planning for individual student, as well as classroom and school-wide needs. It seems that our enrollment and the number of teachers and staff that make up Glassboro Public Schools creates a manageable environment to truly address the needs of our students and enjoy greater proficiency levels district wide.
This year there are 8 candidates for 3 seats. What makes you stand out from the other candidates or slates?
I believe my background says a lot, my roots in education may be very helpful, and I am a parent of children who went through these schools. I truly understand programming, teacher education, and administrative training. I think I could bring something to the table and at the very least ask useful questions.
Where can voters find more information about you or your campaign?
I haven’t done as much as I would have liked to, because as soon as I signed on to run, my husband fell ill and needed my care. However, my background may be found on Google or the Upper Darby School District’s website, I’ve spoken with many friends and neighbors about my focus and theirs, and I posted on social media.
I’ve lived here for the last 32 years and have enjoyed meeting and knowing many people mostly through my sons. Our current Board members are also very much a part of the community, so at the end of the day, community members will decide if they are satisfied with the status quo or looking for something new. My hope is that people will recognize my name and give me this opportunity to serve.
In a public Facebook post, Cedrone promoted her campaign:
On the ballot with TRUMP…would love your vote Glassboro friends. Please consider Cedrone and Frangos for School Board on November 5th! Ty
The only other social media content of Cedrone’s that I found related to education policy are:
She shared an Instagram post (made by another account) that supports the pending Federal Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, which would prohibit “school athletic programs from allowing individuals whose biological sex at birth was male to participate in programs that are for women or girls.”
Another shared IG post saying, “If you have to hide the curriculum from the parents of your students, you don’t belong in a classroom or in close proximity to anyone’s kids.”
Kathleen Frangos
In lieu of answering each question individually, Frangos issued this statement:
I was asked by a county commissioner if I would be interested in running for the position. After a lengthy conversation, I accepted in hopes that I could be a positive asset in decision making for our school district.
I have a son who attended our public schools until he decided to go to GCIT [link mine] for the remainder of his education. My experience in dealing with many teachers, administrators, and social workers, as he had an IEP [link mine], was mostly always positive.
I also worked for nine years in the WTPS [Washington Township Public Schools] district in the Special Education Department as a Teachers Assistant where I learned about many different needs of the students and how to troubleshoot some of the many issues they had. I certainly learned more from those students than they learned from me.
In all honesty, I do not have any formal education in education, however, I can say that I am considered to be a great listener, as well as a fair person. Should I be elected, I know that I would listen to the needs of the district, the parents, and the students and make decisions equitable for everyone.
The Dempster-Hughes-Kudless Slate
Lori Dempster, Ryan Hughes, and Stephen Kudless are supporting each others’ campaigns, so I’m calling them a “slate.” Despite this, they don’t have a shared, official slogan that will appear on your ballot, like Briggs-Sabb do.
Lori Dempster
Lori Dempster is a current member of the BoE and serves on its Instruction Committee. In lieu of answering each question individually, Dempster shared a Facebook post about her campaign:
Hi, my name is Lori Dempster and I am re-running this November for Glassboro School Board.
I have lived in Glassboro for about 20 years. I moved here after I graduated from Rowan University. I have 8 kids: 2 just graduated from Glassboro High School, a senior, a freshman, an 8th grader, a 3rd grader, and a kindergartner! Even the baby (almost 3) will be attending Little Bulldogs next month. I want to remain on the board because I feel I have a lot of “skin in the game.” I truly care about each school, especially since I have one (or more) in each of them!
During my first term on the board, we have added security guards, and an extremely high-tech gun detection system (ZeroEyes) to all 4 of our schools. I have also been passionate about getting our sports to the next level. I feel very strongly about education and trying to get our test scores higher.
I do feel like there is a huge learning curve, so it is very helpful to have someone with some experience to continue. The school board position does not give you a lot of power; but, it does let you see what’s going on in the school, allows you to have some input on important decisions, and try to keep the superintendent working as hard as they can.
I am teaming with Ryan Hughes and Stephen Kudless this November because we all have the same goal: see our schools excel! Plus, we all have young children in the schools, so we want nothing but the best!
So please vote on November 5th
#2 Lori Dempster
#4 Ryan C. Hughes
#5 Stephen Kudless
GO BULLDOGS!!!!!
Those numbers next to the candidates’ names refer to their position on your ballot.
ZeroEyes is a software company based in Conshohocken, PA, selling a gun detection solution. Their product monitors security camera footage with artificial intelligence and, after human confirmation, alerts schools and law enforcement if it believes a gun is present.
Back in 2021, when Dempster first ran for Glassboro BoE and won, she expressed concern about schools closing due to COVID, mandatory masking in schools, and the teaching of Critical Race Theory. She also had a profile picture that seemed to call for an end to mandatory masking in schools at that point.4
When asked if she still holds these policy views, Dempster explained:
Just like in 2021, my focus this time around is the same; I want to see Glassboro schools excel!
In my first term, I’ve gained a lot of valuable experience on how school districts operate, and the fact that many decisions come directly from the state.
Like everyone else, I am very glad the pandemic is behind us. Right now, I’m focused on the present and achieving the goals of: improving test scores, bettering our facilities, upgrading our athletic fields, continuing to add to our security and our relationship with Rowan.
Also, having kids in every school in the district gives me a unique opportunity to hear questions/concerns from parents and relay them to the rest of the Board and Administration.
Ryan Hughes
Ryan Hughes is the current Vice President of the BoE and serves on its Instruction Committee, a science teacher at Triton Regional High School in Runnemede, and Head Coach for the Rowan College Roadrunners. His official campaign slogan that appears on your ballot is, “Experience, Communication, Community.”
Why are you running for Glassboro Board of Ed?
I am running for the BOE to continue helping Glassboro students succeed. I have proudly served the community for the past seven years on the Board with my vast educational background. I want to make sure that we are providing ALL Glassboro students with the best education possible from the best educators possible.
If you’re an incumbent, do you have any accomplishments or efforts that you’d like to highlight?
I have been on the Board for the past seven years and am very proud of all we have accomplished in that time. Some highlights I can think of off the top of my head are:
Saving taxpayers money by closing [Glassboro Intermediate School] and using the money to renovate Bowe
Adjusting curriculums to fit modern standards and be inclusive to ALL students
I pushed to adjust the school calendar to have less disruptions like ½ days where parents would struggle to find sitters
We have added new programs (like foods and STEM) and academies (like business) to meet the needs of more students and keep our students from leaving the district for GCIT/private school
We have built a great relationship with both the town and Rowan to both save money (ex: new tennis courts) and improve the education of our students (ex: taking RU classes while at GHS, having RU professors assisting our teachers and bringing state-of-the-art ideas/materials to our students)
We have implemented many new safety features to keep our students safe
What’s going well with Glassboro Public Schools (GPS) today?
I believe that we have a strong curriculum being taught by passionate educators. I believe we have a strong sports/activities program to give students many opportunities to get involved. I believe we are in a much better place financially than we were a few years ago and we are not looking to make cuts.
What are the major issues affecting GPS today?
Making sure that we keep the best possible teachers and administrators in the district to help our kids. As new housing projects are planned, making sure that our facilities are able to handle new students. Making sure that the state maintains our funding and does not cut assistance.
This year there are 8 candidates for 3 seats. What makes you stand out from the other candidates or slates?
Experience and Experience in Education. It takes time to learn how a BOE works and how a school system functions. Many people think that they can be elected and "Bam" everything they want to happen will happen. A Board of Education absolutely DOES NOT work like that. I have 7 years of experience and have achieved every level of Board Member certification that is available through statewide training (Master Board Member, Certified Board Leader.) Of the other candidates, one has served 3 yrs (Lori Dempster) and everyone else is at 0. Secondly, the BOE boils down to doing what is best to educate today's students. I have been in education for 29 years. We are a k-12 district, and I have experience teaching students from all those grades and college. I am a current educator, meaning that I am fully in touch with today's issues, today's students, today's needs. When the current Board and Administration has questions about what is going on in schools, I have always been the first BOE member they look to.
Where can voters find more information about you or your campaign?
Hughes shared the contents of this flyer.
Policy-wise, The Whit reports that Hughes wants:
“pressure […] exerted on the State to assist the district with circumstances out of our control.”
“to develop the relationship between Glassboro schools and Rowan.”
Stephen Kudless
Kudless’s unofficial campaign slogan that appears on yard signs but not your ballot is, “It’s All About the Kids!”
In lieu of answering my questions directly, Kudless provided this statement:
I am running to be more involved with the Board of education to help prepare our students for the future. My whole purpose is for the kids. Glassboro is heading in the right direction in many ways and I'd like to be a part of that. The focus is the kids and education. If I am elected I could explain more.. but at this point I'm focusing on the students and education. I don't really stand out. I just want to be a part of others who have passion and focus on education in the students [sic].
He also has a Facebook page for his campaign and posted this statement:
"It's All About the Kids!" I am honored to announce that I am running for a position on the Glassboro Board of Education. I have lived in Glassboro for almost 17 years with my wife and two sons. My boys attend the Glassboro School District and we are happy with the school system and all it has to offer. But, there is always work to be done to make it even better. I want to be a part of the district's future and continue to keep education and the students the focus. My goal is to ensure that the students of Glassboro have the opportunity to learn all they need to become successful adults. So, please vote #5 on the 5th!
The only other info I can find about his views regarding education policy are:
The Whit reporting that he “wants to build more connections between Rowan and Glassboro schools.”
His former Facebook profile’s cover photo from October 8, 2021. It contrasted the 2021 Emmy Awards ceremony, which had no mask requirement, to schools with mandatory masking.5
The New Jersey Project
Dempster and Kudless are endorsed by The New Jersey Project, a self-described parents’ rights group. Both candidates deny that they had any knowledge of this group or their endorsements. TNJP did not respond to requests for comment, but in a post on their website they state that their list of recommended candidates “were recommended by parents in the NJ Schools group on facebook.”
Hughes was not endorsed by TNJP, which he condemned while standing by his running mates:
None of us had any knowledge or affiliation with that website/group until they saw that their names were falsely listed, and both have reached out to that website to have the slander against their name removed to no avail. They have no idea how their names were associated with a group of that nature. That group is also an 'anti-teacher' group, which offends those candidates as well because both of their spouses are long time educators.
As far as why I'm running alongside them, it goes back to my previous answers, experience. Lori is the only other candidate with experience on the Board, and Stephen has been actively coming to Board meetings, speaking, and involved since at least 2019 when I first met him.
Because they decided to weigh in on our local election, I believe it’s worth covering what TNJP stands for. The group appears in NJ Advance Media’s Project Extreme series. The Southern Poverty Law Center classifies TNJP as an “anti-government group,” defined as:
part of the antidemocratic hard-right movement. They believe the federal government is tyrannical, and they traffic in conspiracy theories about an illegitimate government of leftist elites seeking a “New World Order.” In addition to groups that generally espouse these ideas, the movement is composed of sovereign citizens, militias, overt conspiracy propagandists and constitutional sheriff groups. In the past, this movement was referred to as the “Patriot” movement by adherents and critics.
TNJP’s website states:
Change started with two normal moms that became frustrated with the tyranny their children were subjected to by the state. Now we are a union of parents from all over New Jersey protecting childhood for our children. Join the Facebook page that started it all.
New Jersey Project is 100% powered by volunteers.
And on their “Save Our Schools” page:
One purpose of the New Jersey Project is to empower the legal guardians of NJ students to demand home rule for our public schools. Right now, NJ public schools are faced with new sex ed standards, and an activist teacher’s union that is creating activist teachers. Parents are being taken out of the equation.
On that same page they encourage NJ public school teachers to leave the NJ Education Association (NJEA) teachers union and instead join the Association of American Educators (AAE), a non-union professional organization.
Their Substack expresses such opinions as:
Molesters and predators lurk where the children are, whether it's within the confines of the Catholic Church, the Boy Scouts, kid-centric businesses, or even public K-12 schools. This pervasive threat highlights the critical need for legislation aimed at protecting children and preventing the malicious intent of predators, making sure that it is difficult to exploit vulnerable children. But our Legislatures are intent on passing legislation that eliminates appropriate and professional boundaries between school staff and kids. Planned Parenthood, SIECUS and Rutgers University created age-inappropriate pleasure based sex education standards for students. Garden State Equality pushes gender ideology to be taught in New Jersey schools and also insists that teachers hide gender identity and sexual orientation from parents under policy 5756 (which makes you wonder why is school staff talking to your children about their sexuality one-on-one). Now we are facing the “Right to Read Act” that will allow kids to have access to porn, erotica, smut and obscenity in the school library by order of the librarian.
For context:
Policy 5756 is non-mandatory state guidance to school districts on “ensur[ing] a supportive and nondiscriminatory environment for transgender students.” This policy has become controversial in recent years for, among other things, advising that “[t]here is no affirmative duty for any school district personnel to notify a student’s parent or guardian of the student’s gender identity or expression.” Several NJ school districts have voted to not follow this guidance, and the State is suing some for allegedly violating the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (NJLAD).
Garden State Equality is an LGBTQ+ advocacy organization that pushes school boards to re-adopt Policy 5756.
Andy Savicky
Savicky is a licensed clinical psychologist running a private practice in Glassboro. His campaign slogan as it appears on your ballot is, “Make Education Great.”
Why are you running for Glassboro Board of Ed?
I am running for Glassboro Board of Ed, because I believe in Integrity, Service before self and Excellence in Education.
What’s going well with Glassboro Public Schools (GPS) today?
What is going well with the Glassboro Public Schools is the astute Student Body; the Support Staff; School Marshals; Parent Teachers Association; Faculty; and Leadership.
What are the major issues affecting GPS today?
The Major Issue facing GPS, like many schools throughout our Country, is SADNESS and DEPRESSION among our Students. Schools must be a sanctuary for happiness, hope, safety, achievement, and respect.
This year there are 8 candidates for 3 seats. What makes you stand out from the other candidates or slates?
One could consider the following which may make me stand out: I am a Former School Board President of St. Brigid's and St. Michael’s of Glassboro and Clayton Respectively. For the record, I am certified as a School Psychologist and School Principal. I worked in the Millville School System until my retirement as a School Psychologist. I have a PH.D. from the U. of Pennsylvania in Psychology and Education. In private practice as a Licensed Clinical Psychologist #2670. I am retired Lt. Col. From the NJ Air National Guard. One tour in Iraq. Married for 54 years with two children and two Grandchildren. Resident of GLASSBORO for over 35 years.
Where can voters find more information about you or your campaign?
No need to find more printed information. Text or email and we can learn from each other.
You can find all candidates’ email addresses at the top of this article.
In 2009 Savicky ran in the Republican Party primary for General Assembly, the lower house of the NJ legislature.
Corrections
10/29/24: Statewide voter turnout figures are no longer mistakenly attributed to just Glassboro.
10/30/24: Added more info on how The New Jersey Project recommends candidates.
Some links in this article are to Facebook pages or posts that you can only view if you have a Facebook account.
There’s an ongoing public conversation about whether partisan or non-partisan elections are better for voter information and turnout, whether school boards function worse if partisan affiliations are official, and whether non-partisan elections help minimize divisive national issues overshadowing local concerns.
Public libraries saw by far the largest increase in challenges: 92%!
Correction: I previously included a screenshot here of the profile picture, not knowing that it depicted Dempster’s daughter. I’m sorry about that. The picture was public and viewable without a Facebook account.
If you login to Facebook and scroll down his profile, linked above, you’ll find it. Because this post isn’t viewable without a Facebook account, I won’t post a screenshot here.