Candidate Profiles for Princeton Board of Education

Name: Molly Chrein
Age: 47
Occupation: Attorney/Sitting School Board Member/Parent

2. What do you think distinguishes you from other candidates? What do you bring to the table?

I was recently asked what my day job is and for the past three years it has been working on the Princeton School Board.  One of my specialties has been serving on district wide search committees and I am thrilled to say I was on the committees that hired many of our amazing new administrators.   My role as Personnel Chair, as well as, my work on the Student Achievement Committee has enabled me to learn first hand about the work of our administrators and staff.  I have participated in two union negotiations for both the PRAA/Administrator and PRESSA/Support Staff contracts and I am slated to serve on the negotiation team for the next PREA/teacher contract.   However, serving, as one of the three members of the Superintendent Search Committee was my greatest role while on the Board.  The hiring of Stephen Cochrane is probably my most lasting and important contribution to Princeton Public Schools and the community.   

Our district, along with every district in the State, will be facing the challenges of a very tight fiscal year exacerbated by the fact that this year we will not get any relief from additional staff contributions to the cost of health care coverage; and the implementation of the new teacher evaluation system requiring a threefold increase in evaluations while implementing the new PARCC testing.  Our unique challenge will be the transition to a new superintendent.  The best way to deal with all three of these challenges is to keep our priorities straight and not become reactive but to be flexible while keeping our larger goals of excellence and achievement for each child always at the forefront of our decision making.  

Name: Meeta Khatri
Age: 45
Occupation: Small business owner

(Khatri did not answer Patch's specific questions, but submitted the following information about her candidacy)

I own and operate an after-school, PK-12 learning center in Hamilton, Nj. This is my 12th year in business.

It is from my perspective as an educator and ongoing interaction with the kids enrolled at my center that I decided to run for the Princeton BOEd. At my center I am able to raise the achievement levels of my students significantly from when they first start. Depending on how long they stay, I have consistently been able to bring kids one, two and three levels above grade level at a very good pace at a super low cost. It is not uncommon to meet kids at my center who have achieved an intro to algebra by fifth grade.

My vision is that if the average kid at my center can achieve academic success above his grade level then why not aspire for all kids to rise to this level of achievement.

I want to work hard towards having the Princeton School district consistently be ranked in the top five public schools in the nation, this would mean bringing all our kids, whatever their socio-economic or ethnic background be, to the same high level of achievement that all highly ranked schools aspire to.

I will bring a fresh voice to the board, one that doesn't need to have a child in the district, to motivate her to raise the achievement of all children in our community.
Before moving to Princeton, I lived in West Windsor for seven years, before that in East Windsor, so I have a broad perspective of public education.

Name: Andrea Spalla
Age: 47
Occupation: Vice-President, Princeton Board of Education; former attorney; parent.

1. Please introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about your background and why you should be elected.

Our family moved to Princeton from New York in 1998. We live on Maple Street, and my two children are public school students. After years as an active volunteer at Community Park Elementary School, including three years as PTO President there, I was elected to the Princeton school board in 2010. Every day since then, serving this community as a member of the school board has been a responsibility I have undertaken with gratitude and dedication.  Currently I am the board’s Vice-President and Student Achievement Committee chair, as well as a member of several other committees. I am a former attorney, and my legal background and knowledge of policy, governance, finance and contracts informs all my school board work.

I hope to be re-elected on November 5 for the same reasons I originally ran three years ago: because I care deeply about the quality of this community’s public schools and I believe that they are worth working hard to preserve and strengthen. I am eager to continue the difficult but essential work of finding solutions to the complex challenges faced by our district. And I am enthusiastically committed to participating in our school district’s robust process of continual improvement, so that every child gets an excellent education, every day.

2. What do you think distinguishes you from other candidates? What do you bring to the table?

Experience and leadership on the school board: Since joining the school board in 2010, I have been one of its most active members. I have served on nearly every standing and ad hoc committee, the District Evaluation Advisory Committee, the negotiating team for the last teachers’ contract and the superintendent search committee. It has been an honor to be part of this effective, high-functioning school board, and I have been inspired by my colleagues’ steady focus on the best interests of our community’s children and responsiveness to the concerns of parents, taxpayers and educators. I have chaired two board committees, and have served as the Board’s Vice-President since May 2012.

Passionate commitment to educating the whole child, and to educational excellence for all children:  School board members are charged with “standing in the place of the parent” for all children in their district. This is a charge I undertake with gravity and purpose. As a public school parent myself, I know that while our schools are not perfect, they can and should be places where every child’s unique needs are fully met every day -- places where all our children find challenge and rigor, but also inspiration, celebration, support and acceptance.

3. What are the most pressing issues facing the Princeton Board of Education today? How would you approach and resolve these issues?

In the interest of brevity, I will address only two of the many pressing challenges our Board of Education faces.  The most immediate challenge facing the Princeton Board of Education in the next 12 months will be guiding our district’s transition to new administrative leadership, and providing strong direction to our new superintendent when he takes the reins on January 1. My experience and demonstrated leadership on the board will substantially enhance its ability to provide our new superintendent with the clear vision and continuity crucial to making this transition smooth and successful.