Mussab Ali and Kimberly Goycochea believe that their strongest assets as board of education candidates is coming through the public education system in Jersey City.
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“The students who have actually been through the system, spending fifteen years of my life going to school from eight to three o’ clock, I think that makes me one of the best candidates because I actually know what is going on at the schools,†stated Ali, a graduate of McNair High School.
“As a board member, when you go into a school, people may treat you differently, look at you differently and you may not get the same experience. But as a student, I was a part of these schools. I went to Snyder for four years,†rationalized Goycochea.
“I can honestly say that the experience that I have gathered is something that that can be used properly to put the board of education in a better place and to put the schools in a better place and to put our students at a higher level of education.â€
The two share the same concerns for violence in schools in Jersey City.
“From 2009 to 2015, 15 people under age of 18 were either shot, stabbed or killed,†stated Ali, who believes violent crime has an immense impact not only the families and the communities, but also on the students who knew the victims since it could affect their overall school performance.
Furthermore, Goycochea encourages the need to improve the relationships between parents, teachers, students and school security guards so the students do not feel alienated, but rather “part of the solution†in order to create safer schools.
Both candidates, who came from homes where English was not the first spoken language, emphasized the importance of having multi-lingual accessibility – especially during board meetings.
According to Ali and Goycochea, having parents understand the academic programs and curriculum can really influence their overall performance.
When asked about their thoughts on charter schools, Goycochea recalled her experience as a Snyder High School student while sharing the hallways with Innovation High School.
Ali stated, “We are not completely against charter schools. We believe however, charter schools should be used to bridge the gap in the areas where there are low-performing public schools. Charters should not be established as replacements for public schools but rather as supplements. Public schools should be our first priority.”
Ali also revealed that he is against 25 to 30 year tax abatements, mainly because it affects the infrastructure of schools.
He further explained his concern for the PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) developments that are not paying taxes, since in these scenarios, there is no funding coming in to help build more space or more schools.
With all the additional developments and schools that are already “busting at the seams,†there is a need to really put a stop to the 25 to 30-year abatements and to also work closely with the School Development Authority, Ali said.
He also stressed building a close relationship with officials at the state and local level to help accommodate students and families accordingly.
The running mates also share the same opinion on partisanship on the board and that students, not politics take precedent at all times.
There are a total of 13 candidates seeking the three, three-years terms on the Jersey City Board of Education in the November 8 election.
I would just like to clarify that Innovation High School is a public school although from my perspective it appeared to be a charter. From rumors among students along with administration, including the male vice principal, Mr. Dooley, saying that a charter would be coming to our school we were made to believe that Innovation was going to be a charter. Of course this was only further evidenced by the new classrooms, teachers and accommodations made for Innovation students and the implicit division between them and Snyder students. This is proof of how much miscommunication exists between the board, students and administration. The fact of the matter is that I was deceived by administration, this incident is yet another reason we need more transparency in the school system.
Kimberly, you should have it your interview. You can’t mess up when dealing with our children. You lost my vote.
You really need to start by acknowledging that charter schools are public schools. You can talk about private schools vs public schools among all schools. Or you can talk about charter schools vs government schools among public schools. It is just incorrect to refer to charters as if they were something other than public schools. The “public” in public schools refers to their method of funding, not their method of management.
You can learn more about that the issues and stances of Mussab Ali and Kimberly Goycochea here at the Fix It Now team site: http://www.fixitnowjc.com/