As of this week’s deadline, Livingston has two candidates running for two open seats on the school district’s Board of Education. Current Board President Seth Cohen has announced that he is seeking a second three-year term, while two-term Board member Sam Messer will instead run for Township Council. Parul Khemka just announced her candidacy this week. The election will be held on November 8.In recent years, the Board has seen the retirement of several of its longstanding members. However, in the past, we have consistently had multiple residents ready and willing to take those seats in each subsequent race. During more recent election cycles, we have had many residents run for open seats who did not ultimately win their respective elections, but whom we believe would make quality members of the Board. Each of them cared about the schools and our district’s students, and had unique attributes to offer. It is our hope that some of them will consider throwing their hat into the ring once more.We have said it before and will say it again, we believe there is great value in having a contested election. When there are multiple candidates vying for positions, the dialogue produced can help educate the public about issues facing the school district. Forums such as the League of Women Voters’ Candidates’ Night – which is not held if there is an uncontested election – provide an opportunity for members of the community to express their opinions, ask questions, and get answers to issues that concern them.While the November election may seem a long way off, the deadline for filing is less than one week away. It is our hope that qualified candidates will step up to the plate and announce their candidacies. Since the pandemic began, while our school board elections have remained contested races, there has appeared to be more hesitancy from people wanting to step into debates about masking and remote learning, making Board of Education meetings more contentious and polarizing than they once were. We are hopeful, though, that there will be fewer of these types of discussions with each passing year, and we will be able to focus more on the multitude of other topics surrounding our schools. These include the effects that new housing in town will have on the school district, diversity and inclusion initiatives, and curriculum and budget discussions, just to name a few.As it is ...
