Weber back on board; two newcomers get in Old Bridge voters turn down incumbents, approve their budget BY JESSICA SMITH Staff Writer Voters approved a zero tax increase budget, and opted for a new slate of Old Bridge Board of Education members in the school election April 15. Donna Andriani, Owen Henry and Frank Weber will take the places of board members Frank Piccillo, Fred Colabella and Gail Kubicke. "I think the first thing we need to do as a board is unite, come together to restore public confidence," Henry said. "I think the residents spoke out against nepotism. I think the residents realize that the town is better off with board members who don't have conflicts of interest." All three departing board members had relatives working within the district. Piccillo, the current board president, and Colabella sought re-election, while Kubicke did not. Weber, a former board member and president who has run unsuccessfully for the board seven times since the end of his seven years of service, captured the highest number of votes, with 1,490. Henry came in second, with 1,420, and Andriani placed third, garnering 1,161. "I'm stubborn," Weber said of his efforts, adding that he finished fourth in the running in each of his attempts. This time, Piccillo came in at a close fourth, 31 votes shy of winning a seat. He attributed his loss to a number of factors, including his position of ninth on the ballot. The three winners were the first three names on the ballot, which listed 12 candidates. "Being in the No. 9 slot was an uphill battle from the beginning," Piccillo said. "I think I definitely would have been a winner if I was in slot one, two, three or four. The funny part is, I was crushed for about an hour, then I felt a burden lifted, especially being president." Piccillo thanked his wife and children, along with district students, parents and teachers for their support, adding that central office administrators proved to be a valuable learning resource for him. "It was an honor to serve [the district] for six years," Piccillo said. He commended the winners, saying all three have a lot to offer the district. "Their victory was deserving," Piccillo said, also saying that the law of averages dictated Weber's win. Weber had his own theories about Piccillo's defeat. He said issues raised during the candidates' forum earlier this month did not place the board president in a positive light. A couple of hot-button topics were negotiations for Superintendent of Schools Simon Bosco's new contract, which included a 6.45 percent salary increase, according to school officials; the allocation of $100,000 toward initiating a daycare program in the district; and the issue of nepotism. Another negative, according to Weber, was a speech Piccillo gave at theMarch 18 board meeting, in which he voiced his unhappiness with the council's decision not to allocate funds for the district's Lombardi Field improvements project. In the speech, he named those who voted against the project, speculating their reasons for their doing so. "I think that cost him," Weber said. "He was responsible for his own demise in a lot of ways, and Fred [Colabella] with him." In the case of Colabella, though his wife has been employed by the district for 14 years, which began before he won a seat on the board, her subsequent promotion raised questions in the minds of the public, according to Weber. Regarding his March 18 speech, Piccillo agreed that it likely contributed to his loss. "That speech definitely fueled a fire in my opponents, which sort of gave them a greater desire for them to go out and campaign against me," Piccillo said. Weber also pointed out issues he had with the way negotiations for Bosco's new contract were handled. Aside from his assertion that the decision should have been left for the new board to handle, Weber said he also had problems with other aspects of the proceedings. Firstly, Weber said, the doctrine of necessity had to be invoked because board member Matt Sulikowski said he had a conflict of interest, bringing the number of board members excluded from the vote to five. In such a case, the vote becomes open to all board members because of the doctrine of necessity, he said. Though the board members deemed conflicted could now vote on the matter, they could not participate in the negotiations, which left three first-year board members to negotiate the deal. "Dr. Bosco, he has his doctorate in labor,"Weber said. "He's an expert on this. It's a mismatch. It's David versus Goliath, only this time, David lost badly." Though school officials asserted that Bosco's salary ismore than $20,000 less than that of superintendents in comparable districts, Weber said he sees it as "out of step" with what is going on in other districts. Regarding the slated daycare program, Weber said the way school officials went about allocating its funding was suspect. It was not included on the agenda for the March 19 budget meeting,Weber said, instead being added to the budget as a lastminute item. Clearly, the addition in the 11th hour was not an emergency, Weber said. "Once it's added on, the public doesn't have an opportunity to respond to it," Weber said. "This is a program you've been working on for two years - you forgot to put it on the agenda?At best, you're incompetent. At worst, you're deceptive." Aside from his issues with the past board, Weber has his own goals for his future on the board. "I want the district to provide a quality education, but I want it to be done in the most economically responsible way," Weber said. Andriani, a science teacher, shared a number of her future goals for the district. One of them would be for the district to become more progressive, and expand its offerings to students, she said. Whether students are interested in pursuing a trade or enrolling in a four-year college, more resources should be available to them, so that they may know what options exist for their future, Andriani said. "I'd like to see everyone get a chance to follow what their strengths are, and what they're interested in," Andriani said. "[I want] to make sure every child is provided with a safe, positive learning environment. They're entitled to that." In addition,Andriani said she wants to keep school taxes level for residents. Henry, an experienced contractor, said one of his goals is to keep an eye on capital improvement projects in the district, to ensure that they are necessary, and that they are done right by qualified professionals. He also said he is looking forward to seeing the completion of improvements to Lombardi Field. "I'm looking forward to serving," Henry said. "I see a pretty decent challenge ahead, and I'm looking forward to it. I have a lot to offer." The budget provided a flat tax rate, thanks to an increase in state aid to the district. Despite several candidates' contention that the budget should reduce taxes, voters approved it with 2,030 yes votes, compared to 1,499 against. "I am grateful to the voters of Old Bridge who came out to support this budget," Bosco said. "It will allow us to move forward and begin some longawaited projects." Piccillo also expressed happiness with the approval of the budget. "The budget passing is more important than me winning," Piccillo said. Though Piccillo lost the election, he said he plans to contribute to the district by sitting on board committees. Other plans include pursuing an advanced certificate. "I will be back," Piccillo said.