Roselle Holds Information Session on Bond Referendum Across the District

The Roselle Board of Education hosted information sessions at each of the borough's five elementary and middle schools this week as part of an ongoing information campaign for the September 15 bond referendum vote. If passed, the bond referendum would fund a new school on Chandler Avenue as well as additional facilities and infrastructure upgrades across the district.

Roselle Board of Education President Dr. Courtney Washington expressed the desire to inform residents of the benefits of the proposed project while providing full transparency. According to Dr. Washington, the board wanted to reach parents before they go off for the summer, acknowledging that some may be at work during meetings or have multiple children making attendance inconvenient.

While the Board of Education has informed the public on the logistics and benefits of the project, questions remain about the finances and tax levy impact on residents. The board is hosting a virtual forum on August 18 featuring board leaders and financial experts to address these concerns.

Dr. Washington stated that during the last half decade, the Roselle Board of Education has been fiscally responsible. "We have kept our taxes stable, or we have been at 0% or well under the 2% cap when we needed to," she explained. "Through COVID, we have not laid anyone off, we gave our teachers a 3.9% raise over the next four years."

Dr. Washington emphasized that while the board supports the bond referendum, neither she nor other board members can tell people how to vote. "We are just trying to inform and arm our community with the why," she told TAPinto Roselle. "We can't tell them how to vote, but what we can do is continue to explain the importance and that is all that we are doing."

This article was produced with AI assistance and reviewed for accuracy against official sources.

Produced with AI assistance and reviewed against source records.