Office Sought: Vernon Township Board of Education
Age: 53
Political History: First time running for public office.
Occupation: Editor-at-Large, Chief Executive Magazine and Corporate Board Member Magazines; Owner, Inkstone Content Solutions
Education: Syracuse University, S.I. Newhouse School of Communications and Martin J. Whitman School of Business, Dual Bachelor of Science Degree, Summa Cum Laude.
Family: Married to Michael Gelfand; two children, Joshua and Jacob Gelfand, in Glen Meadow Middle School
Top three issues: 1. Fiscal Challenges. Our schools face a loss of $10 million in state funding over six years. Vernon residents are understandably unhappy about the prospect of paying more taxes to make up for this shortfall. Yet, we must provide our students with a quality education — for their sakes and to forge our town’s future as an attractive community for families. That means finding supplemental funding from the private sector and/or grants, qualifying for additional state funding, and judiciously trimming costs. As a business journalist, I will leverage decades of experience researching issues, interviewing experts and identifying potential solutions to help ensure that informed, intelligent decisions are made. 2. Reputation: Bringing more families and businesses to Vernon fill vacant properties and help shoulder the town’s financial needs can play a critical role in Vernon’s growth. I believe my skills as a communications professional will be an asset in promoting all the great things that our schools and town already have to offer, as well as building upon those successes. 3. Conflicted Board Members. Several board members are unable to vote on key issues due to conflict of interest rules. With no relatives employed by the district, I have no such constraints.