Election Day is next Tuesday, November 7, and this year’s ballot features two worthy candidates – Fang Gong and Harsh Raju – vying for one open seat on Livingston’s Board of Education. We thank both of these candidates for their willingness to contribute to our community. As past and current members can attest, being part of the Board of Education necessitates a huge time commitment and is a major responsibility. Board members help to shape our town. It can also be quite the thankless job, at times, so we are grateful to see two residents step up to make a difference in Livingston. Both stay-at-home parents who have children in the district’s elementary schools, we applaud Raju and Gong for their willingness to commit themselves to this position.
We are also thrilled to once again have a competitive race for the open seat. Contested elections are always beneficial to our town, as it forces candidates to state their opinions on relevant issues, and talk to the voting public to hear their concerns. In turn, many have likely seen Gong and Raju at community events in recent months. Not every town is lucky enough to have enough candidates to fill these positions, yet in Livingston, it rarely seems to be a problem. We applaud their commitments to serve; both appear eager to take on this role. We also want to praise both Raju and Gong for running respectful campaigns that focused on the issues at hand rather than personal attacks; that has not always been a given in recent years.
In what we feel is a close race between two upstanding members of the community who have a vested interest in doing what is best for our schools, it may be difficult to choose one candidate over the other. We encourage voters to read their statements in the Tribune over the past few months (they start on the front page of each issue), as well as watch September’s debate, which may be found on the Livingston League of Women Voters Facebook page. Together, they should help residents reach a more informed decision.
While we feel both would excel in the role, there is only one Board of Education seat available, and so we must make a choice based on the minor differences between them as candidates. Both have clearly done their homework on the issues affecting the school district, from rising enrollment and retention of faculty, to ensuring an equitable experience for Livingston’s diverse population of students.
Raju has highlighted his background in engineering, writing research grants, and performing complex data analysis as unique and valuable skills that he would bring to the role. These would certainly be welcome traits to have on the Board. His engineering background, in particular, would prove useful should the Board start to plan an expansion due to the growing population in the district. Raju has also held committee positions on his son’s Home and School Association (HSA).
Gong has a background working within higher education, managing Rutgers University’s international executive MBA program in China and in similar roles at Montclair State University. Gong has also been an active member of the community prior to her campaign. She has been the co-chairperson of multicultural nights at Burnet Hill Elementary, collaborating with the school’s equity team through the HSA. She has also volunteered with the Livingston Library and Friends of the Library, working with the Livingston Multicultural Parents Association to donate books to the town’s elementary schools. In addition, she is a Board member of the Livingston Chinese Association. We feel that this is all excellent experience that would help prepare a prospective Board of Education member for the challenges associated with the role. We have also observed Gong’s excellent organizational and speaking skills, which would serve her well on the Board. For these reasons, we would give her the slight edge.
We, again, thank both of these candidates for their well-run, respectful campaigns, wish them well in their final days of the race, and hope to see both of them contributing to our community and school district for years to come, regardless of the outcome of the election.
We should also note that these Board of Education seats are for three-year terms, and next year, two of the five seats will be up for grabs. Vice president Pam Chirls and Board member Jenissa Arnette will both end their current terms at the end of 2024. It is far too soon to know if one or both of them will seek re-election, but we encourage whichever of our current candidates does not win this year’s race to consider throwing his or her hat in the ring once more next year. Sometimes, it takes an additional campaign to win a seat, but the effort is well worth it for those motivated enough to press through another election season.
