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P.O. Box 909 ● Trenton, NJ 08605-0909 ● Phone: 609.695.7600 ● Fax: 609.695.0413 ● Web: www.njsba.org/PI |
NEWS RELEASE CONTACT: Frank Belluscio (fbelluscio@njsba.org) FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE N.J. SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOCIATION VOTES SUPPORT FOR MILITARY VETS PLAINSBORO, N.J., November 17, 2007 - The state's association of local boards of education today overwhelmingly adopted policy confirming its belief that local school districts should make students aware of the contributions of the nation's military veterans and the significance of Memorial Day and Veterans Day. One hundred eighteen local school board representatives attended the New Jersey School Boards Association's semi-annual meeting, or Delegate Assembly, at the Wyndham Conference Center here. Submitted by the Sayreville Board of Education, the proposal is intended to correct a misinterpretation by some members of veterans' groups about the New Jersey School Boards Association's position on the need to recognize the contributions of Americans who served in the Armed Forces. Earlier this year, the school boards association supported legislation (A-17/S-9) that would have eliminated numerous state-imposed requirements placed on local school districts, including mandatory classroom observances preceding Veterans Day and Memorial Day, as well as mandated observances of Columbus Day, Commodore Barry Day and others. The legislation was proposed in response to recommendations from the state Education Mandate Review Study Commission, which included representatives from NJSBA, the NJEA, Garden State Coalition of Schools, and other organizations. In response to concerns by veterans' groups, Governor Corzine conditionally vetoed the bill in February, striking out the provisions concerning the holidays. Some veterans' groups, however, mistook NJSBA's support for local discretion over classroom activities as being insensitive to the contributions of the nation's military veterans. "Everyone on the Sayreville Board of Education understands that NJSBA is not anti-veteran," said Sayreville school board president Michael Macagnone, a retired U.S. Air Force major, who came to the meeting in uniform. "Our resolution still supports school districts having the discretion to decide which holidays should be celebrated. However, it also states that NJSBA believes that Veterans Day and Memorial Day should be taught in our public schools since, without the efforts and sacrifices of veterans, we would not have a free public education among other liberties we enjoy." The Association's new policy statement encourages districts to recognize the holidays and the contributions of veterans. It reads, "The NJSBA believes that a free and public education would not be possible without the sacrifices of the men and women who served and fought for our country and those who died to preserve our democracy and that pupils should be made aware of the contributions of our military veterans and the significance of Memorial Day and Veterans Day." Stated Macagnone, "We live in a state with five major military installations and a number of National Guard armories, a state which tens of thousands more veterans call home. Several New Jersey units are deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. I will give everyone in this room an opportunity to do something for a veteran today." The resolution passed 117-1. The Assembly recognized more than a dozen of the delegates who were also military veterans.
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