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Paterson Public Schools elections (2014)
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Four seats on the Paterson Public Schools Board of Education were up for general election on November 4, 2014.
Incumbents Chrystal Cleaves and Jonathan Hodges ran against challengers Khader Abuassab, Koyes Ahmed, Emanuel Capers, Nelly Celi, Lilisa Mimms and Taj Uddin for the three seats with full three-year terms. Fellow board member Wendy Guzman did not file for re-election. Although Abuassab still appeared on the ballot, he was removed from consideration by the Passaic County superintendent of elections on October 22, 2014, because he used a non-residential address on his voter registration form. If he had won a seat, he would not have been allowed to join the board.[1] Cleaves and Hodges won re-election. The third seat was won by Mimms.
Incumbent Flavio Rivera ran unopposed and won an unexpired two-year term. After Alex Mendez left the board to join the city council, Rivera was appointed to fill the position until the November 2014 election.[2][3]
About the district
- See also: Paterson Public Schools, New Jersey
Paterson Public Schools is located in Passaic County, New Jersey. The county seat of Passaic County is Paterson. Passaic County had a population of 502,885 residents, according to the United States Census Bureau.[4] In the 2011-2012 school year, Paterson Public Schools was the third-largest school district in New Jersey and served 24,365 students.[5]
Demographics
Passaic County outperformed the rest of New Jersey in terms of higher education achievement in 2012. The United States Census Bureau found that 25.8 percent of Passaic County residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree compared to 35.4 percent for New Jersey as a whole. The median household income in Passaic County was $57,540 compared to $71,637 for the state of New Jersey. The poverty rate in Passaic County was 15.8 percent compared to 9.9 percent for the entire state.[4]
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Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Voter and candidate information
As of the 2014 election, the Paterson Board of Education consisted of nine members elected at-large to three-year terms. There was no primary election, and the general election was held on November 4, 2014. Four seats were up for election in 2014, three for full three-year terms and one for an unexpired two-year term.[2][3]
School board candidates had to file with their county elections department during the candidate filing period, which ended on July 28, 2014. The deadline to file objections to candidate petitions was on August 1, 2014, and the deadline to withdraw was on August 26, 2014. To vote in the 2014 general election, voters had to register by October 14, 2014.[7]
Elections
2014
Candidates
At-large (3-year term)
- Chrystal Cleaves
- Incumbent
- Jonathan Hodges
- Incumbent
- Khader Abuassab
- Activist, the Arab American Civic Association
- Disqualified from the ballot on October 22, 2014
- Koyes Ahmed
- Graduate, Ramapo College of New Jersey
- Software system engineer, Leidos
- Nelly Celi
- Graduate, William Paterson University
- Lilisa Mimms
- Pastor, New Beginnings Christian Outreach Ministries
- Taj Uddin
- Organizer secretary, the Jalalabad Association of America
At-large (2-year term)
- Flavio Rivera
- Incumbent
- Auditor, Passaic County government
Election results
3-year terms
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Chrystal Cleaves Incumbent |
21.2% | 4,175 | |
| Nonpartisan | Lilisa Mimms |
16.5% | 3,250 | |
| Nonpartisan | Jonathan Hodges Incumbent |
16.5% | 3,249 | |
| Nonpartisan | Nelly Celi | 13% | 2,562 | |
| Nonpartisan | Emanuel Capers | 10.6% | 2,094 | |
| Nonpartisan | Koyes Ahmed | 9.6% | 1,883 | |
| Nonpartisan | Khader Abuassab | 8.3% | 1,629 | |
| Nonpartisan | Taj Uddin | 4% | 789 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.2% | 34 | |
| Total Votes | 19,665 | |||
| Source: Passaic County Clerk, "Official Results - 2014 General Elections," accessed November 12, 2014 | ||||
2-year term
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Flavio Rivera Incumbent |
98.7% | 3,130 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 1.3% | 41 | |
| Total Votes | 3,171 | |||
| Source: Passaic County Clerk, "Official Results - 2014 General Elections," accessed November 12, 2014 | ||||
Endorsements
No candidate received official endorsements during the election.
Campaign finance
Candidates reported $1,655.00 in contributions and $16.00 in expenditures during the election, according to the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission.[8]
In the at-large race for three three-year terms, candidates reported $1,655.00 in contributions and $16.00 in expenditures during the election.
| Candidate | Contributions | Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chrystal Cleaves | $1,655.00 | $16.00 | $1,639.00 |
| Jonathan Hodges | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Khader Abuassab | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Koyes Ahmed | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Emanuel Capers | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Nelly Celi | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Lilisa Mimms | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Taj Uddin | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
In the at-large race for an unexpired two-year term, Flavio Rivera reported no contributions or expenditures during the election.
| Candidate | Contributions | Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flavio Rivera | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Past elections
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2013
2012
2011
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Issues in the election
College readiness drops
Only 19 of the 594 high school students who attend Paterson Public Schools are ready for college, according to the district's SAT scores for 2014. That is 3.2 percent of the student body, which is a drop from 2013's 4.3 percent. The district's cumulative mean SAT score was 1,120, and the statewide average was 1,526. In order to be deemed college-ready, a student must score at least 1,550 on the exam. Board member Corey Teague, who was not up for re-election in 2014, criticized the administration following the release of the test scores. He claimed that the administration is misleading parents about improved student academic performance and stated, "That’s a sign that they’re hiding something."[9]
Fellow board member Jonathan Hodges, who did run for re-election in 2014, called the low figure a problem and added that, "I don’t think we’ve done the work we need to get to the bottom of the problem." Terry Corallo, a spokesperson for the district, insisted that, "there are many factors that play a part in college readiness" and that the district has "invested heavily in building capacity of our staff, including school leaders, and now our guidance department is being restructured with a focus on preparing students for college and career – starting in elementary grades."[10]
Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for the Paterson Public Schools election in 2014:[7]
| Deadline | Event |
|---|---|
| July 28, 2014 | Last day for candidates to file nomination petitions |
| August 1, 2014 | Last day to file objections to candidate nomination petitions |
| August 26, 2014 | Last day for candidates to withdraw |
| October 6, 2014 | 29-day pre-election campaign finance report due |
| October 14, 2014 | Last day to register to vote in the general election |
| October 24, 2014 | 11-day pre-election campaign finance report due |
| November 4, 2014 | General election day |
| November 24, 2014 | 20-day post-election campaign finance report due |
Additional elections on the ballot
This election shared the ballot with general elections for a U.S. House seat, a U.S. Senate seat and other municipal offices.[11]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Paterson + Public + Schools + New + Jersey"
See also
- New Jersey
- Paterson Public Schools, New Jersey
- New Jersey school board elections, 2014
- List of school board elections in 2014
- School board elections, 2014
- Passaic County, New Jersey ballot measures
- Local ballot measures, New Jersey
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Paterson Times, "School board candidate’s voter registration revoked, nullifying his run," October 22, 2014
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Paterson Press, "Paterson school board member not seeking re-election," July 29, 2014
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Paterson Public Schools, "Board of Education," accessed September 1, 2014
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 United States Census Bureau, "Passaic County, New Jersey," accessed February 24, 2014
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed April 22, 2014
- ↑ State of New Jersey - Department of State, "Statewide Voter Registration Summary," September 24, 2013
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 The State of New Jersey, "2014 General Election Timeline," accessed September 1, 2014
- ↑ New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission, "Standard Search," accessed October 15, 2014
- ↑ NJ.com, "Only 19 Paterson high school students are 'college ready,' report finds," October 15, 2014
- ↑ The Paterson Press, "Latest SAT results: Number of Paterson ‘college-ready’ students drops to 19," October 14, 2014
- ↑ Passaic County Board of Elections, "List of County and Local Candidates for the General Election," accessed September 1, 2014
| 2014 Paterson Public Schools Elections | |
| Passaic County, New Jersey | |
| Election date: | November 4, 2014 |
| Candidates: | At-large (3-year term): • Incumbent, Chrystal Cleaves • Incumbent, Jonathan Hodges • Khader Abuassab • Koyes Ahmed • Emanuel Capers • Nelly Celi • Lilisa Mimms • Taj Uddin At-large (2-year term): • Incumbent, Flavio Rivera |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
