TR School Board Candidate Jeff Dingsor Says Stop Lakewood Private School Bussing Plan

Shore News Network

In Lakewood, publicly funded busing to over 130 private schools has nearly bankrupted the school district – requiring tens of millions in state bailouts, year after year.

I’m Jeff Dingsor and I believe Toms River School Board’s recent decision to bus students to Lakewood private schools has opened a Pandora’s Box that will have devastating consequences for property taxes and on the quality of education in our public schools.

As required by law, the School Board traditionally offered a small transportation stipend to students enrolled in schools outside of the township, and only offered busing to private schools in Toms River. I believe the district’s decision to start busing to 11 private schools in Lakewood establishes a fiscally dangerous precedent, and it must be stopped.

Transportation costs in Lakewood are over $30 Million a year, or roughly thirty times what they were here in Toms River just a few years ago.  The private school busing model hasn’t worked out in Lakewood, and it won’t work here in Toms River either. If elected, I’ll fight to overturn this decision and to prevent an expansion in private school busing.


Rising transportation costs are not the only reason I decided to run.  Recent State Aid cuts resulted in the elimination of 77 positions, but this School Board still found the money to give the Superintendent his bonus and to increase the salaries of his Assistant Superintendents.  We need people on the School Board that will put students and their education ahead of salary increases for administrators.

Taxes continue to spiral out of control.  In the last five years, school taxes increased by over 21 Million dollars.  While part of that can be attributed to state aid cuts, this School Board has increased spending by over 11 Million in that same 5 year period.

If elected to the School Board, I’ll put a stop to the wasteful spending that is increasing our taxes, and I’ll fight to make sure we’re getting our fair share from Trenton.

Hopefully I can count on you to support me, Jeff Dingsor for School Board. I’ll be in Ballot Position 1.  If elected, I’ll represent the taxpayers and students of our community, not special interests or political insiders.

If you have any questions or issues you’d like to discuss, please feel free to contact me at (732) 806-1139.

Sincerely,

Jeff Dingsor

 

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