Board of Education Candidate: William Stuart

The Basking Ridge Patch is featuring video and information on the nine candidates who are competing for three positions on the Board of Education in the April 27 election.

The candidates appeared at a forum at Ridge High School on April 7. The forum was sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Somerset Hills and two student clubs, Ridge Empowerment for Political Participation and the Economics Club.

The video includes the candidates' introductory statement about themselves as well as an answer to the first question, which was posed by the Ridge students who organized the forum. That question was: "Please explain what your priorities would be for Bernards Township schools if you were faced with the need to cut programs due to budget constraints."

Candidates also were asked to submit background material they would like attached to the video.

William Roy Stuart, who lives in The Hills, said he has been a resident for more than eight years, and has two children. He is an attorney.

"I know how important the school system is to our community," he said. He said on his candidate website that he would dedicate his time and skills from nearly 20 years as an attorney toward protecting what he said is the township's greatest asset — its children.

"The most important issue facing the board is dealing with the budget shortfall," he said in an email. "I would help make the tough decisions regarding budgetary cuts by thinking creatively, listening to all ideas, and engaging in an active dialogue with the community."

Stuart said he feels strongly about repairing what he said is the breakdown in communication between the board and community. He said he will strive to ensure that the board's decisions adequately reflect the interests of the community.

Stuart said he has attended several board members over the past two years as an interested observer. "From these meetings, as well as discussions with other residents, I began to develop an interest in the tough issues that the board has been faced on an annual basis during the current budget crisis," he said on his website. He pointed to the grassroots effort to preserve full-day kindergarten, as spearheaded by parents, Adam and Janina Hecht, particularly inspiring.

"Over the past several years, the board has tried to make the best of a seemingly unworkable situation," Stuart said. However, the candidate says he believes that the board can do even better by looking  for creative solutions with an open mind and a fresh outlook can lead to unexpected results. 

If elected as a board member, he said he would:

• work on developing a better dialogue between the Board and the community. 
•  listen to and consider all ideas, and provide substantive feedback. 
•  "think outside of the box", consider the less obvious alternatives, and look at what other school districts facing similar crises have done — both within New Jersey — for guidance.

Previous candidate profiles include and

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