Shades of national politics color nonpartisan Morris School District race

If the Morris School District board election hinged solely on inspiration, Dawn Parkot almost certainly would be a shoo-in.

Legally blind, the 1991 Morristown High School graduate also overcame rheumatoid arthritis and athetoid cerebral palsy — a congenital disability that has tethered her to a wheelchair and rendered her incapable of normal speech — to become the University of Notre Dame’s first multiply-disabled graduate.

Parkot did so cum laude, with a degree in math and a master’s in computer science. She has collaborated with Carnegie Melon University on car driving technology for persons with disabilities. And has launched the Climb Organization, a nonprofit that advocates for the disabled and educates the public –including children — about challenges faced by people like her.

The question on Tuesday, then, may be whether Parkot is too conservative for this diverse, generally progressive district.

She is challenging school board President Melissa Spiotta and Susan Pedalino. Emphasizing continuity in a period of churn–three superintendents and six trustees in three years–they seek second terms representing Morris Township on the regional board.

In Morristown, former zoning board Chairman Cary Lloyd is running unopposed for a seat being vacated by 20-year board veteran Nancy Bangiola.

With a $138 million budget, the K-12 district employs about 1,000 people in 10 schools to serve 5,700 pupils from Morris Township, Morristown and (for high school) Morris Plains. Minorities comprise roughly half of Morristown High School’s student body.

Last month the district celebrated the 50th anniversary of the landmark court ruling that merged and integrated Morris Township and Morristown schools.

‘PARENTS SHOULD MAKE SCHOOL DECISIONS’

“Parents know their children best and should make school decisions,” says Parkot, making her second board bid. She was outpolled by more than a 2-to-1 margin by two successful candidates last year.

Parkot is endorsed by the local chapter of Moms for Liberty. The national “parents rights” organization is leading the movement to ban books dealing with racism and LGBTQ themes in public schools, according to Media Matters for America.

“The board has a responsibility to review any and all material that is deemed offensive, lewd or inappropriate,” Parkot says, via email. “This is where I believe parents rights are important as they should have a say in which books are presented and used to teach their children.”

Parkot brands critical race theory as “radical indoctrination” that divides children into “privileged oppressors” and “oppressed victims,” contrary to Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision of a color-blind society.

She says teaching about sex and gender in early grades “compromises children’s faith,” and she blames COVID lockdowns and virtual instruction for serious learning loss that she says the district is not adequately addressing.

Noting that Morristown High is slipping in statewide rankings, Parkot contends a recently revamped grading system is too lax and fails to prepare students for college. She advocates extending after-school tutoring programs, by recruiting parents and advanced students for the task.

Parkot maintains more should be done to accommodate students with disabilities, and says her election would set an example of inclusion. While she cannot engage in back-and-forth verbal interactions at meetings, she says she could prepare computerized statements about agenda items, along with email followups.

(During an interview with Morristown Green, Parkot delivered prepared position statements via a portable computer, which read them aloud in a synthesized voice like one used by the late Stephen Hawking. Parkot’s father, Sean, helped interpret her responses to questions. After college, Parkot tested software designed for people with speech impediments. “She got to bring coders the bad news,” her father recounted.)

The League of Women Voters agreed to make accommodations for Parkot to participate in a debate, she says, but her opponents declined, citing other commitments. She calls this “disrespectful.”

Spiotta describes the debate timing as “unfortunate,” saying scheduling was complicated by the board’s superintendent search, an overseas trip, a school board convention, obligations as president of the Junior League of Morristown, and helping her mother into assisted living.

“We tried hard to make it work,” she says of a debate.

‘WE TEACH HISTORY’

This election’s central issue, Spiotta says, is “whether or not our community wants politics involved in the school district.

“In New Jersey, board of ed races are intentionally non-partisan. But this year, towns are plagued with highly political contested races. I have campaigned to the best of my ability without any political endorsements or a cast of volunteers to help me.

“I am doing my best to stay out of the politics because I have important work to do. I believe Susan Pedalino and I are the most qualified to do that job,” says Spiotta, a 1985 Morristown High alumna. Her daughter Makena graduated from MHS in June.

Spiotta says parents are key partners, whose input has driven revisions to the controversial grading system. She defends the district’s curriculum choices.

“In our district, we teach history. Sometimes history is unpleasant, but teaching actual history that is age appropriate is very important,” says the Bucknell University graduate.

Appointed to a board vacancy in 2018 and elected the next year, Spiotta has achieved all four levels of state certification. She cites her experience and community connections as resources for the board and for incoming Superintendent Anne Mucci.

In addition to the Junior League, Spiotta volunteers for the Interfaith Food Pantry Network and is involved with Impact 100 Garden State, the Women’s Association for Morristown Medical Center, and the Hillside Women’s Auxiliary. She also has served the Morris Educational Foundation and the Hillcrest Home and School Association.

The founder of Facebook groups I Love Morristown! and Morristown Helps was honored last year by the Morristown Rotary for helping raise more than $30,000 for the club’s Operation Hunger drives. These pandemic programs bought meals from area restaurants to feed struggling people across Morris County.

Spiotta says she’s proud of the Morris District for keeping school buses rolling, elementary schools open daily, and in-person instruction alternating at the secondary schools, through much of the COVID-19 crisis.

“No one will ever understand how hard it was to keep schools open,” she says. “Do I wish we could have done more? Of course, I do. But I know we did our best.”

Schools everywhere are grappling with learning loss; look for a redesigned math curriculum soon to complement other post-COVID initiatives, she says.

Spiotta also points to a new teacher contract “we are proud of, ” and lights for the high school football field. New sports, clubs and honors- and advanced placement programs have been added as well, she says.

SKIN IN THE GAME

Pedalino also is concerned by the tenor of this election.

When she ran three years ago, “I did not shame the incumbents or speak negatively about the district or them,” she says.

“Today, the election seems to focus on negativity versus positivity and about misinformation versus facts. My focus is on bringing our school community closer together, not dividing us apart with political rhetoric and misstatements as a scare tactic.

“It is critical that Board of Education candidates not align themselves or be endorsed by specific political groups and political officials so we can keep Board of Education elections truly nonpartisan. It should be about the kids, not politics. That is why I also support Melissa Spiotta as we seek re-election together,” Pedalino tells Morristown Green.

To be clear, she says, “Critical Race Theory is not taught in our schools. My hope is that we are challenging our students to be independent thinkers who read and research a variety of resources that address different viewpoints so they can be informed and develop their own opinions and perspectives. It is also important that our students understand that there are many sides to events in history.”

Pedalino emphasizes that she has skin in the game, too. Her three sons, ages 9 to 15, attend Morris District schools.

And she cites her career as an educator. For nearly two decades, she has been a 3rd grade teacher and library media specialist in Hanover.

“I have my finger on the pulse of what’s new in education and where it is headed. My experience in education makes me uniquely qualified to ensure our schools are future-ready and that we challenge our students and lead them to a successful path to college and career readiness,” Pedalino, a 1996 Rutgers grad, says on her campaign website.

She says she brought parent concerns about homework and grading policies to administrators last year, leading to modifications. Homework and quizzes now account for 25 percent of the final grade; tests, projects and reports are worth 75 percent for students in the middle- and high schools.

This new assessment approach “allows more time for students to demonstrate mastery and supports the ongoing process of learning. Grading has become more authentic and a true representation of learning,” Pedalino says.

While the district must comply with mandatory state learning standards, Pedalino says, “As a parent of young children and a teenager…I understand parents’ concerns and respect their choice to remove their children from any part of the health, family life or sex education classes if it conflicts with their beliefs.”

Remediating learning loss is an immense task for schools nationwide, and Pedalino says it’s a major reason she seeks a second term.

By her account, the district is working hard, offering online and face-to-face tutoring and other programs. She is encouraged by last month’s statewide English and math assessments; she says district students generally outperformed state averages. To deal with the pandemic’s psychological toll, the district is piloting a social worker intern program.

Regarding students with disabilities, Pedalino says the district’s antiracism policy includes a denunciation of discrimination against individuals with “physical or mental disability.”

She is proud of expanded academic and sports programs. Excited about the new superintendent, she wants to ensure that Mucci “continues to be the right fit.”

The daughter of parents from Colombia and Ecuador, Pedalino says she will push for equal access to a high quality education for every child in the district.

“I want our students to be kind, tolerant, accepting, respecting each other’s differences, to feel supported, and to grow up to be healthy and informed adults,” she says.

This story has been updated with Susan Pedalino’s response to Morristown Green’s questions.

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