At this week’s Lenape Regional High School District Board of Education meeting, Superintendent Carol Birnbohm discussed the state aid reductions that face the region over the next seven years.

Birnbohm said that over the next seven years, the LRHSD and six of the K-8 school districts that feed into the LRHSD are going to lose a total of approximately $24 million.

Broken down into school districts, Evesham Township is estimated to lose about $9,003,394; Lenape Regional is estimated to lose about $8,308,946; Medford Township is estimated to lose about $1,603,435; Shamong Township is estimated to lose about $1,155,459; Southampton Township is estimated to lose about $1,141,089; Tabernacle Township is estimated to lose about $2,752,887 and Woodland Township is estimated to lose about $186,164.

LRHSD is facing a loss of $961,300 for the upcoming 2019–2020 school year.

In a press release provided by the district, the total 2019–2020 general fund operating budget is $154,014,361 which represents a 0.67 percent increase over the previous year. This increase is the net difference of a 2 percent tax levy increase and a decrease of state aid in the amount of $961,300.

The debt service tax levy is increasing by $291,844, which reflects the current payment schedule for the 2019–2020 year that was previously approved by the taxpayers.

The tax levy increase of 2 percent and debt service tax levy increase of $291,844, results in the tax impact listed below:

• Evesham Township — Tax levy increase of 1.84 cents, resulting in an increase in regional school taxes of $65.78 on a home assessed at the township average of $272,700.
• Medford Township — Tax levy increase of 1.78 cents, resulting in an increase in regional school taxes of $59.46 on a home assessed at the township average of $326,500.
• Medford Lakes Borough — Tax levy increase of 4.84 cents, resulting in an increase in regional school taxes of $146.10 on a home assessed at the borough average of $286,540.
• Mt. Laurel Township — Tax levy increase of 0.32 cents, resulting in an increase in regional school taxes of $7.49 on a home assessed at the township average of $237,600.
• Shamong Township — Tax levy increase of 1.09 cents, resulting in an increase in regional school taxes of $33.76 on a home assessed at the township average of $308,498.
• Southampton Township — Tax levy increase of 4.22 cents, resulting in an increase in regional school taxes of $80.98 on a home assessed at the township average of $192,211.
• Tabernacle Township — Tax levy increase of 1.88 cents, resulting in an increase in regional school taxes of $53.56 on a home assessed at the township average of $264,729.
• Woodland Township — Tax levy decrease of 1.13 cents, resulting in a decrease in regional school taxes of $28.52 on a home assessed at the township average of $257,000.

Birnbohm said the LRHSD 2018–2019 funding sources come from about 75 percent of tax levy, 19 percent from state aid and 6 percent from miscellaneous. She predicted that by the 2024–2025 school year, about 85 percent would come from tax levy, 14 percent from state aid and 1 percent from miscellaneous.

She said academic programming, social and emotional learning and support, personnel and school facilities are at stake with the upcoming reductions.

Birnbohm suggested residents reach out to legislators to request a pause on state aid cuts. Information regarding legislator contacts and sample emails can be found on lrhsd.org/sos

“They’re going to listen to kids, they’re going to listen to parents, they’re going to listen to educators — so I do need your help in communicating this message, we’re looking at over $24 million leaving the entire region, which could have catastrophic impacts on all of our district operations,” Birnbohm said. “There’s no such thing as winners and losers when it comes to funding education, it is completely unacceptable for us to sit back and say that it’s OK to be a loser for a while.”

The public hearing on the budget will be held on May 1 at 7:30 p.m. at the Lenape District Administration Building.

In other news:

• Various residents spoke at public comment about their interest in having a Chinese language course taught within the district. Lindsay Tyburski, a Marlton resident and Shawnee graduate, spoke about her passion with her career as an online teacher to children in China to teach them English language skills. She said that if she had been provided an opportunity to learn Chinese in high school, she could’ve found her ideal career sooner.

The next LRHSD board meeting will be held on April 17 at 7:30 p.m. at the Lenape District Administration Building.

Lenape Regional High School District discusses state aid reductions was originally published in The Medford Sun on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

At this week’s Medford Council meeting, two Eagle Scouts were honored for the effort they put into completing their projects and achieving the highest honor and rank of the Boy Scouts of America.

Daniel Kaighn of Troop 26 and Justin Haugland of Troop 20 were recognized.

Mayor Chuck Watson read the proclamation to Kaighn, recognizing him for his Eagle Scout project to design and build picnic tables and to install split rail fences around the perimeter of Dr. Still Park.

In doing so, he enhanced the aesthetics at the park, while also protecting children who use the park and preventing vehicles from parking on park property.

The picnic tables will be used by the Cranberry Hall seniors and the families who visit and enjoy the park.

Watson said the overall effort put forth by Kaighn to direct more than 30 youth and adult volunteers from Troop 26 resulted in his better understanding of the value of community involvement and civic duty, and his leadership skills are a benefit to his troop, community, family and friends.

Watson said that Haugland’s project was to assemble and install dog agility equipment at the Freedom Barks Dog Park.

The equipment was received as a grant from PetSafe “Bark for your Park” program, and nine new pieces of equipment were put together and installed. Watson said his involvement helped save the township thousands of dollars in assembly and installation costs and the equipment will further improve the experience of the dogs and their human companions.

He directed more than 40 youth and adult volunteers from Troop 20, along with communication with the Freedom Barks committee and township officials.

He said Haugland also presented his understanding of the value of community involvement, civic duty and leadership skills.

“We really appreciate the effort both of you have put in to become Eagle Scouts as well as the service projects that you’ve done that benefit our community,” Watson said. “Councilman [Brad] Denn and I are both Eagle Scouts, so we know what it takes, but all of us really appreciate what you’ve done.”

In other news:

• An ordinance was passed on second reading allowing the township to establish a cap bank. Watson explained there is a 2 percent maximum cap that taxes can be raised they haven’t used in the past six years. The state allows the township to bank the cap it isn’t using this year in the case of an emergency. He said there is no intention to raise taxes.
• The police department was thanked for its involvement with local schools for the “Kids Rock” event. The police department teamed with children to paint rocks that have been placed outside of the public safety building.

The next regular council meeting will be held on April 2 at 7 p.m. at the Public Safety Building located at 91 Union St.

Two Eagle Scouts were honored for community involvement was originally published in The Medford Sun on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Freeholder Felicia Hopson announced that the Burlington County Women’s Advisory Council is accepting nominations for the 2019 Outstanding Women of Burlington County Awards. Applications will be accepted until Monday, April 1 at 4 p.m.

“The Women’s Advisory Council is excited to continue this longstanding tradition of recognizing women in leadership roles right here in Burlington County,” said Freeholder Felicia Hopson. “The annual awards dinner is a wonderful way to bring together all of the award recipients to share their inspirational stories.”

The Council is looking for women who have made significant contributions in their chosen field, as well as having demonstrated their support of women in our community. Winners will be honored at the annual Outstanding Women of Burlington County Awards Dinner in June.

This year, nominees will be recognized in the following categories: Mentorship, Volunteerism, Law, Education, Community Service, Corporate Leadership and Diversity/Inclusion.

The Council is also accepting nominations to recognize and present scholarships to three outstanding twelfth-grade female students from Burlington County. The scholarships will include the “Alice Paul Champion Award”, the “Celeste Arties Memorial Award” and the “Elizabeth Coleman White STEM Award”. The Council is pleased to be awarding three Scholarships in the amount of $1,000 to each award recipient.

To be eligible for an award, nominees must have lived or worked in Burlington County for at least one year. The awards are sponsored by the Women’s Advisory Council and the Burlington County Board of Chosen Freeholders.

“If you know woman in the community who is going above and beyond for other women, please nominate her for this incredible achievement. I look forward to meeting all of the award winners when we recognize them in June to thank them for their dedication in mentoring other women in our community,” concluded Freeholder Hopson.

Guidelines and nomination forms can be obtained by visiting: http://co.burlington.nj.us/263/Womens-Advisory-Council or by calling Christine Gonnelli at (609) 265–5020.

To view a list of the 2018 Award Honorees, visit: http://www.co.burlington.nj.us/267/Outstanding-Women-of-Burlington

The Burlington County Women’s Advisory Council works to identify and address issues that affect women in Burlington County, raise public awareness of the special needs and roles of women, provide mentoring opportunities for women beginning their careers, and enhance the quality of life for all women. For more information follow the Council on Facebook at @BurlingtonCountyWomen or visit our website at: http://co.burlington.nj.us/263/Womens-Advisory-Council

Outstanding women of Burlington County was originally published in The Medford Sun on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Amy Johnston, a health and physical education teacher at Shawnee High School, is the 2019–20 Lenape Regional High School District Teacher of the Year. A 12-year veteran of the district, Johnston also has coached numerous sports at Shawnee, including girls’ soccer, winter track and field and lacrosse.

The LRHSD Teacher of the Year designation is extra special for Johnston, who was once a student in not only the same district, but also the same high school where she now teaches. She is a 2002 Shawnee High School graduate.

“It is both humbling and an honor to be recognized as Teacher of the Year,” Johnston said. “As a former student of the district, I have been fortunate to be able to work alongside
some of the same amazing teachers who taught me, as well as impressive new colleagues, all of whom continue to help me grow and become the teacher and person I am today. I would not be receiving this award without all of the support and guidance from family, friends, colleagues and students.”

Colleagues who nominated Johnston for Teacher of the Year praised her “student- centered and energetic classroom, where students feed off of her enthusiasm and passion.” They also characterized her as a “true team player and caring person, who is willing to help out any student or staff member with any request.”

Johnston has contributed to several district initiatives, including the District Wellness Fair, the Shawnee Student Wellness Fair, No Place for Hate, Defy the Issue, the #notevenonce Program, the Shawnee Staff Day of Service and the Senior Day of Service. She has served as a leader to champion many of these initiatives.

She led efforts to launch the Shawnee Staff Day of Service, energizing and encouraging staff to participate in a day of service to the Shawnee community. She also took the lead to develop the Renegade Wellness Newsletter to support staff members with their personal health and wellness, and she helped develop the #notevenonce Program at Shawnee, taking the initiative to partner with the Medford Police Department to help students realize the impact of opiates on their community.

The #notevenonce Program is one of many initiatives supported by LRHSD’s Defy the Issue campaign that aims to educate district families and residents of all ages about the dangers of illegal drug and alcohol use and to provide support for young people by empowering them to DEFY the pressures of using such substances. With Johnston’s help, Shawnee piloted #notevenonce in 2017, and then the school introduced it to all seniors in the spring of 2018 and to freshmen this past fall.

“Ms. Johnston’s involvement with this program is one example of how she is always looking to move the health curriculum forward; she takes cues from what is going on in our society and issues our students are either facing or may likely face in the future,” said LRHSD Superintendent Carol Birnbohm, Ed.D. “I commend her for always striving to offer our students an education that will truly add value to their lives and help them thrive now and in the future.”

Johnston earned a bachelor’s degree in health and physical education with a teaching certification from Rowan University in 2006. She earned a master’s degree in teaching and learning: technology integration from Nova Southeastern University in 2015.

She resides in Tabernacle with her husband, Mike, who also works at Shawnee in the Technology Department as a woodworking and drafting teacher, and her children, Addison, 5, and Avery, 3.

LRHSD named district teacher of the year was originally published in The Medford Sun on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Burlington County Freeholder Felicia Hopson announced that small business owners who are looking to expand their business, or those dreaming of starting a business, are invited to attend a free Small Business Lenders Forum on Thursday, March 28 from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Burlington County Library Auditorium in Westampton.

The Burlington County Board of Chosen Freeholders and Burlington County Bridge Commission are sponsoring this event. At least 10 local bank representatives will be in attendance. After the program, business owners will have the opportunity to network and ask questions at the individual lenders’ stations in the lobby.

“In the final three months of 2018, 26 loans equaling more than $30 million dollars were awarded to Burlington County businesses,” said Freeholder Felicia Hopson, liaison to Economic Development. “Burlington County businesses received more loans during that time than in the other six South Jersey counties combined,” she added, citing information from The Small Business Administration’s District Office in Newark.

Those statistics represent SBA-guaranteed funds approved through their 7a, Community Advantage and 504 Small Business Loan Programs. Those commercial loans are financed by local banks and repayment ensured by the SBA.

The small Business Lenders Forum will offer representatives of local banks a few minutes each to speak about the specifics of their commercial lending programs. There will be no entrance fee but registration is required at https://www.bcls.lib.nj.us/calendar/burlco-small-business-forum.

The Burlington County Library is located at 5 Pioneer Blvd. in Westampton.

For more information, visit the Facebook event page at: https://www.facebook.com/events/831672540506804/.

Small Business Lenders Forum scheduled for March 28 was originally published in The Medford Sun on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

By Alan Bauer
The Sun

The more than 310,000 infants and toddlers who call New Jersey home are doing OK, not great, but improving, according to a recent national study found at StateofBabies.org.

The study looked at a variety of factors under three major categories: Good Health, Strong Families and Positive Early Learning Experiences. Overall, there were, of course, mixed results, but, overall, the state did pretty well.

In the Good Health category, positives included 15.2 percent of mothers in the state reported less than optimal mental health. While, ideally, that number would be zero, the national rate was 22 percent.

Also, the infant mortality rate here was 4.1 per 1,000 live births, compared to 5.9 nationally.

On the negative side, parents need to do a better job of taking their kids to the dentist. Only 24.4 percent reported taking their children in for preventive dental care, compared to 30 percent nationally.

New Jersey did well in the Strong Families category, with high marks for a low maltreatment rate, and a higher than average housing stability rate, for example. One of the bigger negatives was that 11.9 percent of respondents reported living in an unsafe neighborhood. That compares to 6.3 percent nationally. Also, children in New Jersey were more likely to be living in crowded housing.

The Positive Early Learning Experiences showed New Jersey parents like to sing to their babies, 62.9 percent compared to 56.4 percent nationally. Reading, however, fell a little short of that mark, with 37.9 percent of New Jersey respondents reading to their children, compared to 38.2 percent nationally.

Complete details of the study are available on the website.

New Jersey has its well-documented problems, but it’s good to see that, when it comes to its youngest residents, for the most part the state is doing well or at least moving in the right direction.

Sun Editorial: Recent study shows infants and toddlers in New Jersey are doing OK was originally published in The Medford Sun on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Makers of all ages are invited to celebrate maker culture with hands-on tech fun, do-it-yourself projects, STEM activities and more during the Burlington County Library’s Fifth Annual Makers Faire scheduled for Saturday, March 23 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the library in Westampton.

Sponsored by The Friends of the Library and part of the New Jersey Makers Day celebration, officials say the Makers Faire features fun for the whole family.

Whether a tech wiz or a homespun crafter, officials say all attendees need to become a “maker” is an interest in hands-on projects and an enthusiasm for creating.

This is the library’s fifth annual celebration of maker culture, and once again, the 2019 schedule features a variety of programs and demonstrations for all ages.

Visitors will be invited to create, tinker and explore at more than 30 “maker stations” set up inside the library just for the event.

Attendees can cook for coding robots, a green screen, STEM Scouts, fashion design, vinyl record pressing, virtual reality, 3D printing, the Evesham Green Team, the Burlington County Animal Shelter, crafts, origami, STEM activities and more.

Volunteers from Senator Troy Singleton’s “Serve with Singleton” volunteer program also will be in attendance to assist with the day’s activities.

According to officials, New Jersey Makes Day began in 2015 to enhance community engagement and develop connections among residents throughout the state by collaborating with libraries, museums, small businesses and others to promote and explore new opportunities for entrepreneurship, innovation and hands-on learning experiences.

In 2016, the event was expanded to two days, drawing thousands of visitors to participating sites in all 21 counties.

This year, celebrations will be held at hundreds of venues across the state on Friday, March 22 and Saturday, March 23. www.njmakersday.org/

The Burlington County Library is located at 5 Pioneer Boulevard off Woodlane Road in Westampton.

For more information about the library’s Fifth Annual Makers Faire, call (609) 267–9660, or go to www.bcls.lib.nj.us.

Burlington County Library System to host fifth annual ‘Makers Faire’ on March 23 was originally published in The Medford Sun on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Pinelands Garden Club is planting seeds of knowledge in the minds of high school seniors by offering a $1,500 scholarship to those in the Lenape High School District and the Burlington County Institute of Technology.

To apply, students must be pursuing a career in agriculture education, floriculture, landscape design, botany biology, plant pathology, agronomy, city planning — rural or urban, habitat for forests, environmental concerns and management and related studies.

The guidance counselor at each school will be able to provide students with an application to be postmarked by April 26.

Students will be required to submit their school transcripts and provide a letter to the scholarship committee explaining why they chose the career field they’re interested in, what their long-term future career plans are and any other information they feel would be helpful to the committee in making a decision.

The committee anticipates selecting a winner within a week of receiving all applications, and the winner will be presented a check at the luncheon celebration to be held on June 10.

Scholarship chair Susanna Ciliano said one of the main reasons the garden club presents an annual scholarship is to carry on the mission of Ellen Roche, founder of the club in 1971, who had the main goal of “education and action.”

“We do this so we can plant the seeds of people who would be interested in continuing their knowledge of gardening, natural resources, plant materials, civic conservation, beautification and to protect the trees, plants and animals unique to the Pinelands,” Ciliano said. “ We want to educate the youth on the benefits and pleasures of gardening and to work in a field that gives them pleasure but also helps our environment.”

Ciliano first got involved in the garden club about four years ago as a way to fully invest in her lifelong love of gardening she was unable to give her full attention to throughout her career as a nurse.

She said gardening is “in her blood,” stemming from her late father’s love of gardening throughout his life. She said he would grow vegetables and provide them to his neighbors, and that inspired Ciliano to want to give back.

“He gave back, and I guess that has always stuck with me — you want to give back to your community — the scholarship is one way of me continuing with the garden club to give back to the community,” Ciliano said.

The scholarship is funded through the club’s annual plant sale held on Mother’s Day weekend, along with “The Afternoon Floral Tea” on April 6, which is sold out.

Ciliano said each year the club expands the scholarship opportunity to more fields of study, and this year it increased the scholarship amount by $500.

“I know there’s someone out there who’s going to continue to work in the environment and also just to help them out,” Ciliano said. “College is so expensive now, so many students have to take out loans and it’s a financial hardship for most families, so the most satisfaction I get is in helping them financially to achieve the goals they want to achieve.”

For further information, email skciliano@comcast.net. Those interested in joining the Pinelands Garden Club can attend its monthly meetings the second Monday of every month at 9:30 a.m. at the Medford Leas auditorium.

Pinelands Garden Club is currently accepting scholarship applications was originally published in The Medford Sun on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Lenape Regional High School District holds STEM Career Night

The Lenape Regional High School District is no stranger to having its teachers and administrators extol the virtues of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) throughout its classrooms.

Yet for nearly an hour and half last week, the district was lucky enough to have about 20 professionals from various STEM fields on hand to personally share experiences from their careers with interested students and their families.

Last week marked the LRHSD’s annual STEM Career Night at Lenape High School, where students and their families from the district’s four high schools could choose to attend up to three, 20-minute presentations hosted by professionals working in various STEM-related careers.

Just some of the presenters on hand included a geotechnical engineer, an electronic engineer, a pharmacist, a professor of computer science, a cardiologist, an environmental engineer, an engineer from Exelon Nuclear, a senior architect from Lockheed Martin and more.

The full story can be found here.

Medford resident runs for a cure

Medford resident Sean Kennedy plans to tackle the 123rd Boston Marathon one step at a time this April.

On April 15, Kennedy will join thousands of others in the challenge to complete the 26-mile race, while raising money for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute as a member of the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge team.

According to Jan Ross, assistant vice president of running programs at Dana-Farber, the institute is one of the world’s leading centers of cancer research and treatment for adults and children, focusing on patient-centered care, in which patients are seen not only by physicians and nurses, but also by specialists in other areas of cancer care, ensuring a holistic approach their treatment plan.

The full story can be found here.

Letters from the library

Check out the upcoming events at the Pinelands Branch Library. The next featured event, the STEAM program will take place on March 21 at 4 p.m. for children ages 5 to 12.

There will be an opportunity to play/experiment with a bevy of interesting gadgets designed to spark kids’ imaginations & foster their interest in science, technology, engineering, art and math.

More events can be found here.

Weekly Roundup: STEM career night, marathon runner, library events was originally published in The Medford Sun on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Medford resident Sean Kennedy plans to tackle the 123rd Boston Marathon one step at a time this April.

On April 15, Kennedy will join thousands of others in the challenge to complete the 26-mile race, while raising money for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute as a member of the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge team.

According to Jan Ross, assistant vice president of running programs at Dana-Farber, the institute is one of the world’s leading centers of cancer research and treatment for adults and children, focusing on patient-centered care, in which patients are seen not only by physicians and nurses, but also by specialists in other areas of cancer care, ensuring a holistic approach their treatment plan.

“I can see firsthand how funds raised from our running programs directly impact patient care and cancer research, working towards a world without cancer,” Ross said. “Dana-Farber has a lifesaving mission to provide expert, compassionate care to children and adults with cancer while advancing the understanding, diagnosis, treatment and cures for cancer.”

With this year marking the second year Kennedy has supported Dana-Farber, he said he feels fortunate to once again raise money for the cause. Last year, Kennedy raised more than $20,000, dominating his required fundraising goal of $5,000.

“It gave me a chance to raise money for something that means a lot and for a place that plays a huge role in helping people to not only deal with, but hopefully find a cure for cancer,” Kennedy said.

Kennedy said the organization is especially important to him because he has dealt with the death of his sister-in-law due to a rare form of stomach cancer, leading to him having custody of his niece.

“Boston being my favorite city, the Boston Marathon being as prestigious as it is, my personal family history with cancer and Dana-Farber being so important in all of that, it’s kind of like a whole bunch of things coming together,” Kennedy said. “I’m really fortunate to be able to participate in it.”

Kennedy has previously participated in various marathons and half-marathons across the country, including Baltimore, Washington D.C., and Philadelphia, but he said there is nothing quite like Boston.

“Not that there aren’t other great marathons across the country, but there’s really nothing like the entire city shutting down,” Kennedy said. “It’s an amazing day and it’s like a holiday in that area.”

Kennedy grew up a Boston Celtics basketball fan and took his first trip into the city while he was in college. He instantly fell in love with the city, saying that if he could relive his college years, he would attend a college in Boston.

He said he is looking forward to once again visiting the city and taking in all the experience has to offer.

“I’m looking just to finish it and raise money for a cause that I believe in and experience a great day of running through the city of Boston.”

To donate to Kennedy’s fundraising page, visit http://danafarber.jimmyfund.org/goto/SeanKennedy.

Medford resident runs for a cure was originally published in The Medford Sun on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.