Employment:
Facilities Director for New Jersey Community Development Corp.
Length of residence in Paterson:
I’m a Proud Patersonian, Born and Raised in Paterson.
Education:
Public School #08. I earned my high school diploma from Passaic County Technical Institute and attended Berkeley College.
I also attained my Real Estate License.
Family:
Married to my lovely wife, Jackie for 4 years and we have a 2 year-old son, named Joshua.
Past and Current Involvement in the Paterson Public Schools:
- I currently serve on the Board of Directors for the Paterson Education Fund (PEF).
- Recently, I have volunteered to pack some of the 8,000 books that were donated from Scholastic Books Classroom Care project and were distributed to over 80 classrooms in Paterson.
- I volunteered in the yearly PEF 50 Book Club celebration.
- As a member of the Statewide Education Organization Committee (SEOC), I went to Trenton to fight for the continuation of support from the ruling of Abbott v. Burke, which gives urban cities like Paterson more funding for our schools and children.
- I’ve attended many PTA and Parent Leadership meetings for the past couple of years in Paterson. Citizens’ Campaign, assisted in the development of the proposed Youth Commission Ordinance.
- Member of the 6th Ward Neighborhood Association-Quality of Life Committee, Sixth Ward Advisory Committee, Attendee of the Hillcrest Neighborhood Association, member of the Sociedad Cultural Borincana, Inc.(SCB), and SCB-Scholarship Committee.
- Number of Board meetings attended in the last 6 months: 4 plus some Budget & Facility Workshops.
- Three Major Issues:
- Improved Curriculum- I support an improved curriculum with an increased emphasis on science, technology, engineering and math to address global challenges.
- Facilities/Increase school construction- We need to build more schools to address overcrowding and large class size, and should create community schools that are open later and on the weekends to provide services to the community as well.
- Accelerated Return to Local Control- It’s time for control of our schools to return to people who understand its challenges, are committed to its improvement and appreciate its potential the most – the parents, teachers, and residents of Paterson!
The aforementioned issues have inspired me to run and will determine how I will serve.
