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Township considers Coalition contribution
(by Maggie Fazeli Fard - June 11, 2008)
In the wake of cuts in state aid and accusations that the township does not contribute its fair share to the regional school district, River Vale’s governing body discussed Monday night how to contribute to a regional drug awareness and safety program while maintaining its own.
The Hills-Valley Coalition, which touts itself as a “community coalition for resilient youth,” is a joint effort of
Pascack
Valley ’s two regional high schools,
Pascack
Valley and Pascack Hills, offering resources and special events for parents and teenaged students dealing with substance abuse, peer pressure and other physical and mental health issues.
Three of
Pascack
Valley ’ sending districts – Hillsdale, Montvale and
Woodcliff
Lake – have contributed $2,500 every year to the Coalition’s efforts. River Vale has historically contributed $500 annually.
“River Vale has not been an equal partner,” said River Vale Mayor Joseph Blundo at the June 9 council meeting, asking that the council consider increasing its contribution to be on par with the other municipalities.
Members of the council unanimously supported increasing the township’s contribution and promised to find more money in an already tight budget, reeling from the impact of a $200,000 cut in state aid.
“We’ve expressed interest in keeping the integrity of the high school together,” said Councilman Dwight de Stefan. “Part of that is equality.”
Woodcliff Lake and Montvale, who according to the state’s ratable-based funding formula pay more per student than sister towns River Vale and Hillsdale, have expressed interest in unwinding the district in their effort to even out the playing field.
JoAnn Hirsch, Roberge School Nurse and the township’s Municipal Alliance Chairperson, explained to the council that the disparity in contributions should not be construed as a lackadaisical approach to child safety and drug awareness on River Vale’s part.
“The reason we don’t pay a fair share now is that we are the only town that has its own program,” said Hirsch, who runs the township’s DARE and
Junior
Police
Academy programs. She also volunteers her time grant writing and organizing events such as Red Ribbon Week and school assemblies. “We’re actually using our grant money [from the county]. They’re not.”
Hirsch said there is already “not nearly enough money” to fund all of River Vale’s programs adequately, but noted that she has attended some of the Coalitions events, calling them “great programs.”
In addition to looking for an increased contribution from River Vale, the Coalition is asking all participating municipalities to fund the salary of a part-time employee who for the past two years has done grant writing and event organization. The employee has received $10,000 annually, with half of that cost offset by county aid. The county no longer wants to contribute to the salary, reported Blundo, and the Coalition is looking for municipal support to keep the employee on staff.
Members of the council, none of whom have teenaged children attending Pascack Hills, agreed that they would like to know more about the Coalition before making any decisions. While they supported the increase in contribution, council members had reservations about funding the salary of a part-time employee without knowing how it would benefit River Vale given the work that Hirsch does on a volunteer basis.
“We don’t want to harm what we already have,” Blundo assured the council.
The governing body will invite a member of the Coalition to a future council meeting to talk about what the program is and what function the part-time employee plays.
Maggie Fazeli Fard's e-mail address is fazelifard@northjersey.com.
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