Schiavoni discusses board controversies and goals

Sparta - Michael R. Schiavoni has served on the Sparta Township Board of Education since May 2005 and was elected president in May 2006. He has worked in human resources and for the last six years has had his own consulting business. Schiavoni is an active volunteer, having also served as chair of the Enrollment Growth Taskforce (2000-2002), and co-chair of the Demographics Committee of the Community Facilities Taskforce (2004). He holds a BA from the University of Iowa and an MBA from the University of Michigan. He also teaches a Strategic Human Resources Management Course in the Farleigh Dickinson University MBA program. Schiavoni and his wife Suzanne have two daughters, and have lived in Sparta for 11 years. It has been seven months since Schiavoni became the president of the Sparta Board of Education. In that time he has seen the residents of Sparta pass a referendum for the $71 million reconstruction and renovation of the school. He and the board are now at the helm of what may be the largest school reconstruction project in the history of New Jersey. It would be a daunting task for any individual or group, but Schiavoni seems committed to the success of the project. When asked to describe his role as president, Schiavoni called himself a “first among equals.” He said that with a group of nine equals, his role is one of influence rather than authority. He said that this kind of leadership can be challenging, the presidency “a very difficult role, with a large amount of responsibility and limited authority.” Schiavoni feels the greatest accomplishment of the present board is the successful referendum effort. He feels that when Sparta looks back they will see this had a great impact on the community, not just the school: “The community chose this direction for the future of Sparta. I believe it will positively affect the whole quality of life in this town over the next decade.” He said the second most important accomplishment of the board is that they’ve “set a strategic vision of where the district is going and have put actions in place to make those goals happen.” Schiavoni said the board and the superintendent are working on a master blue print of how to accomplish these goals. He said, “We have to raise our game. This is an effort to do that.” When questioned regarding the recent public perception that the board is divided and does not work well together or with the administration, specifically with Superintendnet Morton, Schiavoni responded, “We’ve hit some bumps in the road. But everyone is committed to our strategic goals. We must remind ourselves why we are here—the kids of Sparta and the goals of the district.” Schiavoni acknowledged that the community expectations for the board have risen. “This is a roll-your-sleeves-up assignment.” Clearly, the relationship between the board and the administration has been prickly, at best. When asked if there was a specific event or series of events that triggered a deterioration in relations, Schiavoni replied, “The previous board had been more passive in their oversight of the district agenda. This board has moved into a more active oversight role. Some board members and the administration have been uncomfortable with this.” He added that, given the current district agenda, he believes active oversight is what is expected by residents: “We must raise the bar without micro-managing the schools or doing the superintendent’s job. There’s been a procedural shift and it has caused some resistance. I call it growing pains.” At the Nov. 13 regular board meeting, Schiavoni attempted to bring a motion against the superintendent. It was tabled until the Nov. 29 special meeting, at Morton’s request. But after a lengthy closed session discussion that evening, the board reported no action would be taken. When asked if he could shed any light on the outcome of the discussions, Schiavoni responded, “No action does not mean no progress. There was dialogue and a lot of progress was made. A motion doesn’t have to be acted upon. The quality of the discussion is what was important.” The motion in question used wording like, “conduct unbecoming of a professional school administrator.” Schiavoni, asked to respond to Sparta residents who have been concerned about these veiled accusations, replied, “In essence, the problem dealt with some internal misunderstandings between members of the board, and misunderstandings between some board members and Morton. I think we’re well on the road to getting these misunderstandings cleared up and achieving a common agreement on how we’ll work together.” When asked if he could be more specific about the “conduct” in question, he answered, “The word ‘conduct’ referred to some things that were said.” He said that he wanted to go on record saying, “I want to put to rest the notion that the goal is to force Morton out. It is not.” Another area of citizen concern is the second law firm hired by the board and legal fees incurred by attorneys attending board meetings. Schiavoni wants to clarify that the firm in question is not supplemental, the board has decided to divide legal work between two firms. He is adamant about having an attorney present at most regular meetings from now on. He said, “The town council and the planning board always have attorneys present. I don’t want to be penny-wise and pound-foolish. The attorneys make sure we make legally sound decisions and that we have professional advice for crucial matters.” The board has negotiated with the new firm (Morris, Sherrod, and Downing) for a reduced rate. Citizens have also been concerned about the loss of the district’s business administrator, Ron Wolfe. There has been limited response from potential replacements, but Schiavoni attributes it primarily to the time of year and wants to take more time to attract a greater number of candidates. He said, “We should give ourselves some leeway to get someone in by July 1. The initial replacement field was too narrow. We need to have four to six viable candidates going into a second round of interviews.”