Published: July 11, 2022
It was recently said about me that I’ve only been going to Fredon Board of Education (BOE) and Township Committee meetings here and there since February. I don’t know how many meetings are considered enough for someone to step up and run for office, but it did get me thinking that I need to tell Fredon voters a bit more about me!
You see, before becoming an educator to add more meaning to what I did each day, I had an exciting career in grassroots lobbying, public affairs, and community relations. I spent more nights at Township meetings throughout N.J. than I care to remember watching intense throw-downs over so many topics important to citizens, including giant developments coming to communities that didn’t want them and environmental clean-ups of Superfund sites.
I know how to read agendas and minutes. I also know how to read between the lines without being in the room.
I saw what I believed was potential election interference in the BOE election on a community forum in February and started some dialogue to ensure the correct process was being followed.
For months before this, I had been feeling that my views as a parent were being misrepresented (and not by the BOE), so I decided it was time to introduce myself at a meeting a few weeks later (you can fast forward to about 1 hour and 36 minutes).
Then, in April, the health curriculum caused a giant stir on a community forum and the wonderful egg hunt that the Fire and Recreation Departments put together got overshadowed. These volunteers received so little attention compared to this fight that was going nowhere and was deleted shortly after I defended a fellow resident anyway.
At the same time, I had gone on the community forum to defend the volunteers too and to ask for the name of the forum to change because I don’t believe the content and fighting with people from different towns accurately reflects Fredon’s values.
I was told to go make my own site and that I could leave the site if it offended me.
I didn’t have to leave. I was removed from the forum on April 19 for asking the Township Committee for a social media policy. I was trying to protect citizens’ rights to petition the government for a redress of grievances (present opinions to elected officials). It is part of the First Amendment and I brought it up because posts from an election were deleted and it wasn’t clear if Committee members were speaking as private citizens or public officials in answers to residents’ questions and concerns.
I do not believe a policy was ever brought up publicly again after I addressed the Committee about it at their next meeting. I continue to watch other towns create policies, but our elected Township officials, employees, and citizens still don’t have a framework to protect everyone’s First Amendment Rights on social media.
Anyway, I was unblocked from joining the forum, but instead of re-joining, I did make my own site, and my husband and I decided the volunteer hours and money we’re committed to giving this community every year couldn’t be used to coach soccer or be class mom. Those hours and donations had to go toward efforts to give Fredon its uncensored voice and community spirit back. The only monetary contributions we accept to the Committee to Elect Laura Ciccolella are our own.
Fun side note: When I was in 7th grade at Franklin Borough Elementary School, I ran against two 8th graders for school President. The 8th grade split its votes between their two candidates and I got the full 7th grade vote and won a bit by accident.
My platform? I would attend every BOE meeting and represent the voice of the students. At age 12, I presented to the BOE, I saw my beloved teachers in union fights, I saw unfair treatment of BOE members, and I also saw what healthy dialogue to find common ground looks like.
I know how governance in many areas of municipalities work. I am also eager to learn so much more. I might not know every line item of the budget yet or agree on all state and national politics with the members of the Township Committee, but I know that we can find common ground on the local needs of our neighborhoods like Bear Brook, Running Hills, Westview Estates, Windy Brow, and so many other beautiful areas in town.
I never expected to still be going to public meetings 30 years later, but maybe winning that school election by accident was one of the best things to happen to me.
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