Three incumbent school board members are running unopposed as they seek reelection in the Nov. 3 general election.
Beth Behrend is seeking her fourth term on the Princeton Public Schools Board of Education, while Adam Bierman and Eleanor Hubbard are seeking their second terms. Board members serve three-year terms.
Behrend chairs the Long-Term Planning and Operations committees and serves on the Policy Committee. Bierman serves on the Operations and Equity committees. Hubbard chairs the Student Achievement and Equity committees and serves on the Personnel and Policy committees.
Behrend, a former board president, is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and holds a law degree and an LLM from the University of Michigan Law School. Her professional background includes law, finance and governance, and she has been active in Princeton schools and community organizations.
Bierman grew up in Princeton and attended the former Princeton Regional Schools. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Rutgers University and has worked as a teacher, including at a school serving teen mothers in Trenton. His mother taught in the Princeton schools for more than 30 years, and his father served as school board president.
Hubbard graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University and later earned a doctorate in history there. She taught public school in the South Bronx before teaching at Princeton University from 2009 to 2020. She also has served on the board of the Princeton University-affiliated UNOW child care center and has been active with the Riverside PTO.
The Princeton Packet and the Princeton Echo asked the incumbents about the issues facing the district, why they are seeking reelection and what they hope to accomplish during another term.
Why are you seeking reelection?
Behrend: It has been a privilege to serve our community on the Princeton Board of Education for the past nine years. I am running again to help take PPS to the next level in meeting the needs of Princeton’s children.
In bringing Dr. Mike LaSusa on board last year, our community secured one of the best public school superintendents in the State of New Jersey. With Mike’s experienced leadership and fresh perspective, the district is already functioning more smoothly and effectively, even with increased inflationary pressures and significant referendum projects under way.
Mike’s top-notch administrative team is developing PPS staff from within and attracting new talent. It’s an exciting time for PPS, and I would like to remain part of a well-functioning Board that supports our new district leadership with continuity and expertise.
Bierman: I grew up in Princeton and attended the old Princeton Regional Schools. Public service is a family tradition. My mom taught here for over 30 years and my dad served as school board president in the late 1960s. I want to honor their legacy of empathy, hard work and integrity.
I have taught social studies in Latin America and Asia. Now I work at a school for teen mothers in Trenton, where I helped start Reading Recovery, verbal de-escalation training, business English as a Second Language, and a full-service sex education program with Planned Parenthood. As a Communications Workers of America union shop steward, I helped maintain 98% member retention.
From that work, I learned one key lesson – resources are limited, so we need to use them wisely.
I am an independent voice. I do not look for conflict, but I do not avoid it, either. When I first ran, I promised three things – to scrutinize the budget, ensure every dollar counts and stay transparent with the public. I have kept those promises.
I also spoke out against unsustainable tax creep, which makes Princeton less economically diverse and forces other Princeton residents to move out. I welcome open debate on budgets and policy. I support honest conversations about test score gaps and how the district addresses race and gender. Being self-righteous and angry is not an argument.
I helped hire a superintendent with strong policy skills, communication and calmness under pressure, because those qualities matter most.
Some people do not like when a board member posts about school issues as they happen. I see it differently. Board members work for voters, not just the board. Sharing updates in real time helps keep public institutions honest. I represent all of Princeton, not one faction.
Hubbard: I am seeking reelection to the Princeton Board of Education so as to continue working to make public education in our town as good as it can be.
The district is fortunate to have a strong, thoughtful and dedicated central administrative team, and they are the ones, along with administrators, teachers and other staff at the six Princeton schools, who are doing the real work of educating our children, but Board members have a role to play in supporting good people and good initiatives.
Since I have joined the Board, I am happy to say that real progress has been made in terms of improving our schools. While serious financial challenges are looming, we are enjoying a period of productive calm, with collaborative work taking place under the deft leadership of our new superintendent.
By running again, I hope to contribute toward maintaining that positive momentum.
What do you hope to accomplish in the next three years?
Behrend: I would like to see a more thoughtful, limited use of technology in the district in support of student wellness and learning.
I would like to see a more respectful approach to students receiving special education services, rooted in trust and high expectations for what they can achieve, with greater understanding that accessible learning benefits all students. For example, through the application of universal design principles and explicit instruction in executive function skills.
I would like to see a smooth buildout and optimal use of the new spaces to better serve students across all six schools.
I would like to see state level legislative solutions to employee benefit and school funding mechanisms that are bankrupting local communities and unduly burdening local taxpayers.
Bierman: I want three things.
One is to deliver the referendum projects. You voted for these projects and deserve to see them completed right on time and on budget, with minimal disruption to students during the school year.
I want to fix the structural deficit honestly. A structural deficit means the district spends more each year than it brings in. Recurring expenses must match recurring revenue. Alongside of that, I would like to create a three-year plan that protects teachers and aides while cutting long-term financial risk.
I would like a clear explanation of how tax increases, changes in state aid and rising expenses affect the operating budget. You should be able to look at one page and see exactly where your money goes.
I would like to control health care costs. Health benefits take up a big part of every school budget and that puts pressure on classroom resources. State law limits our options. Chapter 44, passed in 2020, requires districts to offer specific state-designed plans based on projected statewide savings of at least $300 million, according to the New Jersey Education Association. Those rules narrow what one district can negotiate.
I would like to test where we can work around Chapter 44’s constraints, continue with private insurance or a joint-funded program, set a firm cap on cost growth. Remember, you cannot remove all risk but you can make informed choices to help reduce it.
It is possible to provide coverage for staff and predictable costs for taxpayers simultaneously. That is the balance I will keep working toward.
Hubbard: The school district has always been strong and in recent years, it has been getting perceptibly stronger. My special interest on the academic side of things, and I’m very happy that the concerns about the math curriculum that first drew my attention to Board service have now been addressed.
Going forward, I hope to support efforts to strengthen and improve other elements of the curriculum, particularly in the humanities, which have received less attention in public discussions about the schools in Princeton.
As someone who loves to read, I hope to defend the human activities of reading, thinking, talking and writing in a world increasingly flattened by screens.
