East Windsor Board of Education Approves 2011-12 Proposed Budget

Forget about the school board unanimous approval of the 2011-12 budget, Judith Rajala was back in town, and to steal a line from Fernando, she looked “mahvelous!”

The 47-year-old board member attended her first board meeting in several months after undergoing a double mastectomy and participating in a clinical trial to treat breast cancer.  Diagnosed with cancer on Christmas Eve 17 months ago, Rajala said she survived three operations, chemotherapy, radiation and six months of wigs.

Despite her illness, the married mother of four, kept in touch with board happenings –why – “because education is my top priority.”

 “You look beautiful,” said one admirer touching Rajala’s short brown hair that replaced her longtime “Farrah Fawcett” hairstyle.

Before the meeting several board and audience members welcomed Rajala by commenting on her healthy appearance and the new pixie-style hairdo.

“It’s all mine. You can touch it,” said Rajala, a 10-year-board member, who had her last cancer treatment on Jan 4. “Being alive with short hair is a lot better than being dead with long hair.”

Once the meeting began it was business as usual as board members considered ways for reducing the $19,726,451, budget, a 4.77 percent hike from the current one. In the past board members said the increase covered contractual obligations and additional money had been necessary to maintain current programs and opportunities.

Acting School Superintendent Carol A. Fox said she recently met with administrators who concluded reducing supplies was not an option. Union employees will receive no salary increases for the upcoming year, she said.

The board considered including five of eight positions that had been cut over the past three years, said Board Chairman John Pica-Sneeden. But adding the positions meant a 7.4 percent increase, which would have been unacceptable in the tough economic times, he said.

“We worked hard to get the kids what they needed,” Pica-Sneeden said.
Before the vote Business Manager Linda Guiliano said employee’s health insurance figures were not available, but predicted the numbers would probably be less than the current budget’s amount. Another looming dilemma could be figuring out how to pay for snow removal costs. They budgeted $45,000, but spent $51,000, which doesn’t include the $169,000 expense for removing the roof snow on the town’s three schools, Guiliano said.

After a 20-minute discussion, a motion was made to approve the budget and in her first official act back Rajala seconded the motion.

After the meeting Rajala said it’s been a tough emotional year that had many warm moments including her being able to present her 17-year-old daughter, Samatha, with her high school diploma in June. And being sick allowed her to prioritize what’s important, said Rajala, who works from home as an editor for an educational magazine and website.

“Life is only worth living, if you live it,” she said.