Discover Teaneck '83: "THEN AND NOW"

Published for The Teaneck Housing Center by The Teaneck News
May 18, 1983

 

Board of Education: Discover Teaneck's Schools!

By Loretta Tonge

Last year I had the pleasure of participating in the Discover Teaneck bus tour as a house hostess. It was a rewarding and satisfying experience to personally greet visitors to our town and to my home, as they attempted to briefly sample a bit of the culture, shopping, varied lifestyles, and diversity of people that make our community a truly viable one. It is true, as the New York Times once quoted. "Teaneck's trump card is its charm." One has only to look at our park-like setting and the vast selections of home styles to realize this. But beyond the scenic settings and the "brick and mortar," it is, in the final analysis, the people that make a community livable. We in Teaneck are fortunate to have such a livable community, because of people who are dedicated to making it so.

This is something that I personally rediscovered myself last year and will, perhaps, never cease to discover each year that I participate in this community program. One of the questions people ask me, is why am I serving as a trustee on the Board of Education now that my children have left the system and have gone to college. The fact that I live in Teaneck and want to see it continue as a viable community makes my involvement even more important.

While serving as a Discover Teaneck hostess and conversing with the tourists, I realized just how important a town's educational image is to potential residents and their families. Our Discover Teaneck's Public Schools Day provides a much needed insight into our educational system for people who may be interested in making Teaneck their home, and who want to be certain of a high quality standard of education for their children. They will discover, I am proud to say, an educational system that is second to none in terms of standards, student achievements, innovative programs, and motivated teachers and administrators.

They will discover that we are not only interested in providing quality education for all resdents but in maintaining it as well. The days of our town's one school house and pot bellied stove are gone forever -- but the need of our students essentially remains the same. As with many other communities, this goal has not been an easy one to achieve in view of increasing budget pressures, declining enrollment, reorganizational pains, and the need to find alterative uses for our existing facilities. However. as the theme of this year's Discover Teaneck Then and Now suggests, and as we see in our celebration of the Bergen County Tricentennial -- nothing has ever really been accomplished without the commitment, dedication, and the unity of people working together to improve their lot.

This has always been true and will continue to be so. This is one of the reasons Teaneck has achieved the status that it enjoys today. We have come a long way, and we still have a long way to go. We can all begin by first rediscovering ourselves and making a personal commitment to serve our community and to get involved, so that we meet the challenges ahead. Each of us has a talent and a contribution waiting to be discovered. With our success, will also come our rewards. 

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