Susan Eichmann, Donna Custard and Jack Newman were sworn in at the reorganization meeting
The Burlington Township School District Board of Education selected MaryAnn McMahon-Nester as president and Susan Eichmann as vice president.
McMahon-Nester was previously serving as vice president of the board and Eichmann was a board member. The board’s 2016 president, Sherry Knight, left the board this year after almost eight years of service to pursue other service opportunities in the community.
Knight served on multiple board committees, including policy, curriculum, communications and negotiations. She has distributed diplomas to eight Burlington Township High School graduating classes.
The board said a teary goodbye to Knight at the December meeting, where McMahon-Nester presented Knight with a plaque on behalf of the entire board.
Knight was praised for her efforts on the board and for remaining thoughtful, professional and caring throughout her term. Knight said it had been an honor to serve the board and she would be visiting often.
“It definitely has been a pleasure serving you,” Knight said. “Thank you for the opportunity to serve.”
Eichmann has been serving on the board since 2009 and has lived in Burlington Township for 23 years. She is the mother of two Burlington Township High School graduates as well as two Burlington Township Middle School students.
In addition to her tenure on the Board of Education, Eichmann has been a member of every school-family association and is an active volunteer in the district. Eichmann previously served as board president from 2011–2013 and vice president from 2013–2014.
Eichmann and board member Donna Custard were both re-elected to the board this year along with newcomer Jack H. Newman. Board secretary Nicholas Bice swore in the two re-elected members as well as Newman.
In the 2016 board election, Eichmann overwhelmingly received the most votes at 4,658 votes, or 30.63 percent of the total. Custard received 4,040 votes, 26.56 percent, and Newman receive 3,439 votes, 22.61 percent. Challenger Lisa Bungarden received 3,039 votes, totaling 19.98 percent, and was not elected to the board.
Bungarden was a previous board member and campaigned hard for re-election alongside Eichmann and Custard, but ultimately lost her seat on the board.
The board also adopted a new 2017–2018 calendar at its reorganization meeting last week. School will begin on Sept. 6 and end on June 21 with pending revisions for snow days.
Additionally, the calendar for the current school year was revised and readopted. School will be closed from April 14 to April 21 for spring break, and the last day of school is set to be June 22.
The first regular board meeting of the year will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 25 at 7 p.m. in the Thomas O. Hopkins cafeteria at the high school.
