Millstoner disappointed with board president For the past six sessions of attending the Board of Education meetings, I cannot [help] but feel disappointed, frustrated and powerless in the attitude and receptiveness (or lack thereof) displayed by the president of the board, Mrs. Mary Ann Friedman. I have been forced to write this piece to be able to depict Mrs. Friedman's demeanor toward us, the taxpayers of Millstone Township. The authoritarian, nondemocratic manner in which the president runs the meetings conflicts directly with the way she was elected in the first place: democratically, through the ballot box. The president of the Board of Education should be held accountable for the mistakes and missteps regarding the transportation of nonpublic school students. Yes, I acknowledge [that] Mrs. Friedman only took the position within the last year. Nonetheless, a person in her position must demand all supportive reports and studies in order to be able to make intelligent timely decisions. When she became president of the board, Mrs. Friedman was obligated to forget the mistakes of her predecessors, move forward and demand from fellow board members, the superintendent and all the staff at the board office [that they] produce and submit all prospective viable solutions to a problem that was brewing. Instead, however, the president overlooked the needs of these children, who are also members of the Millstone community. By the time the problem exploded this summer, when confronted by parents, Mrs. Friedman was content by simply passing the buck to the transportation department. In the real world, someone must take responsibility for the tardiness and errors [with regard to] how the three failed bids were carried out. Someone in her position - overseeing a budget of over $30 million - should work and operate from a proactive position. Mrs. Friedman's leadership on this matter as well as others has been reactive in nature with a "put-out-the-fire" approach. As a taxpayer in Millstone, I am not a lonely voice in respectfully requesting that Mrs. Friedman yield her position to a more proactive, in-touch-withthe community member of the board to preside over the Millstone Township Board of Education. Enough with the limitations of 30 minutes [for] total public comments or five minutes per individual because some rule says so. Stop hiding behind board rules that disallow differing opinions. The wooden hammer the president uses at meetings comes with great responsibility: that hammer should be used to place order on the meetings, not silence the opinion of the electorate and your fellow board members. Ramon Recalde Clarksburg