Iselin is a neighborhood of Woodbridge Township, and JFK High School is a part of the Woodbridge Township School District. There are also two other high schools in our district, Woodbridge High and Colonia High.
I went to JFK back in the old days, and it was OK, not spectacular. Over the years, however, the school has really improved. My own kids went there more recently, and I found it to be a good place for them to get a decent education. It isn't perfect, but the faculty work hard to make it a place where you can find opportunity if you are willing to try.
One reason I believe that the school has become better since I graduated is because the school is much more multi-cultural now. It is not insulated from the rest of the world; students socialize with other students who come from a large variety of backgrounds. There are many different value systems to compare with. In my opinion, too many families in America don't value education enough. Often, it seems that the students coming in from other countries place a different, higher, level of importance on getting good grades. The competition for achieving is much stronger now, and I believe that this is raising the bar for everyone.
A cloud is looming on the horizon, however. The state of New Jersey is going through some serious financial issues. Everyone complains about our taxes. Taxes fund our schools, among other things. The new Governor has pledged to cut taxes, and there has been a lot of discussion about whether the schools should cost the tax payers as much as they do. So Governor Christy is going to make deep cuts to the school systems - ours included. It's hard to say right now what these cuts will mean to the education of our children.
A School Board meeting - open to the general public - will be held on Friday night, and the Avenel Middle School. I will certainly be there to learn more about our fate.
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