Alex Scofi for Englewood Board of Education
I am a Special Education teacher who works in Paterson and is running for Board of Education in Englewood, NJ. If elected to the Board I would focus on three main things.
If you have information, feel free to email me directly at alexscofi@gmail.com. Please include the term "Englewood BoE" in your email subject line.
I believe that there are certain changes that can be brought to Board meetings to improve transparency and accessibility. These can be found in BoE Reforms.
I believe we should improve and expand programs that already exist. One of the best examples of this is the Dual Language program that exists in some of Englewood’s pre-school, Kindergarten, and Elementary schools.
Lastly, from my experience in the classroom, I have found certain teaching practices that are effective. On the board, I would advocate for these ideas and policies to be further utilized in the Englewood school district. These ideas and policies can be found in my platform.
Board of Education Meeting Reform
Anyone who has been to a Board of Education meeting knows that it is not the most convenient experience. If on the Board of Education, I would advocate for the following actions to increase Board accessibility.
Increase the start time of Board meetings.
Board meetings frequently run past 10 o clock and have been known to run to 11:30 and later. Increasing the start of the board meetings increases the accessibility of these meetings for parents who need to get home to their kids.
Have adequate number of agendas printed out at the beginning of all meetings.
Often when going to a board meetings, although agendas are printed, they sometimes run out. Making sure there are enough Board Meeting Agendas ahead of time is key to helping all Board visitors stay informed.
Make sure all presentations made to the Board of Education are printed out beforehand.
Very often when visiting the Board presentations are made on a screen that many visitors to the Board meetings cannot see or read. I think it is critical that if a presentation is made to the Board of Education printouts are provided both to the Board Members and anyone visiting the Board Meetings. This is a small step that lead to much more transparency.
Dual Language Program
WHY IT MATTERS?
My parents moved to Teaneck before I was born because it was the first town to voluntarily integrate. Growing up I had friends of every creed and color. I made lifelong friends and learned so much. I would never change a thing.
When I look at Englewood I see that same promise- a culturally diverse town that flourishes because of their diversity. Nothing to me epitomizes that to me more than the gem of Englewood, it’s Dual Language Program.
WHAT IS IT?
The Dual Language program is an immersive language program where students learn in Spanish or English with one teacher in the morning and then switch for the second half of the day learning entirely in the other language in the afternoon. It is a fantastic way for students, both those who predominantly speak English, and those who predominantly speak Spanish to learn a second language.
WHAT DO PARENTS AND STUDENTS SAY?
When asked parents and students alike have universally good things to say. Some quotes include...
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HOW TO APPLY
If you are a parent and would like to apply to the program, you can find the link to apply here: https://core-docs.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/1042/EPSD/5604057/2025-2026_Dual_Language_Application_FLYER-_Spanish_translation.pdf
WHY IT MATTERS TO ME...
Before I was a teacher, I substitute taught in Englewood. For a while I substituted at John Greico Elementary. When I was there I saw firsthand how successful the Dual-Language Program was there. Students in the morning learned Spanish or English and in the afternoon switched to the other language.
I wasn’t just impressed both by how much the students in the program learned, but by how much they loved the program. In a recent Board meeting I was sorely disappointed to learn that the program is going to be decreased in size because of a lack of attendance. We heard from a number of parents whose students’ loved the program.
If elected to the Board, I will work with other Board Members to make sure that the program is properly managed and advertised so that this gem of the Englewood schools not only does not decrease in size and scope, but, in the end, is expanded to include more students.
PARENT FEEDBACK
If you are a parent or student who has gone through this program and would like to share your thoughts on the program, both if you enjoyed it or have concerns please email me at: alexscofi@gmail.com. In your email subject please make sure you include the words “Englewood” and “Dual-Language Program”