Cherry Hill BOE loses three
By JENNIFER KELLEY
Cherry Hill Sun
4/19/2007

Galie, Cohen and Trubin decided it’s time to move on

Three of the district’s veteran Board of Education members have announced they plan to retire from their duties on the board, effective April 24 when new BOE members are sworn in. Board President John Galie, Donna Cohen and Cindy Trubin – who both previously served as president – have together dedicated more than 30 years to the board and will be missed, said the district’s public information officer, Susan Bastnagel.

Galie is finishing his fourth term on the board. Throughout his tenure, he chaired various committees and subcommittees, including seven years as chair of the business and finance committee, and worked extensively on contract negotiations, leading several negotiating teams. Bastnagel noted that Galie was also instrumental in the development and passage of the 1999 bond referendum that resulted in the district’s first comprehensive facility improvement plan in 30 years. He also served as the board liaison to the bond committee, which oversaw the implementation of renovation and improvement projects at schools throughout the district.

Throughout his four terms, he served as vice president five times under four different presidents.

Galie, who is employed by the IBM Corp., served on the board while all four of his children made their way through Cherry Hill’s school system.

“When you have kids in the district, you have a vested interest in ensuring that the schools offer the most quality education possible,” he said.

But, he added, after his youngest child graduated last year from Cherry Hill High School East, he knew it would soon be time to move on from the demanding position.

Galie said one of the best things about serving on the BOE was seeing the fruits of his labor.

“When you work hard to have a quality school district – from academics to extracurricular activities to community involvement – and you see all the wonderful things these kids do, well, you know that the time you spent was worthwhile,” he told The Sun.

Cohen is also completing her fourth term on the board, and, until April 24, will continue to chair the curriculum and instruction committee.

In the past, she served as a New Jersey School Boards Association representative in the organization’s transportation lobbying effort, bringing the concerns of the district and the NJSBA to the state level, Bastnagel said. Cohen also has served as secretary to Camden County School Boards Association and as an alternate to the Board of Directors of NJSBA on behalf of CCSBA.

Before her election to the BOE in April 1995, Cohen was active on both Zone PTA and the district committee level. She teaches English at Woodbury High School, where she serves as department chair and AVID director, and was named Woodbury Senior High’s Teacher of the Year for 2006.

She told The Sun that, after 12 years on the board, she’s choosing to move ahead in other areas of her career.

Cohen said that, looking back on her years of service, she realized what a privilege it was to fund district initiatives, raise achievements, lower class sizes and increase extracurricular options.

“It was a pleasure and an honor to serve this community and see students benefit from that service,” she added.

Trubin is completing her third term on the BOE and currently chairs the human resources committee.

Prior to being elected to the board, she served the district for 12 years in various volunteer positions, including president of the PTAs at Cherry Hill High School West and Carusi Middle School, vice president of the Zone PTA, and various other PTA positions at both Carusi and Thomas Paine Elementary School. She also served on the district’s community budget committee, the site-based teams of Carusi and West, and on Zone PTA’s student focus/parent education committee (a predecessor of the current Character Education initiative), and continues to be involved with the district’s Character Education initiative as a member of its core committee.

Trubin told The Sun that she planned to stay active in the school district as chairwoman of the Character Education committee within ZONE, a district organization that brings together the heads of each of Cherry Hill Public Schools’ PTAs.

She said her favorite part of being on the board was watching students graduate.

“It’s just great to see them smiling, waving at their family members and so proud of their accomplishment. It has been an honor to serve our students and this community,” she added, “because education helps people fulfill their dreams.”