I have never understood why the Cinnaminson property owners are paying for this “administration” building - when back in the 1970’s we did not need such a building (yet the township population was at its highest - 16,962). This building was a school and all of the administrators were housed at the various schools. In the last forty years, the township population has decreased by over 8% and we even tore down another school - in addition to converting this building from a school to administration.
It just seems common sense to close this administration building and to sell the land. I would think having all of the administration actually located in the schools would be preferable. Since the administrators are ultimately responsible for the day to day school operations putting them back in the schools is common sense. It might even enlighten the administration to the causes of our school violence. The cost of reconverting existing space in the schools back into administrative offices would be small compared to the saving.
And the Cinnaminson taxpayer, people like me, who just paid two expensive quarters would greatly appreciate the savings. After all, a homeowner of a comparable property just like mine across the river in Bucks County pays less than half in property taxes. Don’t property owners have the right to expect township and school officials to lessen the heavy property tax burden?
Sorry if I sound like an auditor, I have not been in that business for years.

wrong. A comparable home in Bucks is roughly the same taxes as ours. We came from there.. And almost bought there before Cinna. You may find some lower but generally its the same taxes.

what do taxes have to do with this report?

listen if you dont like the taxes here you can move to upstae PA and pay half. I have friends who do that. Guess what they also dont have city water/sewer, no trash pick up (yes they have to haul it to the dump themselves and pay by weight when they get there), and they have to haul their kids to school every morning no buss service.

BTW anyone know where I can find this report? I would love to read it...

@Maury.

1. Absolutely no student should suffer violence. There should be zero tolerance. It is not like we run schools on the cheap. How much school violence is acceptable to you? How much bullying is acceptable to you? How much sexual abuse of students is acceptable to you? I hope you say none.
2 & 3. Wrong. There is no justification, and you offer none, for any administrator working away from the schools. The superintendent is ultimately responsible for the schools and should work from the schools. Sal should be accessible to the students. Witness what happened at Triton a few days ago with the principal covering up the horrible sexual abuse of AT LEAST three students by teachers. Put the superintendent back in the schools, and if the superintendent is competent, that cover up will not happen.
4a. Put the administrators back in the offices they had before moving into Memorial School.
4b. Did they close all the fields, for example, at CHS, CMS, and New Albany? There is not much of a field at Memorial.
5. I have problems responding to you under any name you use.
6. What is wrong with cutting taxes and getting better services in this town? Are you waiting for Cinnaminson to have a Triton?
You too have a blessed day.

School violence is not out of control, the administrations violence/bullying policy is. If you don't have a child in the Cinnaminson system, then don't post about it, you know nothing. . 3 years ago, a child's pencil's fell from his school bag after another pushed his backpack. The pencils hit the floor. He was suspended for "weapons offense". An "aid" wrote him up for it. Last Thursday, a 17 year old child was suspended for going to the cafeteria for an apple, it was not his lunch time so he went to the nurse first for a pass, which he got. The boy was simply hungry. The "aid" denied him the access to the cafeteria so, he walked in a got the apple and walked back on to his class......HE HAD A PASS FROM THE NURSE. This is bullying, by the (paid, by the way) "aid". You people should get over to the schools and volunteer your time.... see what's really going on. Stay on topic too.

Yes, I would like to know where SAC would be relocated to??? Many of the parents in our district rely on SAC as an affordable and beneficial before and after school program.

A high school in Appleton, Wisconsin tried an experiment under the enlightened guidance of their principal, LuAnn Coenen. She wanted to see if she could positively affect the fighting, weapons-carrying and general lack of focus and discipline in the school by changing the food the kids ate.

Vending machines were replaced with water coolers; hamburgers and French fries were taken off the menu and replaced with fresh vegetables and fruit, whole grain breads and a salad bar. With the departure of junk food, she also saw the departure of vandalism, litter and the need for police patrolling her hallways. The students were calm, socially engaged and focused on their schoolwork. Problems were minimal. And all Ms. Coenen did was change the menu!

Please watch "Forks Over Knives" for FREE to learn more about the implications of a meat-based diet vs a plant-based diet. Go to http://www.hulu.com/watch/279734 and do yourself and your family a favor!

as usual, Ric (Eric) is lost, folks.. Just let him babble on..

violence in the schools has been there for ever. Infact, I would bet my paycheck that its down from years in the past. I know its better than when I went thru Cinnaminson. The difference is that they track it better now and they actually report it. Outlets like the patch get the problems out into public hands.... They didnt do that long ago. Most problems went unknown to the public. Having the administrator sitting in the office @ the school isn't going to keep little jimmy from stealing your lunch money. Again I hope to see the report. They dont post it on the school district website which would be nice. (or atleast I didnt see it)

BTW I do have kids in Cinnaminson schools and my wife does volenteer her time to help. We donate money and time to help where ever we can. After all its my kids who will benifit from it. While it would be nice to see the report read "there were no items to report"... I am realistic and know that will never happen. As long as our school administrators strive for better results year after year, and try to make it better every year I am ok with it. I am still glad to be here and have my kids in this school district. its much better than many of the alternatives. My kids learned about bullying in Kindergarten.... I learned about first hand starting in 6th. I bullied a couple kids and I now wish I hadn't. I didnt know any better at the time. My kids know about it now and our administrators did that from an office outside of the school.

I think we need to post the parents of these children maybe then will the parents give a crab! Its such a shame the schools are doing a complete turn around from how it use to be and parents (some) are still not doing their part.

Jerry you might be right, maybe they have gone wrong and I appreciate your opinion. We can agree to disagree. IMO The amount of violence in the Cinnaminson schools has not gone up or gotten worse since 1980... I believe its better, but that doesnt mean the job is done. Our ultimate goal as a community is to be at ZERO incidents ( which I also believe is almost impossible). I grew up in Cinnaminson and went thru the school system. When I was in highschool it was rediculuios how much crap we did. Heck I know a couple of guys who chained the doors in freshman hall and threw smoke granades ands stink jars down the hallway.... I knew kids who would pull the fire alarm just to get out of a class and go smoke in the woods. That kind of stuff has gone WAY down. It didn't get reported (to the public) back then. I feel its better than it was and if my kids can go thru this school system and not have to deal with that stuff its a win/win. Again... job not done and much more to go but IMO its going in the right direction. Maybe we have some growing pains along the way, I'm still here and trying to be active with my kids and our school district.

Did SOME of you here not read the Patch "bullying policy" regarding posts. Or should a copy be sent to each of your homes or emails. Remember it's an article on.......

When I moved back to Cinnamison in the 90's my son was tormented by 1 child. Even when they tried to sit them down to work it out the other child just ignored it. My son was ganged up on by three of this childs friends in SAC and the bully finally got thrown out of the after school program. You would figure the parents would have gotten this child some help. Alot of the bullying is done by the same kids over and over who have issues that their parents refuse to see. I agree with Jerry, sometimes one little joke can be misunderstood and they come down on a child who really meant no harm. Bully's seem to know when and how they can get away with things.

@ Chris, :-) :-) :-) :-)

I applaud all the parents who want zero bullying. I agree. I went through the Cinnaminson school system, my children went through the system and my grandchildren are presently in the system. It's a GOOD school system...not perfect but very, very good. Unfortunately, bullying has been around forever and it's up to then parents to not only teach their children tolerance but also when to report bullying.
As for Ric...I'm not sure what got him on the rant about the Adminstrative offices but that building serves many purposes (SAC, wrestling, cheerleading, etc.) and it was a wise decision for Cinnaminson to keep it as a useful property. I don't recall the Administration being present in the schools (other than principal, vice-principal) and I'm sure the kids couldn't care less if they are there.

Hmmpf, http://cherryhill.patch.com/articles/violence-up-in-cherry-hill-schools-thanks-to-new-bullying-reporting

@Jane. Hows about relief from high PROPERTY TAXES? HIGH PROPERTY TAXES, & HIGH PROPERTY TAXES? Why is the thought of cutting property taxes making some see red?
When I went to CHS, wrestling was done at the school and so was cheerleading. I have no idea what SAC is. Administration including the superintendent was officed in the schools - not in some building on Riverton Road that is far tucked away far from any classroom. We do not need that outdated and expensive to maintain building.
Of course I think it was a stupid decision not to sell that building. Why do we now need an expensive to maintain building for the school administration when the school population is much smaller than it was forty years ago? The space at the schools is still there unless someone came in the middle of the night and tore down.
If true fiscal conservatives where running this town the Memorial School building would have been long gone. Heck, the county freeholders certainly believe in selling buildings - Buttonwood
By the by, what happened in Triton was terrible, especially since a principal helped cover up the sexual abuse. It might have been prevented if the superintendent’s office was at a school and not in a building off the campuses. The way to prevent such sexual abuse from happening is to make students familiar enough with the superintendent they would comfortable enough to talk to him if the teachers or the principal is conspiring to cover something up.

I'm hoping someone can clear something up for me. What is the difference between "color-related" and "race-related" HIB incidents? Thanks.

@Ric...educate yourself. Find out what SAC is. I'm sure the high school wrestling team and high school cheerleaders still use the high school. However, the PAL teams need a place for practice and the Memorial School provides that space. When were you in the schools last? Seems to me every available space is being utilized.
There are other places you could live that have lower property taxes. You should check them out. I think you'd be much happier there.

Ric I have a question for you. I'm not trying to be a smart aleck, I am just interested.

You talk a lot about property taxes and services and everything, especially with our school district. First question, do you have kids in the district? Second question, how come you have never gone to any school board meetings and voiced your opinion.

Please don't tell us the reason you don't go is because "NOTHING EVER CHANGES". I was sick and tired of hearing that from Steven Fowles and he actually ran for town council. Now where is he?

@Jane. I thought about your suggestion and came up with a better idea. Why don't you move since you are opposed to lowering property lowering taxes and I will stay here and keep pushing for lowering the property taxes? And I will also continue to push to return the administration to offices they traditionally used in the schools if just as a way to help stop bullying and sexual abuse of students. What happened at Triton could have been prevented if the superintendent had not kept his office in a building which was not a school.
The population of Cinnaminson has fallen so there is no justification for that expensive to maintain building. Our police force has borne the brunt of cutbacks. Yet the school district is a fat and overstaffed than ever. I rather have more cops then more bloated school administrators. How's about you?
Jane, do you even know what you are rambling about? Yesterday you say that the Memorial School building “serves many purposes (SAC, wrestling, cheerleading, etc.)” Today you switch tunes and say “I'm sure the high school wrestling team and high school cheerleaders still use the high school.” PAL is not a school district program so where it is located is not a school district issue.

The bottom line is the property taxes in Cinnaminson are almost triple what they were in 2003. And the fiscal conservatives we elected do not even care.

Good luck in moving, I am sure you’ll be real happy in a higher property tax town.

Ric-
I often appreciate the fact that you stand up and challenge the status quo, but in this situation you are barking up the wrong tree.

I have kids in the school system. That building is used for much more than administration. The SAC program is there, which provides before school and after school services for students of working parents. Parents pay for this service. The building also houses the special education team. I am also pretty sure the technology department is there as well. As many have mentioned a lot of other groups use the facilities at night.

You mentioned that administration used to be housed in the buildings. Correct. They are all classrooms now. Are you going to kick our children out of their classrooms to save a dime? Not my kids.

Let's think of other practical ways to save money, because this isn't one of them.

ric I dont think anyone is going to disagree in the fact that we would all love lower property taxes. But the fact is that everyone taxes have fone up just like yours. Selling off township building isnt going to help lower your taxes. It might help for 1 year but next year its right back to the same problem. The building you speak of has been owned by the township for a long time i dont have confirmation on this but I would suspect they already own it and are not making a monthly payment towards it. There are a ton of things going on there and the SAC program is probably the biggest. Parents who have kids there pay out of pocked (above and beyond their high property taxes) to have their kids go there. This article discussed violence in Cinnaminson schools. Moving the superintendent to the highschools wont intimidate kids into being better. Its parents who do that. The administration handles a lot of things and for the most part they do a good job. We can all agree that not everything is perfect. But screaming about high property taxes isnt going to help cut down on vandalism. Maybe you should help organize a parents education class to help get parents involved with the kids, and teach them how to teach their kids about this stuff.

I would love lower property our taxes as well. There are a lot of smart people working on it and sometimes they get it right sometimes they dont. If we spent more than we make eventually it catches up.
If you think you can do better then I suggest that you run for office and get into a position to do so.
I have an idea! Maybe you should sell your shed and the land it sits on, its not like you cant put the lawnmower in the garage that you also already have. It will help lower your tax burden... sounds silly doesnt it? Thats basically what you are telling the townsip to do here.

My tax payment is high.. I will agree, but I like where I live and I will claim it when I do my taxes. I will do my best to keep paying what i have to pay to live here. I will find other areas of my life to cut back on I don't want to move. I assume you don't either so lets stick to the subject and worry about taxes in another article.