Kathryn Worland, Montgomery School Board Candidate

The 2025 Montgomery Board of Education Candidates, In Their Own Words

The Montgomery News | October 3, 2025

Six candidates are running for three open seats on the Montgomery School Board, following a year of long, heated discussions at board meetings, some lasting until midnight. The current board of nine members could be described as fractured on multiple important issues.

The local chapter of the League of Women Voters and The Montgomery News invited all school board candidates to a participate a candidates' forum during the month of October - as has been a common local practice. Three candidates said yes (Julius Nunez, Francine Pfeffer, and Katheryn Worland of the Excellence in Education Slate). Two did not respond (Jiying “Peter” Li and Joanna Filak), and Ania Wolecka-Jernigan responded no. Incumbent Michelle Dowling will not seek another term.

The candidates' answers in this "In Their Own Words" series are unedited. The Montgomery News is donating this space.

Kathryn Worland

Mother and Volunteer

Kathryn Worland's current work is entirely volunteer-based. She is co-president of the Montgomery Elementary Schools PTA; the co-president of the Montgomery Middle School PTO; the secretary of the Montgomery Basketball Association; the scheduler for the Montgomery Youth Lacrosse Club; and she is an appointed voting member on the Rocky Hill for the Montgomery Rocky Hill Municipal Alliance.

She is a full-time parent with her husband to their two children, 2nd and 6th grades and they live in Rocky Hill. Their Montgomery Township home was destroyed in a flooded during Hurricane Ida in September 2021.

Q: Do you believe in an educational “voucher system” that would allow parents to take taxpayer money and divert it to pay for private school tuition costs? Why?

A: I do not, and I feel this way even though we previously paid for three years of private school tuition. Public schools are funded using taxpayer money because they provide a good for the entire community; strong schools benefit the students who attend, the property values of local homeowners, and encourage educationally-minded families to live here. I made a choice to not have my child in the public school system for a period of time, but I still was a community member reaping the benefits of our phenomenal schools. I do not think it would be appropriate to also siphon money away from that school system.

Q: Do you agree or disagree with the following statement, why or why not: “The responsibility of School Board members in New Jersey is confined to policy making, planning and appraisal, and helping to frame policies and plans after consultation with those affected by them. A board member’s responsibility is not to administer the schools, but to see that they are well run.”

A: I agree with this statement wholeheartedly. School Board Members are elected officials, chosen for their temperament, commitment to education and financial responsibility, and dedication to the district. We are not vetted for the ability to draft curriculum, to assess the rigor of our mathematics department, or to coordinate academic continuity across schools. That is the role of our educators, supervisors, and administrators who ARE vetted for such abilities. Our district has the privilege of state-recognized educators who bring their education and expertise to administering the day-to-day aspects of the school. The School Board Members should be respectful of the time and commitment they put into their jobs and not unproductively micromanage their work. While individual School Board Members may come from a background that leads them to believe they have the ability to directly oversee or dictate the work of the school, it is unproductive, undermines the relationship between the Board and the schools, and unfairly has a negative impact on the confidence our community places in our schools and our educators.

Q: Who do you believe should be determining which books are in the school library system and in the curriculum and why?

A: Our district has exceptionally qualified educators, supervisors, and administrators who use their experience and expertise to craft curriculum that meets (and exceeds) state and federal standards and prepares our students for challenges inside and outside the classroom. Part of that is the selection of developmentally appropriate texts that are the stepping stones to even more rigorous coursework in the future.

Our school library system also benefits from faculty with a wealth of knowledge on books that align with the reading levels, appropriate content, and diversity of their student body. The librarians also stay abreast of new authors and trending genres to continuously expand and evaluate the selection of books available to their students. They are on the front line, engaging with this literature daily, and are the best candidates to determine the books in the school library system.

Q: Montgomery’s population includes a large percentage of immigrants. What is the role of schools when interacting with ICE in your community? 

A: U.S. Immigrations and Customs enforcement is a federal law enforcement agency, and as such, the school already has an established policy for interactions with law enforcement (District Regulation/Policy 9320). The State of New Jersey has also provided guidance for school protocols for immigration enforcement to ensure appropriate judicial procedures are followed and designated school administrators are involved, including the opportunity to consult with district legal counsel. The school should act in a manner consistent with the rule of law and district policy.

Q: Do you support the implementation of policy 5756? If elected, will you seek to rescind or remove the policy and why or why not? If the policy is removed or rescinded in your district, what is your alternative plan dealing with the issues this policy covers?

A: I currently support the implementation of Board Policy 5756; it advocates for treating students respectfully and abides by the current interpretation of NJ Law Against Discrimination, which prohibits parental notification on the basis of a protected class. I would not seek to rescind or remove the policy since its application is not causing problems within the school and keeps the school legally compliant. If the policy were removed or rescinded, the district would need to craft a policy that adhered to NJLAD while being supportive of transgender and gender nonconforming children. There are pending legal rulings that would have a significant impact on Board Policy 5756 and any alternative policy that could be developed.

I personally believe that education does not happen in a vacuum and a school that does not have a strong working relationship with its families is missing a critical component for student success and safety. I believe our schools need to involve parents, who have their children’s best interests at heart and want to help them navigate the difficult process of growing up. Though mandatory parental notification is prohibited by NJLAD, I believe our schools should have a policy, complementary to Board Policy 5756, that works with students on how they can speak with their parents to ensure they have support inside and outside the classroom.

Q: What issues, if any, do you believe our district needs to address in its academic program and vocational and fine arts offerings? What changes would you recommend?

A: I believe our district currently has exceptional academic, vocational, and fine arts offerings. However, we risk stagnating if we rest on our laurels and fail to provide new courses and pilot innovative projects. With this in mind, I believe we need to work with the administration to get feedback on additional offerings that would benefit the students and the school.

In my roles as Co-President of the PTA (grades pre-K through 4) and of the PTO (grades 5 through 8), I review faculty grant requests for materials or programs that the school is unable to fund. It is often disappointing for us, and for teachers, that after a year of in-classroom implementation with demonstrable benefits, there is no space in the budget to support a proven initiative.

I would recommend closer collaboration with administration and parent associations as the budget is developed to understand new programs or programs previously funded by other sources that should be funded at the district level. ■

Two incumbents, Joanna Filak and Ania Wolecka-Jernigan, are seeking reelection. They are running on a slate with Montgomery resident Jiying "Peter" Li. This election will have serious consequences on the future of the school district, so it is important to vote. >> Click Here to Review their responses. ■