Six Candidates File to Run for Three Seats on the Montgomery School Board, General Election 2025

By Barbara A. Preston | July 31, 2025

Four newcomers and two incumbents have filed to run for the Montgomery Board of Education, which also represents the independent little town of Rocky Hill Borough.

Top (from left) Julius A. Nunez, Francine Pfeffer, and Kathryn Worland.

Bottom (from left) Joanna Filak, Jiying “Peter” Li, and Ania Wolecka-Jernigan.

The terms of board members Joanna Filak, Ania Wolecka-Jernigan, and Michelle Dowling will expire the end of this year. Dowling told The Montgomery News that she will not seek another term. She did not give a reason why. Filak and Wolecka-Jernigan will each seek another term. They are running together on a platform with the slogan "Children First." New candidate Jiying "Peter" Li of Grandview Road in Skillman will run on their ticket.

Three other new candidates who are throwing their hats into the ring include: Julius A. Nunez of Belle Mead who is running alone on a platform titled "Community, Education, Growth." Francine Pfeffer of Skillman is also running as an independent on a platform titled "Students First." And, Rocky Hill resident Kathryn Worland, who also has lived in Montgomery, is running on the platform titled "Investing in Education."

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The Montgomery News plans to write a more in-depth article on each candidate for the September issue of the newspaper. Here are short introductions to each candidate:

Julius A. Nunez, Belle Mead

Finance Director at Johnson & Johnson

• The school board briefly appointed Nunez in September to fill an unexpired position of the school board. The three-month term expired in December 2024.

• Graduate of Florida International University - College of Business

Francine Pfeffer, Skillman

Associate Director of Government Relations at the New Jersey Education Association (NJEA). 

Pfeffer is a lobbyist for the NJEA, a position she has held since 2007. Prior to that, she was a history teacher and school librarian, working in Brick and the Middlesex County Magnet Schools.

She is running because: "People move to Montgomery for our great public schools.  As an educator and public education advocate, I understand the resources our schools need to be great. I decided to run for the Board of Education because I want to help restore a sense of harmony and cooperation on the board.  Without that harmony, our schools will no longer be a place where our children grow and thrive and are prepared for their future."

Kathryn Worland, Rocky Hill

Volunteer and Mother

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 is an appointed voting member from 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, (also on an unpaid basis).

Joanna Filak, Skillman

Accountant

Filak is an incumbent on the Montgomery Board of Education. Read The Montgomery News article that appeared on her during the 2022 election.

Jiying “Peter” Li,

Engineering Manager at Trident Maritime Systems

• Dartmouth College PhD Materials Sciences & Engineering 1999 - 2003

• University of Science and Technology Beijing BS and MS (Metallurgical Engineering) 1991 - 1998

Ania Wolecka-Jernigan, Belle Mead

Transformation Office and Strategic Planning

Wolecka-Jernigan in an incumbent on the Montgomery Board of Education. Read The Montgomery News article that appeared on her during the 2022 election.