Newest BOE Member Plans to Focus on Student Achievement

Patricia Phillips might be new to the Board of Education, but she is a familiar face to the Matawan Aberdeen Regional School District.

Almost 34 years ago, in January of 1978, Phillips joined the district as a guidance counselor in the high school. In 2004, she was appointed as the director for student personnel services and then, a few years later, as the assistant principal. She performed both the director of student personnel services and the assistant principal duties after budget cuts eliminated the director's position in the 2010-11 academic year. At the end of the school year last spring, Phillips decided she was ready to retire.

She was not ready, however, to stop trying to help students. On Sept. 20, Phillips was appointed to the board to replace Pat Demerest, of Aberdeen, who chose to resign over the summer.

"I feel like I have come full circle, from working as a guidance counselor and an administrator and now on the board," Phillips said. "This was a goal I set for myself for when I retired. I have an attitude of always trying to serve kids and the community."

She hopes to focus on student achievement as a member of the board. Holding tight to her ideals from years as a guidance counselor, Phillips said she also wants to find ways to help those students who fall throug the cracks.

"How to get students to learn to be more competitive in this global society in which we live is important, and having kids understand that they have to be lifelong learners and be competitve and learn everything they can," Phillips said.

She added that Matawan has strong academics, but she wants to see every single child pursue something after graduation - whether it is college, the military, a career school or a trade.

"I want to help disillusioned kids who have given up see their potential also."

Phillips has not let her role as a guidance counselor slip away. Last year, she served as the president of the New Jersey School Counselor Association and continues her participation in the organization.

On Dec. 6, she will take part in the Human Rights Advocate awards dinner, an annual event that honors a school counselor that has served the district and community with a focus on humanitarian issues.

Phillips has now been a member of the board for two months, and has attended three meetings and multiple workshops. The board recently had their annual retreat, and Phillips said she is excited to be working with everyone.

"We get along together, we respect each other as neighbors and we have a really well tuned board right now. We have a tremendous superintendent here now. We're making positive change."

Despite all of the changes in the district that Phillips has witnessed - from fluctuating class sizes, new technology and the development of a strong and versatile athletic program - there is one thing always remains the same.

"Matawan takes pride in the community," Phillips said. "I've lived here for the last 35 years and I can't imagine living anywhere else."