The New Jersey School Boards Association expresses its deep appreciation to two longtime staff members who are retiring from the Association: Sandy Raup, business data analyst; and Theresa Lewis, a senior field service representative.
Dr. Timothy Purnell, executive director and CEO of the NJSBA, expressed his gratitude to Raup and Lewis for their dedicated service in assisting local boards of education in their mission to advance the education of all children.
“Sandy and Terri have been invaluable assets to our organization,” he said. “Sandy’s talent for compiling crucial data and analyzing trends with precision and insight has played a critical role in supplying public school districts across New Jersey with essential information.” He added, “Theresa has spent countless hours conducting on-site workshops and providing services to empower local boards with critical skills in areas such as board member ethics, consensus building, holding effective meetings and more. The sessions she delivered at our annual Workshop were always among the most well-attended programs. We thank them both for their contributions and wish them the very best.”
Raup spent 29 years at the NJSBA in two separate stints, first from 1992 to 2002 and again from 2006 to the present, dedicating her career to serving the Association’s Labor Relations department.
Raup was the project manager of the Negotiations Data Portal, developing surveys, summarizing contract provisions, compiling data and analyzing trends that assist negotiators working in the interest of public school districts. Her tireless work allowed stakeholders to make valid comparisons at the negotiating table.
She also analyzed salary guides; presented at member training programs and webinars related to the use of comparative data and current trends in negotiations; and provided research support, and guidance to board members, administrators, professional negotiators and attorneys related to negotiations preparation.
Over the years, Raup also wrote numerous articles for School Board Notes as well as the Association’s quarterly magazine, School Leader, focusing on trends in collective negotiations and other data of interest to board of education members and school administrators.
Lewis spent 17 years at the NJSBA, having joined in 2008. She served districts in Camden, Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem counties.
She brought deep expertise to her role, having previously been a board member in East Greenwich Township in Gloucester County, where she was board president for most of her tenure.
She earned her pilot’s license and became a private pilot about five years ago, continuing a family tradition as most of her family members are also pilots.
In related news, the NJSBA recently welcomed a new staff member to serve as its new business data analyst.
Annette Goddard joined the Association in June and has been collaborating closely with Raup as she’s prepared for retirement to ensure that NJSBA members continue to get all the data and interpretive insights they need.
She brings a diverse background to the position, having served as a budget analyst at the New Jersey Department of Treasury, a supervisor for Electronic Data Systems and an assistant to the controller for the New Jersey Department of Higher Education.
