Taking time out from packing up her Fort Lee legislative office for the move to her new headquarters in Hackensack, Assemblywoman and Freeholder-elect Joan Voss laughed as she recounted her “high-heeled” boots-on-the ground campaign for Bergen County Freeholder.

“My running mate [David Ganz] wanted to know if I taught all the residents of Bergen County,” Voss said, explaining that wherever they went, she ran into her former students.   

Having taught at Fort Lee High School for 41 years, there is no doubt that she taught thousands who are scattered throughout Bergen County. Thousands who came out to vote her into the office of Freeholder by a comfortable margin in November. 

Voss, a Democrat who began her political career in Fort Lee as a Republican, graduated from the Fort Lee council chamber — where she served from 1993 to 2004 — to the floor of the state Legislature in 1994, until 2011, when redistricting "threw me under the bus," she said. Voss was left without a seat when Fort Lee was folded into Legislative District 37, a district that includes Teaneck and Englewood. 

With the exception of Fort Lee being added, District 37 remained virtually untouched.

"My colleagues had been representing the people of this district for years. I could have challenged them in a primary, but I decided against it," she said. 

Unwilling to move to another town or challenge her legislative allies, Loretta Weinberg (D), Gordon Johnson (D) and Valerie Vainieri Huttle (D), Voss made the decision to run for Freeholder.   

As a legislator, a free and public education was a central issue for Voss.

Among her biggest concerns are charter schools, which are not governed by the local school district where they operate. Instead, the schools are governed by their own board of trustees under the authority of the N.J. Charter School Program Act of 1995, which grants charters to the founders who, in turn, serve as administrators of the school. 

“The purpose of the American education system is to be a microcosm of American society where varying cultures, ethnicities, and ideas come together,” Voss said. “A charter school is a public school that gets 90% of its funding from money set aside for public school education,” she added. "That's sorely needed funds that are being removed from the public education pool."

Voss sponsored a bill pending in the legislature that would require a referendum when a charter school is proposed for a town. "It should be the decision of the taxpayers, not an appointed person or committee," she said.

Currently, only the Commissioner of Education can authorize the establishment of charter schools; however, Governor Chris Christie wants to expand authorization to include universities. 

If the Commissioner of Education is not overseeing these charter schools, Voss asks, "Who is? Who in a university is going to be watching over these schools?"

Another issue close to Voss's heart is raising autism awareness.

As the mother of a son diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, Voss has spent much of her life as an advocate for the autism community. 

"My mission is to educate people about autism and Asperger's," she said. "People need to understand that autism is not a one-size-fits-all diagnosis. Every child is different; many of these children are extremely smart and we need to provide an education that reflects that."

She has introduced a bill in the legislature (A1129) that establishes a grant program for school districts to develop in-district and collaborative special education programs and services to reduce the need to place classified students out-of-district. 

Voss said that she is “saddened” to leave the assembly, where she served as Vice Chairman of the Education Committee, because there is still so much left to accomplish. However, she is looking forward to the challenge of going from representing 13 towns in the legislature to representing 70 towns with over 900,000 residents as a freeholder. 

As freeholder, Voss wants to focus on Bergen Community College's possible loss of accreditation; raise public awareness to domestic violence and provide job skills for victims; help seniors to get the services that they need; and look at what services can be shared on a county level.

Voss's campaign for freeholder began with Hurricane Irene and ended with "Snowtober" — the freak snowstorm that hit the northeast a week before election day. However, Voss said that touring the county during those severe weather events gave her a chance to see how every town was affected. 

It was heartbreaking to see everyone's belongings pulled from water-soaked houses during Irene, Voss said.

"Having a son with Asperger's taught me compassion and tolerance," Voss said. "And it's that compassion; it's that tolerance, that motivates me everyday."