From the Classroom to the Boardroom? Fair Lawn High Senior Chase Wille Vies for BOE Seat
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Fair Lawn NJ, in a move that’s turning heads across Bergen County, a current high school student is proving that you’re never too young to have a seat at the table. Chase Wille, a lifelong Fair Lawn resident and senior at Fair Lawn High School, has officially advanced to the public interview stage to fill a vacant seat on the Fair Lawn Board of Education (BOE).
The Board selected Wille to move forward in the appointment process following a review of candidates earlier this month. The next phase? A public interview where Wille will lay out his vision for the district he still attends.
A Resume That Defies His Age
Wille isn’t just your average high school senior. While his peers are focusing on prom and college apps, Wille has been building a resume steeped in municipal finance and legislative policy:
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Finance Intern: Currently assists the Village of Ridgewood with municipal budget preparation.
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Legislative Intern: Works within the New Jersey State Assembly.
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Civic Entrepreneur: Founder of PolicyLenz, a startup dedicated to civic technology and public engagement.
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Student-Athlete: Maintains a 3.6 GPA while taking heavy AP coursework (Calculus, Economics, Statistics) and playing for the varsity baseball team.
“Students Have a Stake”: The Vision for Fair Lawn Schools
Wille’s candidacy is built on a platform of fiscal responsibility and transparency. He argues that as a student, he has a unique, “front-row seat” to the impact of the Board’s decisions.
“I believe effective governance is grounded in fiscal responsibility, transparency, and a consistent focus on what is best for students,” Wille stated. “I would approach the role with respect for taxpayer trust and a focus on policies that prepare students for life beyond graduation.”
His key priorities include:
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Career Readiness: Expanding real-world learning opportunities.
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Financial Literacy: Ensuring students graduate with essential life skills.
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Long-Term Planning: Balancing the district’s growth with sustainable budgeting.
The Appointment Process
The Fair Lawn Board of Education is seeking to fill a seat vacated earlier this year. The board traditionally conducts these interviews in a public session, allowing the community to hear from the candidates before a final vote is held. Wille’s advancement to this stage is a historic moment for the district, highlighting a growing trend of “student voice” in local governance.
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Maybe Chase should buy a comb ?
What a head of hair! Flock of seagulls would be jealous!
I think this is a great idea. They need to make sure he can attend the meetings regularly, wouldn’t he be off to college at some point making that difficult?
Hi – I appreciate the comment and real concern. Let me start off by saying, the meeting was on Thursday 1/29. I did not receive the appointment to the Board. Instead, it went to a former trustee that recently lost reelection. With that being said, I would be able to balance college and meetings. They are once a month and I plan to stay in stay in state about 1.5 hours away, not too bad of a commute once a month. The difficult and time consuming part would be running for reelection and needing to come down every weekend in order to knock doors and GOTV.