In a candid sit-down interview, Montclair Public Schools Superintendent Ruth B. Turner joins us for the first installment of a new series we’re calling “Supper with the Super.” Over pizza and pasta at Italiana by Zod, we talk about the controversial school referendum, the district’s financial challenges, a potential school “reinvestment”, and what comes next for families, students, and taxpayers. We also share Part Two of our interview with U.S. Senator Cory Booker , where the conversation expan...
Mar 19, 2026•1 hr 13 min
This week on The Montclair Pod , we bring you one of our most important episodes yet. We tackle a deeply emotional and urgent issue: street safety. NPR's David Folkenflik joins us to share the heartbreaking story of losing his mother to a preventable traffic collision right outside his Upper Montclair home, followed by a conversation with Montclair’s new Complete Streets Director, Jacob Nieman. Then we sit down with Senator Cory Booker to discuss his new legislation, independent media, and his t...
Mar 12, 2026•1 hr 24 min
With the high-stakes school vote looming—or maybe not, thanks to a new lawsuit —we sit down with New York Magazine journalist Andrew Rice to figure out exactly where the school district's money went. We also talk a bit about local news collaboration and why it benefits everyone. Plus, a heartbreaking preview of next week's street safety episode with NPR's David Folkenflik, and a packed local news roundup. The "Missing" Money: Andrew Rice New York Magazine contributing editor and local dad Andrew...
Mar 05, 2026•1 hr 9 min
Watch and subscribe on Youtube This week, so much is in flux. First, Mike has to face the music after literally falling asleep at a recent Town Hall meeting. He also issues a formal apology to the MSU Men’s Basketball team for jinxing their perfect season. But it’s not all fun and games—we get down to serious business with three major interviews. Superintendent Dr. Ruth Turner invites us into her office to discuss the high-stakes March 10th special referendum, while developer Dave Placek gives u...
Feb 26, 2026•1 hr 2 min
Watch and subscribe on Youtube! This week, we welcome back Township Manager Stephen Marks to discuss how the town might intervene in the school budget crisis and the latest on Lackawanna Plaza. Then, we take a trip back in time with Lonnie Brandon —historian, former Parks & Rec director, and Montclair High football alum—who shares a powerful story from the 1960s involving legendary coach Clary Anderson. We also cover the "Cutover"—the month-long disruption to the Montclair-Boonton train line...
Feb 19, 2026•1 hr 3 min
Watch and subscribe on Youtube! Montclair is freezing - literally and politically. This week, Mike and Farnoosh break down the surprise NJ-11 primary win by Analila Mejia, and take a deep dive into growing immigration fears across Montclair. Immigration law expert Dr. Jackie Vimo, a professor at Montclair State University, joins the show, alongside local leaders Masiel Rodriguez-Vars, President of the Montclair Fund for Educational Excellence and Emily Kraft, founder of Craftivists , to separate...
Feb 12, 2026•46 min
Watch the show on YouTube In this episode, Farnoosh reports from a packed preschool info session at the Montclair Public Library, where parents of young children are weighing rising pre-K costs, the Mini Mounties lottery, and what comes next for kindergarten and beyond. We hear directly from families, admissions leaders, and new data showing a surge in interest from Montclair residents exploring private and alternative school options — and we unpack what a public-to-private pivot could mean for ...
Feb 05, 2026•1 hr 17 min
Watch the show on YouTube This week on the Montclair Pod, Mike and Farnoosh are back to tackle the snowy aftermath and a whirlwind of local news. From the high stakes of the NJ-11 Special Primary—where a crowded field of 12 candidates is vying for your vote—to the sugar-fueled controversy of "Slushiegate" in our school cafeterias, we’re covering the stories that have the town talking. Grab your coffee (or a Walking Taco) and settle in for a jam-packed episode on everything happening in Montclair...
Jan 29, 2026•51 min
Watch the show on YouTube This episode of The Montclair Pod moves between local crisis and statewide context . School Budget Crises: Montclair and Hackensack We dig into the growing reality that Montclair is not alone in facing financial trouble in its school district. We look closely at what’s unfolding in Hackensack , where an independent audit revealed a staggering $15 million budget deficit , prompting lawsuits against former administrators and vendors. State Power, Schools & Segregation...
Jan 22, 2026•1 hr 14 min
Watch the show on YouTube Following last week’s episode on the origins of the magnet system, we pick up the conversation at a critical crossroads—one where values, finances, and state oversight collide. We attend the latest school budget town hall, where Superintendent Ruth B. Turner and district leaders lay out the long road ahead, explain the district’s structural deficit, and address growing anxiety around the possibility of a state monitor and what that would mean for local control. We break...
Jan 15, 2026•1 hr 14 min
Watch the show on YouTube Montclair has long defined itself by its district-wide magnet system—a model built on choice, diversity, and integration by design. But today, that system is under unprecedented strain. Facing a $20 million budget deficit and rising transportation costs, Mike and Farnoosh go back in time to explore the system's roots in activism and legal battles, while asking hard questions about its future. Is the promise of equity being met, and what happens when our ideals stay the ...
Jan 08, 2026•1 hr 7 min
Happy New Year, Montclair! This week, we replay one of our hottest shows from 2025 that may inspire new connections in 2026 -- our field guide on modern love in Montclair. Featuring insights from: Junie Moon , relationship expert and Montclair’s own love coach Elizabeth and Jason , single parents share their experiences dating in Montclair Grace L. Williams , journalist and Montclair Pod special assignment reporter Mishiko Passikoff , therapist on tension in relationships over politics Reubena S...
Jan 01, 2026•36 min
This week on The Montclair Pod , we revisit one of the most consequential and talked-about episodes of the year: a deeply reported look at homelessness in Montclair and the growing tension between compassion, public safety, and limited resources. As rents rise and safety-net funding faces new pressures, this episode asks a hard but necessary question: what kind of town do we want to be—and what kind of town can we realistically be? At the center of the episode is Montclair Emergency Services for...
Dec 25, 2025•33 min
It’s the season of giving, and this week on The Montclair Pod we step away from school budgets and deficits to focus on something just as important: how we show up for each other. From financial support to time, attention, and presence, this episode explores what meaningful giving looks like in Montclair and why generosity doesn’t have to feel heavy, performative, or transactional. We’re joined by Ray Graj, co-founder of Montclair Helps , an organization built around a simple but powerful idea: ...
Dec 18, 2025•45 min
Why is Montclair nearly 20 million dollars in the red, and how did no one stop it? This week, we peel back the curtain on one of the most consequential crises the town has ever faced, examining how years of rising costs, missed warning signs, and avoided hard decisions brought the school district to this moment. We also break down: • The Superior Court ruling that invalidated the December 9 special election, the superintendent’s new plan for a March vote, and what immediate cuts mean for familie...
Dec 11, 2025•1 hr 4 min
Why doesn’t Montclair have any legal weed stores? This week on The Montclair Pod, we tackle a question that has floated around town for years, with a deep look at Montclair’s cannabis landscape , tracing how a town that once hosted New Jersey’s first medical dispensary now has zero open shops. Farnoosh and Mike walk through the long, complicated road to legalization in New Jersey, the zoning bottlenecks in Montclair, and the Catch-22 of opening a dispensary in a system where you need a lease bef...
Dec 04, 2025•52 min
This week on The Montclair Pod , we drop the episode a little early because Montclair’s school deficit story is moving at warp speed, and because some of us need something to listen to while hiding from relatives in the bathroom. In our r oundtable , we bring in Matt Kadosh and Asad Jung , two Montclair Local reporters who’ve been working around the clock to cover the town’s $19.6 million school deficit , the December 9 special election , and the sudden flurry of lawsuits, claims, and shifting n...
Nov 25, 2025•49 min
Subscribe, leave a review below, and please share your thoughts at MontclairPod.com . Follow on Instagram and send us a tip: hello@montclairpod.com. Governor-Elect Mikie Sherrill sits down with The Montclair Pod for one of her first interviews since the election. She delivers a candid, forceful take on Montclair’s deepening school budget crisis. Sherrill, a longtime Montclair resident and parent of public-school students, voices fury and frustration over what she calls a “breakdown in fiscal man...
Nov 20, 2025•1 hr 2 min
In her most candid interview yet, Superintendent Ruth B. Turner discusses accountability, fiscal discipline, and the tough choices facing Montclair schools, as the district faces a $19.6 million deficit and a pivotal special election on December 9. In the interview, Turner explains: Why Question 1 leaves out mention of the state loan and monitor Why Question 2 makes the tax hike permanent What a fiscal monitor could and couldn’t do in Montclair Why the forensic audit is tied to Question 2 Whethe...
Nov 13, 2025•56 min
Subscribe, leave a review below, and please share your thoughts at MontclairPod.com . Follow on Instagram and send us a tip: hello@montclairpod.com. This week on The Montclair Pod , Farnoosh and Mike put two of Montclair’s favorite topics under the microscope: schools and real estate . With a nearly 20 million dollar school deficit, a December 9 referendum, and talk of a possible state monitor, they ask the question everyone is whispering at open houses: Could this hurt Montclair’s reputation an...
Nov 06, 2025•48 min
Subscribe, leave a review below, and please share your thoughts at MontclairPod.com . Follow on Instagram and send us a tip: hello@montclairpod.com . This week on The Montclair Pod , Farnoosh and Mike head straight into Montclair’s creative heart, from film to storytelling to live theater, before zooming out to the pressing issue shaping our town right now: the future of our schools. Montclair Film Festival We begin at the Montclair Film Festival , where Farnoosh and Mike hosted a live conversat...
Oct 30, 2025•58 min
Subscribe, leave a review below, and please share your thoughts at MontclairPod.com . Follow on Instagram and send us a tip: hello@montclairpod.com . This episode dives into how residents are navigating modern relationships in all their forms: gay, straight, open, and swinging. The hosts examine how political views, community culture, and midlife realities shape connection and commitment in town. The pod also continues its coverage of Montclair’s ongoing school budget crisis, unpacking what’s at...
Oct 23, 2025•1 hr 6 min
Subscribe, leave a review below, and please share your thoughts at MontclairPod.com . Follow on Instagram and send us a tip: hello@montclairpod.com . This week, Montclair’s financial story gets real. We sit down with Town Manager Stephen Marks to talk candidly about the township’s budget, his first six months on the job, and why he believes a state fiscal monitor might be “warranted” for Montclair’s schools, given a nearly $20 million deficit. Then: What can Montclair learn from our neighbors in...
Oct 16, 2025•45 min
Subscribe, leave a review below, and please share your thoughts at MontclairPod.com . Follow on Instagram and send us a tip: hello@montclairpod.com . In this episode, we dig into the cost of living in Montclair and ask, is it worth it? We start at the Farmers Market, where residents share how rising prices are changing their day-to-day lives. Then, we meet a renter who dreams of buying in town but feels priced out, and hear from Councilor-at-Large and Deputy Mayor Susan Shin Andersen on what the...
Oct 09, 2025•53 min
This week on The Montclair Pod , it’s a jam-packed episode: Montclair Schools Budget Town Hall . We take you inside last Friday night’s meeting at Buzz Aldrin Middle School, where Superintendent Ruth B. Turner and Interim Business Administrator Dana Sullivan laid out the reality: the district is facing nearly $20 million in debt . Parents pressed for answers, students spoke out, and hard choices are on the table, from closing schools to eliminating Chromebooks. We break down what’s really at sta...
Oct 02, 2025•46 min
Subscribe, leave a review below, and please share your thoughts at MontclairPod.com . Follow on Instagram and send us a tip: hello@montclairpod.com . In our Season 3 debut, we are talking all-things schools. First, as we reported, Montclair Public Schools’ deficit is closer to $18M than $11M. We replay part of our conversation with Superintendent Ruth B. Turner , unpack what’s fact vs. speculation, and talk about oversight, a possible forensic audit, and what a “hard reset” could look like. Then...
Sep 25, 2025•54 min
This week on The Montclair Pod News : Councilor-at-Large Carmel Loughman has resigned just over a year into her term. We break down what happened, what it means for the council, and hear directly from Deputy Mayor Susan Shin Andersen on what comes next. The Montclair school deficit grows to $18 million. We revisit our conversation with Superintendent Ruth B. Turner and the state’s response to the district’s financial troubles. A new bagel shop is here — O’Bagel opened on Bloomfield Avenue to lin...
Sep 18, 2025•48 min
In a frank and revealing interview on The Montclair Pod, Montclair's new schools superintendent, Ruth B. Turner, announced that the district’s financial deficit has swelled to approximately $18 million . The startling figure combines inherited debts with a newly discovered $4 to $5 million shortfall in the current budget. Compounding the crisis, Turner revealed that after a direct appeal for help, the Township of Montclair has declined to provide any financial support to the schools. The intervi...
Sep 11, 2025•37 min
On the September 11, 2025, edition of The Montclair Pod News , Mike and Farnoosh open with reflections on 9/11 and how it shaped their early journalism careers. Then it’s: A fast tour through first-week-of-school headaches (and why better district communication is an equity issue) A sneak peek inside the revived Bellevue Theater A tense car-theft chase on Porter Place Paper Plane Coffee’s expansion The quirks of World Cup ticketing A playful pitch for HBO to film The White Lotus in Upper Montcla...
Sep 11, 2025•28 min
In this episode of The Montclair Pod , Mike and Farnoosh dive into the first week of September in town, with plenty of local updates and a few personal confessions. Highlights include: Back to School Drama – Montclair renews its $1.5M contract with food service provider Southwest Food Service Excellence. Will new “healthier” options and salad bars outweigh student complaints? Gas Below $3? – Prices hit five-year lows in Montclair, with one Valley Road station leading the way. Plus, what’s next f...
Sep 04, 2025•29 min
