Berkeley Board of Ed Takes No Action on Super Pick

Berkeley Board of Education members retreated behind closed doors Thursday night after a stormy special meeting over who should be the district's next permanent superintendent.

"We have a commitment to the taxpayers, the children and to our staff," board President James J. Byrnes said, after listening to nearly two hours of public comment. "There's a lot of weight on this board's shoulders. Like I said when I took office, leave the politics out. There will be no action taken after the executive session."

Although the agenda listed an executive session to discuss personnel and negotiations as the reason for the meeting, Byrnes opened the meeting up for public comment first.

At issue is whether the board should accept former superintendent and longtime Republican Ocean County Freeholder Joseph H. Vicari's offer to work for free until a permanent superintendent is selected, or finalize a contract with interim Superintendent Arlene J. Lippincott, who has served in that position for the last year and a half.

Resident Cheryl Altieri questioned why Vicari would work for free.

"I'm not sure why anyone would do it for nothing," Altieri said. "That's a poor business decision."

Board member Steven Pellechia told her not to "look a gift horse in the mouth."

"He's (Vicari) more than just a gift horse,  he's a jackass," Altieri replied.

That prompted an angry response from former board member Anthony DiPaolo, who stood up and shouted "Shut up!" at Altieri.

"Jimmy, she called a person a jackass," DiPaolo said. "It's a disgrace. Who the hell is she to talk like that?"

DiPaolo served nine years on the board, including three as board president.

Several other people, including board member Steven Pellechia, said a previous board's decision not to renew Vicari's contract in 2008 was illegal because it was done in closed session. Vicari left the district in 2009, when his contract expired.

"I"ve been fighting the battle to bring him back since,"  Pellechia said. "We are at the threshold. There's a difference between this (board's) majority and that majority. They didn't know what they were doing."

"The problem I have with this is that he was terminated illegally," DiPaolo said. "It was an illegal vote. They did it in closed session. It never came out in the open. I really have a problem with this woman getting up and calling Joe Vicari a jackass.  She gets up and calls Joe Vicari a jackass and nobody says a word. I'm appalled by that."

South Seaside Park resident James Fulcomer also agreed the 2008 vote was illegal.

"In reality, he should still be the superintendent," said Fulcomer, who is president of the Berkeley Township Republican Club. "I think you all know that Joe Vicari during his six years as superintendent did an outstanding job."

Holiday City resident Suzanne Calabrese lashed out at those who questioned Vicari's motives in offering to work free of charge.

"I'm just a humble citizen who's a little outraged at what I've been hearing," she told the board. "You hold in your hands the reputation of a very fine man. He was exemplary. And now all of a sudden, in a couple of  years, that gets thrown into the garbage. It truly stinks. There's an odor to it that's just not right."

Former school board member Robert Martino asked Byrnes whether Lippincott had a contract yet.

"There was a vote to open up negotiations with Mrs. Lippincott, and we directed (board attorney) Jack Sahradnik to open those negotiations," Byrnes said.  "As of Monday or Tuesday, Mrs. Lippincott dropped off her proposal for a contract."

"She's a heck of a worker and a very intelligent woman," Martino said. "I have the same respect for Mr. Vicari. The problem in this town right now is money. The budget must be reduced. The only way to reduce it is to accept a freebie. We have the opportunity now to save $170,00 for the district. We are crazy to argue about it. We should grab it."

Board members voted  5 to 1 at the Feb. 3 meeting to bring Vicari back as interim superintendent. They later backtracked at the the same meeting and tabled the vote, until a conflict attorney was brought in. Board member Dawn Parks voted no on the first vote and board member Patrick Riley abstained. Both Parks and Riley abstained on the second vote.

Board of Education members voted 7-0 at the Oct. 7 meeting to authorize Board Attorney John C. Sahradnik to begin negotiations with Lippincott  for a possible three-year contract as superintendent.

The board also voted unanimously at the Oct. 7 meeting to advertise the vacant principal's position at the Bayville Elementary School. Lippincott has been filling in for that slot, along with the interim superintendent's position.

Sahradnik said after last night's meeting he recused himself from any further contract negotiations, since he also serves as county counsel to the Ocean County Board of Freeholders.

Fulcomer also asked board members if they had considered whether Vicari could file a lawsuit over the way his contract non-renewal was handled nearly two years ago.

Resident Jerry Morey then asked if Vicari had filed any lawsuit. The answer was no.

"I'm appalled at the amount of partisan politics I've seen here," Morey said. "So there's really no reason Mrs. Lippincott shouldn't be superintendent."

Lippincott sat stoically on the dais with the rest of the board and did not speak during the meeting. She declined to comment after the meeting and said it would be "indiscreet" to do so until the matter was settled.