There was a lot to unpack from the May 22 RIH BOE meeting. Since I wasn't able to attend the meeting, it took me a little time to find 3.5 hours to watch the Livestream. So here are the key things that happened:
1 - A large crowd was there to protest the fact that two baseball coaches were suspended based on an anonymous email sent to the administration. By the end of the week, the coaches had been reinstated. News articles linked below.
2 - The firm's new legal counsel hired in February, The Busch Law Group, abruptly resigned. The resignation letter was shared with the public. There were lengthy 'opinions' from individual members of the Board, echoed by members of the community during public comment session, as to why they resigned (most blaming review and scrutiny of legal invoices, numerous OPRA requests and numerous Ethics Complaints).
Busch submitted a letter that laid out their reason - discord on the Board and ‘weaponization' of their legal advice (see letter in comments below). It should be noted that the only person on the Board who communicates directly with the counsel is Board President Judy Sullivan, therefore since she is the only one who decides what advice to ask for, she is the only one with the ability to ‘weaponize' advice. Busch Law did not comment on the record for a subsequent news article. NJ is small, education attorneys know each other, they talk to each other, and the truth will come out. In the meantime, what you are hearing is a lot of spin on the topic. Don’t be fooled.
3 - Superintendent Dr. Dionisio continues to run the schools in the midst of the Board chaos. The main topics mentioned in the meeting were the administration’s work on summer learning programs, new special ed programs, and many summer facilities projects.
4 - I am struggling to find much more actual discussion that is worthy of reporting on and that justified a 3.5 hour meeting. Board President Sullivan did a lengthy soliloquy about herself, and continued to praise only the majority Board members. There was a lot of time spent arguing between board members. Ms. Sullivan stifled several board members from speaking, as well as the Board Secretary and Business Administrator Tom Lambe, to whom Sullivan said "you're not a member of the Board". The Board and the public deserve to hear facts straight from the Business Administrator and not just the orchestrated spin from Ms. Sullivan. It is clear Ms. Sullivan did not like being fact checked by Mr. Lambe in previous meetings and felt the need to silence him.
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Notes:
Links to additional article on the resignation of Board Attorney
Ramapo Indian Hills attorney resigns because of trustees' 'attacks against each other'
May 23, 2023
On North Jersey dot com: https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/bergen/franklin-lakes/2023/05/23/ramapo-indian-hills-school-board-trustees-behavior-behind-attorneys-resignation/70246952007/
Archive: https://archive.ph/I1vel
Links to articles on the suspension and subsequent reinstatement of baseball coaches:
Ramapo High School baseball coaches suspended. They, parents, players want to know why
May 23, 2023
On North Jersey dot com for subscribers: https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/bergen/franklin-lakes/2023/05/23/ramapo-nj-high-school-baseball-coaches-suspended/70246927007/
Archive: https://archive.is/FDjg2
Ramapo High reinstates suspended baseball coaches. What we know
May 25, 2023
On North Jersey dot com for subscribers:
Archive: https://archive.ph/iGDov
Board Attorney Resignation Letter
